Something extraordinary has been happening lately. Two years ago, the ever controversial issue of white boxer pups and what should be done about them might, if anyone were brave, have involved an occasional, and probably obliquely stated, suggestion that just POSSIBLY one or two of them could, SOMEDAY, be allowed to continue respiration post birth. To many, even that would have been heresy. But witness recent discussions on the Showboxer List, where the existence and the fostering of white pups seems not only to be taken for granted now, but recently well respected breeders are calling for acknowledgement via AKC Limited Registration for these hitherto "invisible" members of our litters. Several even more astonishing messages included suggestions for separate classes at shows, and breeding white to plain to produce uniformly flashy litters. To say that I might have been knocked over with the proverbial feather by some of these posts would be to understate the facts. What a turn of events-- and it's all happened, I feel certain, thanks to the existence of the Internet and its instant communication capabilities.

Obviously, not all feel equally sanguine about the issue. Plenty of folks continue to believe in disposal versus nurturing. And even for those who don't agree to do in the percentage of their bitches’ puppies whose flash exceeds their color, other issues continue to pose challenges - especially for ABC members, who cannot, according to the ABC Code of Ethics, sell puppies that are more than a third white.

Another list member expressed her disquiet at charging a small fee in exchange for the previously unmentionables in her litter. I pointed out that first of all, the concept of "no selling" isn't a mandate from God. It comes from a somewhat lesser body called the ABC. If she’s not an ABC member, it's her own business, and should certainly remain so. Once she's become a member of that august institution, THEN she can lose sleep over all sorts of things in which she may believe. But for the time being, I suggested that I personally wouldn't sweat it.

As to this ABC member's stance on the issue of remuneration, it will come as no surprise to anyone here when I tell them that the "rare white boxers" produced by way of backyard breeding sell in the greater Washington, DC Metropolitan area (via the newspaper, of course) for $950. When you consider the tremendous cost of producing the average "show" litter, most folks will probably understand how that fact rankles someone who's bound by the ABC Code of Ethics, and may not reap any reward whatsoever for the beautiful work her bitch has done in producing what are arguably the most robust (and probably the cutest) members of any given litter. Which brings me to the thought that, at the very least, "selling" is quite different from simply recouping losses.

The felicitous fact is that we seem to be moving in that direction. People are speaking up, and sharing their methods and hopes for the no longer invisible tykes that so frequently make their way into the world as the inevitable product of flashy-to-flashy breedings. Again on the Showboxer List, a well-known breeder/handler wrote that she usually has a waiting list just in case there are any whites in her litters.

I had five wonderful homes ready and anxious for white pups from this recent crew. To my utter surprise, I had to disappoint them all. I wish that hadn't been so. The ties I have with the owners of the two white boys from Hedy's first litter are just as strong as the ones forged with the folks who bought the monorchid brindle brother, or the one who co-owns the Group winning finisher. And now one of those families has its first show pup, a flashy brindle girl from this litter, because of the bond we created via a puppy who, born into an ABC member's litter only a short while ago might have found his brief moment on the planet terminated in someone's freezer or, if he were really fortunate, after a few precious days of his mother's comfort--by lethal injection in a sterile clinic office. That, people, has been and continues to be the true tragedy associated with this breed: We breed expressly for this trait, and we punish the innocent results.

As my vet who's got over 25 years' experience with boxers tells me in no uncertain terms -- there's no difference in health concerns between colored boxers and their white littermates. There is no reason not to be proud of their existence, and not to put them forth as lovely, albeit non-standard, examples of a breed we say we love. I choose to believe my vet instead of years of calumnious invective that's based only on who knows what unfortunate and demonstrably false anecdotal evidence.

I'm as proud of Hedy's two white puppy boys as I am of her two champion girls. I'll always welcome whites in any litter I breed. The offspring of champions are the offspring of champions. Period.

Now... if only I could remain an ABC member in good standing and receive in return for these adorable creatures what they're really worth. Perhaps I'm only dreaming, but I think that the Internet is working hard on my behalf.