Anyone owned a Belgian Malinois? (border collie, how much, shepherd, labrador)
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I had a shepard mix for about 10 yrs - best dog ever! Left me about 5 yrs ago.
I am thinking of getting a malinois. I know she will need a lot of exercise and I will train her. My shepard was very high energy and an absolute love.
I have never owned one, but saw them in action with handlers daily in Afghanistan for over a year. Great dogs, incredible as working dogs.
I asked a handler about his opinion of the Belgian's vs. Shepard's, and his comment was you get all of the trainability, intelligence, and obedience of the Shepard, without the health issues.
I've not owned one but I know people that have owned them, been around them and seen them trained. They are great dogs - if you're looking for a working dog in a war zone or a police K-9.
The working line malinois I've been around are like shepherds on steroids. Their drive is higher, their energy level is higher and they're very sensitive (more so than a GSD) when it comes to training. They're highly trainable but more difficult to train because of the drive and the sensitivity. I've owned GSDs for years (including high-drive GSDs whose parents were national-level Shutzhund competition dogs (mother in the US and father was a high-placing competitor in the Bundessieger Prufung (Germany)) and IMO owning a GSD (even a high-drive GSD) is not at all comparable to owning a malinois. The GSD temperament is also generally more stable and less high strung. I absolutely admire malinois as working dogs but I'd never own one.
If you do decide to get a malinois, I'd look at AKC conformation lines rather than working lines.
I'm somewhat active in the dog sports world, and have mostly had herding breeds myself. Most of us have some very high-energy and crazy-smart dogs though. I only know of a few people that have a Malinois, and no one I know personally does or has ever expressed a desire to get one. Given that they're not THAT rare, it tells me this is probably not the dog for me, personally. Also, I know of some experienced dog sports people that have stated that they are wary of competing with certain Malinois in the ring because they feel the (experienced) trainers who run the dogs have made some mistakes with their training. And these are the same people who have no concerns about bully breeds (which, in my opinion, are mostly dogs that are very forgiving of mistakes).
If you're looking for a pet, I think there are better breeds you could look into. I just got a kelpie/cattle dog mix over the weekend. He is brilliant, energetic and heartbreakingly sweet. I've also got a Catahoula who is the most insanely athletic and intelligent dog I've ever had, in addition to having a rather sweet personality.
People always say herding dogs need a job. Well, my guys really just need exercise and interaction. It's dogs like a Malinois that NEED a job, and it really can't be just catching a ball in the yard. From everything I've heard and read, they are more intense than GSDs. I also know that a lot of GSDs have been bred more to be family dogs these days, whereas the Malinois is not really bred for that that I'm aware of - I mean, you don't really see families talking about how they can't wait to get a Malinois to play with the kids, ya know?
If you want to do intensive obedience, schutzhund training or any other sort of high-precision and demanding dog sport, go for it. But if you just want a companion, I'd say look at other more manageable breeds.
Yes I've heard about them being high strung and needing a LOT of exercise. The exercise part wont really be a problem for me but I would do some more research before jumping in.
My shepard mix was shepard/retriever (webbed feet) and malinois. The sweetest dog ever! Hyper, well trained and very strong. Temperament of a retriever though. Super gentle. Mutts are just the best.
Lived till she was 16 1/2 and didn't have the hip thing until she turned 16. I see the hip thing in GSDs very early on and it just kills me - that is the only thing that deters me for getting a GSD.
Plus what Tuck's Dad said: "all of the trainability, intelligence, and obedience of the Shepard, without the health issues" is what attracts me. More research to follow...
I have a 4 y.o. female Malinois and a 3 y.o. female Tervuren. I have experience as a handler and as a decoy in Mondioring and French Ring as well as agility and obedience. My advice would be to strongly reconsider your choice of breed entirely, particularly the Malinois, for a whole litany of reasons.
Belgians present some interesting problems for the average dog owner but can possibly be an acceptable choice for a very well experienced handler if you are willing to recenter your life around the dog's need to work. And I don't mean Obedience II with the local trainer but real work like nose work, SAR, ring sport/Schutzhund, etc.
If your training experience is a couple mixed breed rescue dogs that you taught to heel and down-stay, this is very likely not the breed for you.
Further, with the overwhelming majority of these dogs you can't expect them to take a day off of work because it's raining outside, or a blizzard, or brimstone is falling out of the sky. They aren't going to lie on the hearth in front of a fire like a labrador retriever because you have a 103 temp and are leaking snot out of every orifice in your body. They don't care. They require structure, consistency in training and it's difficult to put into words how much physical and mental stimulation they need on a daily basis. This isn't optional. They are immeasurably driven dogs, and will work themselves to death if allowed. They will chase a ball into the pit of hell. This is not the kind of dog you are going to exercise by swinging them through the dog park once a day or taking them for a walk around the block..and frequently they are too dog aggressive or have too much prey drive for one or the other to ever be an option. If you or the neighbors have a cat, many/most Mals will chase and kill them. If you want a dog that will chum up to your friends to be petted, the Malinois is generally a terrible choice as they are aloof and protective in their nature. Their universe consists of 1) you and 2) their work. That's it. That's the list.
