When we compare our Belgian Malinois today to the photographs and
the drawings of the Malinois around the beginning of 1900's,
we're astonished by the fact that their fundamental type is
still the same.
Malinois is not a German Shepherd! In fact Malinois is came
around before the German Shepherd. The "Club du
Chien de Berger Belge" was found on September 29th of
1891! The German Shepherd club " Verein for Deutsche
Schaferhunde" was founded later in April 22nd of 1899.
Almost every breed with the greatest uniformity, have been
created by one single man or under the management of one
fancier. The creation of the Belgian Shepherd Dog does not
make an exception to this rule. This man was Professor
Adolphe Reul. But "The Godfather of Malinois" is considered
to be Mr. Louis Huyghebaert, because of his influence in the
Belgian kennel club St. Hubert as well as his quality as a
top level dog trainer at the time and of course his
obsession with Malinois.
In 1900 the black mask was imposed and fixed through
inbreeding.
Malinois is one of the now only 4 varieties of Belgian
Shepherds. The black long coat is Groenendael,
the fawn long coat is Tervueren,
the wire type coat is the Laekenois
You can see bellow a rare video I took from very special
(one of a kind!) expo with original pictures, catalogs,
statues, news letters dating from, the beginning, enjoy!
Which of the four varieties is
the most well rounded dog?
Malinois is by far the most sound and stable type out of the
four types. Occasionally one may find a non Malinois that
does protection type work, but rarely can be even remotely
close to the performances of the Malinois. Because the
Tervueren, Groenedael and Lakenois fanciers have put
their effort only to the looks of the dogs and not the
temperament and health, at present time it is unfortunate
but these dogs tremendously lack courage and strength.
How does a Malinois adapt as a
house pet?
This is a very common concern/miss conception. I've been
involved with the breed since late 1980's, living in Belgium
at the time, giving seminars worldwide on monthly basis, I
see hundreds and hundreds of dogs - in my observation
Malinois can vary greatly in temperament, size, color. Not
all of them are hyper, in fact most Malinois have an
"On" and "Off" switch, meaning they will lay down and watch
TV with you.
All of our Ot Vitosha Malinois are fantastic house dogs,
good with other animals , small children, and friends.
The problem with getting a dog for a "pet" is that breeders
tend to sell you their rejects, basically the dogs with not
so stable temperament, easily spooked etc. Just as in
any breed you can find some stubborn dogs, some dogs with
behavior issues, etc.
If you are looking into getting a Malinois, I feel confident
that I will select the best dog for your lifestyle.
Is the Malinois a healthy
breed?
You can find health problems with all dog breeds, some are
breed characteristic, some on individual basis. Generally
speaking the Malinois is very healthy dog, due to their use
as protection dogs, herding dogs, and the fact that they are
not as popular and over bred, as the German Shepherd for
example.
Hips and elbows should always be Xrayed for dysplasia, rarely but still
possible eye problems or epilepsy, skin problems etc.
Some of our Ot Vitosha Malinois lived to a very old age
Nakita was 17 years old, Turcodos is still alive at 14,
Django is now 12 .... A normal life span (if there is such
thing) is around 12 years
Is The Malinois easy to train?
Yes Malinois is very smart dog, and because of it's herding
and protection heritage. It is a dog works
closely with its handler.
Easy to motivate, eager to please, agile and healthy are the
traits of a true Malinois. Looks and size are secondary when
it comes to Malinois. Without any doubt looking into all dog
competitions Malinois is the most versatile dog, extremely
fast, agile, powerful in protection. It is the breed of
choice for years for most top trainers. Its the breed of
choice for police and military around the world including
Germany and USA
When should I start training
my Malinois?
I recommend that you start some form of play /motivational
training right away.
I working on building a library of dog training lessons that
you can view at
TrainPerView.com
Why Ot Vitosha dogs?
"... there is a Ford , and there is a Ferrari ..."
Be aware - breeders will try to steer you, their way, no
matter what.
It is not too hard to find a "Champion" somewhere in
any dog pedigree! Don't be fooled by it!Look for proof of
achievements, of the dogs and the breeder.
Breeding is not as simple as putting a male and female
of the same breed together.
Being a successful trainer gives me the edge to select the
correct type of dogs, not based only on their pedigrees but
the temperament and trainability as well.
I've personally worked, or owned all dogs in Ot
Vitosha pedigrees going back to as far as 6th and 7th
generations!
I am professional breeder and trainer, this is not my hobby
- it's way more than that.
Where
can I find quality Personal Protection or Police dog?
We are fortunate to feed and recommend Platinum dog
food. High quality food may seem a too expensive, but I can
assure you in a long run you will be saving money from vet
bills, and have a healthy friend for many years to come. Do
you your own research.
How did the Belgian Malinois
originated ?
