Black and White Boxer Dogs
What the color is, how it is bred, and what it means for you.
A black and white Boxer dog is usually one of two very different animals: a dark brindle with flashy white markings, or a mostly white Boxer carrying dark patches, the kind owners call a check. Ads and searches often lump the two together.
The standard does not. What separates them is the amount of white. Up to one third of the coat, and the dog is a flashy brindle or fawn that can be shown. Beyond one third, it is a white Boxer, with the hearing and sun questions that come with that coat.
Our past litters have included white and check puppies, like the ones in our photos.
If you like white markings, Prince and Cassandra are available now, with flashy white on the face, chest and feet.
Looking for a Puppy? See Our Other Colors
We have no black and white puppies right now. Our fawn and brindle puppies are ready to go home, or tell us what you are hoping for and we will keep you posted.
What Is a Black and White Boxer?
Since Boxers carry no gene for solid black, the "black" in a black and white Boxer is nearly always dense brindle striping. A heavy brindle with a white chest, white feet and a white blaze reads as black and white from across a room, and up close you will find fawn between the stripes.
The other version starts from white. A Boxer with white over most of its body and dark brindle patches on the head or flank also looks black and white, but under the standard it is a white Boxer. Dogs that are solid jet black with white trim fall outside the breed altogether, as the black Boxer page explains.
What Does Flashy Mean on a Boxer?
Flashy is breeder shorthand for a colored Boxer with bold white markings: usually a white chest and feet, often a full or partial white collar, and a blaze up the face. Its opposite is plain, a dog with little or no white. Flashy is not a term in the standard, but plain is, and the standard goes out of its way to say plain dogs should not be penalized.
What the standard does ask is that white enhance the dog's appearance, stay off the flanks and back, and not take over the face. A white blaze may cut into the mask and climb between the eyes, but not so far that it spoils the Boxer expression. Flashy markings work on any shade, which is why you see flashy brindles, flashy reverse brindles and flashy fawns.
What Is a Check Boxer Puppy?
A check is a white Boxer with colored patches, usually brindle or fawn, scattered over the head, ears or body. The name is informal and has no standing with the AKC. On paper, such a dog is recorded as white. A check with dark brindle patches is the classic black and white look.
Because a check is a white Boxer, everything that applies to white applies here: it cannot be shown in conformation, it should have a BAER hearing test, and its pink skin needs sun protection.
How Much White Can a Boxer Have and Still Be Shown?
One third of the coat is the ceiling. The AKC standard disqualifies "Boxers with a total of white markings exceeding one-third of the entire coat," and placement matters too: white on the flanks or the back of the torso is listed as undesirable even within the limit.
| Coat | White | Conformation |
|---|---|---|
| Plain fawn or brindle | None or very little | Eligible |
| Flashy fawn or brindle | Chest, feet, neck and face, up to one third | Eligible |
| Check | More than one third, with colored patches | Disqualified |
| White | Nearly all of the coat | Disqualified |
Why Do Flashy Parents Have Check and White Puppies?
A flashy Boxer carries one solid and one white copy of the white spotting gene, so two flashy parents can produce plain, flashy and white or check puppies in the same litter. A plain parent paired with a flashy one is not expected to produce white puppies, as the white Boxer page explains.
Will a Black and White Puppy's Markings Change?
The white stays where it was at birth. Patches do not spread or fade, and a blaze that looks broad on a puppy usually looks narrower on the adult head. The dark parts are where change can happen: a dense brindle often reads as black in the nest, and fawn between the stripes may come through more as the adult coat develops. A puppy that looks crisply black and white at nine weeks can look more brindled at a year.
What Care Does a Black and White Boxer Need?
Two things set these dogs apart from plain Boxers. First, pink skin under white hair, on the muzzle, chest or belly, can burn, so shade in strong sun matters, and a check with a lot of white needs the same care as a fully white dog. Second, a check or any very white Boxer is worth a BAER hearing test, arranged by the breeder or by your own vet. Beyond that, grooming is ordinary: a weekly brush, a wipe of white legs after muddy walks, and the routine in the shedding and grooming guide. The Boxer health guide covers the questions that apply to every color.
To see how this look sits among the other markings and shades, the Boxer colors hub has the overview. Whatever is listed at the moment, flashy, check or plain, is on the available puppies page.
Black and White Boxer Questions
Is a black and white Boxer purebred?
It can be. Both common versions, the heavily striped dog with white trim and the white dog with dark patches, are purebred. A dog with a truly solid black body and white markings is not, since the breed has no black gene.
Can a black and white Boxer be shown?
A flashy dark brindle can, provided its white stays within the one third limit and is well placed. A check or white Boxer is disqualified from conformation but can compete in performance sports such as obedience and agility.
What is the difference between a check and a flashy Boxer?
The amount of white. A flashy Boxer is colored with white trim, while a check is white with colored patches. The first can be shown and the second cannot.
Does a flashy fawn count as a black and white Boxer?
Not usually. The name tends to go to dark brindles and checks. A flashy fawn wears prominent white trim, typically a white bib, white paws and perhaps a blaze, and the standard accepts it as long as the white is modest enough to meet the one third rule.
Are check Boxers more likely to be deaf?
Yes. A check is genetically a white Boxer, and deafness in one or both ears is more common in white dogs. Only a BAER test can confirm a puppy's hearing.
Do the patches on a check puppy fade?
No, the patches keep their place and do not fade.
Hoping for a Black and White Boxer?
Tell us what you are looking for and we will let you know when a puppy like that is ready.