Now that being the case, if you are still hell bent on owning a Belgian, I would strongly suggest first meeting some Mals prior to making any decision. Your best best would be a local Schutzhund, mondioring or French ring club, so you can see firsthand what you are up against. See if they will let you put on a bite suit. No doubt this will be an eye opener for you if you haven't seen these dogs work in person. It doesn't matter which breed you have worked prior.
To the last point, Malinois are not generally good as pets. In fact they are typically terrible in that regard. They are strictly working animals, and that working line GSD handlers hesitate to take one on should give anyone pause when considering a Malinois as a pet.
If you have to do it, I would again strongly recommend adopting your first Malinois through http://www.malinoisrescue.org
To paraphrase an excellent Malinois trainer, be smart and get a Border Collie.
Last edited by Tipsy McStagger; 06-29-2015 at 10:41 PM..
I have a 4 y.o. female Malinois and a 3 y.o. female Tervuren. I have experience as a handler and as a decoy in Mondioring and French Ring as well as agility and obedience. My advice would be to strongly reconsider your choice of breed entirely, particularly the Malinois, for a whole litany of reasons.
Belgians present some interesting problems for the average dog owner but can possibly be an acceptable choice for a very well experienced handler if you are willing to recenter your life around the dog's need to work. And I don't mean Obedience II with the local trainer but real work like nose work, SAR, ring sport/Schutzhund, etc.
If your training experience is a couple mixed breed rescue dogs that you taught to heel and down-stay, this is very likely not the breed for you.
Further, with the overwhelming majority of these dogs you can't expect them to take a day off of work because it's raining outside, or a blizzard, or brimstone is falling out of the sky. They aren't going to lie on the hearth in front of a fire like a labrador retriever because you have a 103 temp and are leaking snot out of every orifice in your body. They don't care. They require structure, consistency in training and it's difficult to put into words how much physical and mental stimulation they need on a daily basis. This isn't optional. They are immeasurably driven dogs, and will work themselves to death if allowed. They will chase a ball into the pit of hell. This is not the kind of dog you are going to exercise by swinging them through the dog park once a day or taking them for a walk around the block..and frequently they are too dog aggressive or have too much prey drive for one or the other to ever be an option. If you or the neighbors have a cat, many/most Mals will chase and kill them. If you want a dog that will chum up to your friends to be petted, the Malinois is generally a terrible choice as they are aloof and protective in their nature. Their universe consists of 1) you and 2) their work. That's it. That's the list.
Now that being the case, if you are still hell bent on owning a Belgian, I would strongly suggest first meeting some Mals prior to making any decision. Your best best would be a local Schutzhund, mondioring or French ring club, so you can see firsthand what you are up against. See if they will let you put on a bite suit. No doubt this will be an eye opener for you if you haven't seen these dogs work in person. It doesn't matter which breed you have worked prior.
To the last point, Malinois are not generally good as pets. In fact they are typically terrible in that regard. They are strictly working animals, and that working line GSD handlers hesitate to take one on should give anyone pause when considering a Malinois as a pet.
To paraphrase an excellent Malinois trainer, be smart and get a Border Collie.
Thank you for sharing. You're post reinforces what I've observed. The fact that the OP's dog had the temperament of a retriever IMO means there is no comparison between that dog and a malinois. I've seem a malinois puppy passed around craigslist because people, once they got it home, realized the puppy was more than they could handle. Fortunately after about the third family in a few weeks a rescue stepped in.
The other thing the OP needs to consider is where the dog will stay when the OP is not at home. You won't be able to leave it loose in the house or confined in a room without furniture or sheet rock being destroyed and crating a dog like that 8 hours a day is a recipe for disaster. If the OP plans to leave it loose in the back yard there would need to be an 8 foot privacy fence with a concrete border that the dog can't dig under. Maybe even something over the wood so the dog won't eat through it. Probably a kennel in the yard would be the best option.
Malinois can get hip dysplasia. I don't think it's as common as in GSDs but it's possible. If that's a concern and you want a GSD, get an older dog who's hips are certified as dysplasia free or get a 6 month old puppy that has had preliminary hip x-rays done. You're usually able to tell with a good level of accuracy at that age if the dog's hips are good or if there's an issue.
I have a friend from high school (I'm not really in his life, we keep in contact via FB) who is a malinois trainer professionally, and has one as a pet who he seems to really love. But maybe it works for him because he is a professional trainer...
In my opinion and my sister owns a malinois and she takes him every weekend on a trip to the hills to let him work and in my opinion that is not enough for him but hey its her dog . I prefer the GSDs and will look for another family GSD when I get my home and im ready . I have had several big breeds like GSDs and also had an irish wolf hound both were highly intelligent and very sweet . IMO you need to forgo the Belgian for various reasons one being that they need more exercise than on the weekends . Well Good luck to you whatever you decide .
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