Thread: Malinois the King of Working dogs.

Interesting thread title but somewhat of a sweeping statement. Having worked GSDs on the street for many years, and in the last three years privately owning working Malinois, I’ll leave my options open; I love the Malinois but have relied upon the GSD to save my bacon many times, and have never been disappointed. Maybe another ten years as a Malinois man will see me agree, however I am of the opinion that ANY breed which does the job is the “King of Working Dogs�, it just depends on the job.

Originally Posted by Laurie Boutzetis

Hi Adam,
not a dig just an observation - is it king of working dogs or king of sport dogs? it would be interesting to see how the numbers stack up when it comes to dogs in service applications around the world....

Laurie
Have to agree with Adam. Think second in line will be the GSD.


regards
george

Originally Posted by John Evans

Interesting thread title but somewhat of a sweeping statement. Having worked GSDs on the street for many years, and in the last three years privately owning working Malinois, I’ll leave my options open; I love the Malinois but have relied upon the GSD to save my bacon many times, and have never been disappointed. Maybe another ten years as a Malinois man will see me agree, however I am of the opinion that ANY breed which does the job is the “King of Working Dogs�, it just depends on the job.

Any war stories to share!!!!

Originally Posted by Laurie Boutzetis

Hi Adam,
not a dig just an observation - is it king of working dogs or king of sport dogs? it would be interesting to see how the numbers stack up when it comes to dogs in service applications around the world....

I would have to agree with Laurie here.

Mals are great dogs for sport and work.
In general, they make high maintenance pets for the average family.
Work...well if the dog has to live as a pet with the family it performs it's job for then all aspects would have to be taken into account.
Sport? Yeah, for sure. If you want a podium finish jump on board the Mal train. Many, not all, do sport for personal ego...so sure, pick a dog that offers you the best chance of fulfilling that aspiration.
I also think, with no disrespect to the Mal at all, that many trainers that lack skill, understanding, or resolve tend to love these highly trainable, high prey animals as they make getting a result very easy. Many highly skillful trainers also use these gifts to the highest potential possible.
I have owned all the big 4 breeds as working dogs, and some more still.
I think the right dogs from all the breeds are really equally capable to be honest, and I don't think it informed to claim otherwise.
Also, lets look at how truly some sports test a dog for a realtime working scenario.
Rotties tend towards a shorter service life, and also their size is too much often times for GP handlers to throw over a fence.
Dobes...well I love them, but they are in a state of disarray as a breed, although I can forsee a comeback judging by the efforts of some breeders I know.
GSD- well what can you say? Huge track record, the classic service dog.
Mals- they keep getting better, and they are starting to breed some real size into some of them.
Also, some peoples style of training lends itself better towards certain breeds.

Great thread, that's my say for the day.

I think it depends upon what you are using as a measuring stick to determine that a Malinois is a better working dog than anything else. A good dog is a good dog if it performs the job required of it regardless of breed.

As a sporting dog good Malinois are more easily attainable than some of the others and to their credit are for the most part hard to beat, but for civil work I prefer a GSD or Rotty finding them easier to handle than the equivilent Malinios.

I can't speak with any wealth of experience working the Malinios only touched on them for 18 months, but I found them flighty and over handler sensitive compared with a GSD.........perhaps I haven't experienced a good Mal yet, but the harder Mal's didn't mind a bit of re-directed aggression and coming back up the leash.

The two that I had the most experience with, both were a pain in bum in the handlers home where they didn't seem to switch off and relax the way a good GSD can. Obviously if you need the extra in a particular working role that a Malinios can deliver over a GSD the negatives are minor, but if you need the dog to perform XYZ well without the negatives, I would choose a GSD or Rotty before I would choose a Mal talking purely as a breed preference.

Cheers
Nev

The Malinois is a great dog because it has stayed true to its original form.
Breeding them bigger is not necessarily an improvement.

My Malinois is nearly 2yo, very good to handle and no problems in the home. The only thing I could say is the breed needs a lot of activity so the owner has to be dedicated.