Peru's boxing dog packs a mean punch

By Terry Wade

LIMA (Reuters Life!) - She can't float like a butterfly, or sting like a bee, but Chela the boxing dog certainly packs a punch -- and a bite too.

With her red boxing gloves on, the 3-½ year-old German Shorthaired Pointer dodges punches and throws jabs with her front paws while standing up on her hind legs. Her trainer says she's the only dog in Peru who knows how to box.

"Chela didn't want to put the gloves on at first," said Cesar Chacaliaza, a brigadier in the national police force who has been training dogs for 13 years.

"But now she likes it. She's very playful."

He said he taught his previous dog, who has since died, how to box as a party trick, but with Chela he has taken the training more seriously to make her an even better boxer.

Chela also jumps through rings of fire, and is part of a team of dogs trained to chase robbers or free strapped-down hostages.

For now, her only sparring partner is Chacaliaza, though she did show off her moves in a solo performance during Peru's independence day parade last month.

"It tires her out ... and it tires me out too," Chacaliaza said as they panted together after going a few rounds.

(Editing by Dana Ford and Miral Fahmy)