are malinois good pets
are malinois good pets
Are Malinois good family dogs? - Truth
This question is getting asked more and more as people see them in films such as the recent John Wick series with Keanu Reeves.
Firstly the Malinois is one of four different varieties of Belgian Shepherd, the Groendaal, Laekenois and Tervueren that get their names from areas of Belgium where they originated.
Used as working dogs on farms for herding and guarding they are very fit agile and intelligent dogs.
When offering advice or infact being given advice I would highlight that last sentence as a spoiler alert...Look at the very words as to how they were bred and for what purpose!
As it is the Malinois that we are looking at here ( the Laekenois, Groendaal and Tervuren have their own specific values and identities with popularity and rarities being higher in some than others )
with respect to ' are Malinois good family dogs? ' on the face of it you could say that 'YES' they make excellent family dogs and indeed they do, but and its a massive 'BUT' it all depends on the 'FAMILY'???
What experience do you have in owning a dog/s?
How young are the family members?
Are you able to exercise a Malinois properly?
Can you provide disciplined training?
Ask yourself this 'why do Police,Military and Protection services the world over use the Malinois?'
So what experience do you have in dog ownership? because if the Malinois is in the running for your first dog then STOP right here!!! No way would I ever recommend one for your first dog...SORRY but that's it right there, NO! it would run rings around you and would/could become very dangerous to own.
If you have had experience in owning dogs previously then you are still not off the hook, why not?
because it depends on what breeds you have been involved with, Labradors, Spaniels, Cockapoo's Great Danes, whatever you have owned before may not give you the insight into owning a Malinois, possibly Doberman, Rottweiler and German Shepherds would help.
What is it about the Belgian Malinois then?
They are not a particularly large dog, more medium sized with many actually on the smaller side of medium sized, breed standard sizes are:
Height Males: 60-66 cm (23.6-26 ins) Females: 56-62 cm (22-24 ins)
Weight Males: 25-30 kg (55-66 lbs) Females: 20-25 kg (44-55 lbs)
But because of the fact that many are used for work there is a great difference in these standards, with the abilities being more in demand than how they look, this also applies to appearance with many different colours being seen although the main distinctions are, short haired being Tan - Brown
( usually mahogany) with tips of the hair black with varying degrees and white markings on the chest.
Do you have young family members? reasonable question when deciding to own a dog but with the Malinois its very important as I will try to explain.
Many dogs will put up with a lot before getting annoyed, being prodded, poked and pulled are all in a days work for the family pet and most will endure this however the Malinois is very and I will repeat in capitals VERY quick to respond to any and all stymulus, so if your Mal is not extremely well trained and under your watchful eyes at all times then a quick snap response to a pull or poke is more the norm than them ignoring it. Young children need watching at all times because its in their very nature to want to touch dogs but its the extreme speed and alertness of the Malinois that is also a major drawback. A quick snap is a normal response from the Mainois. Bare this in mind.
are malinois good pets
So they need lots of physical exercise but just as important is MENTAL EXERCISE!!!
They are so intelligent its hard to make someone aware of how intelligent they are if they have no experience of the breed.
This makes training very easy and also so hard? How come?
When training, if you train the wrong thing, then they will pick that up just as easy as if you do it right.
I would always advise getting professional help from a trainer experienced in working dog breeds.
These dogs need to be under disciplined instruction at all times, that's not to say harsh or abusive in any way, indeed my Mali's hate me raising my voice harshly to reprimand them, but sometimes a raised voice is all I need to do.
*are malinois good pets*
But as their popularity rises then so does the bad inbreeding and irresponsible ownership from misinformed owners.
Be informed, be aware, be responsible, this breed is not for every one, in fact its the opposite,
That said as an owner and past breeder of this wonderful dog breed in the right environment and right hands there is none better...I'm biased though!
Marc Hollis.
(I have been involved in dog ownership, breeding and training for over 30 years, although now retired from day to day duties I owned a Specialist Security Dog Services business, training handlers and dogs for active duties in the UK, working alongside my elder brother Dave, who is still active in the security dog business advising many major clients around the world and has developed search dog training for private and commercial sectors since the 1990's)
Seen here Dave, is with a recent trial winning GSD that he took out of retirement one last time for some fun before allowing her to retire to live as one of the family dogs. ( he has many )
For more videos with the Malinois please visit my youtube channel
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