Belgian Malinois are bred to be athletic and physically tough, able to go over, or through, fences and take a physical correction and not quit and even fight back, useful in a police dog where the bad guy tries hard to escape and will fight off or try and kill the police dog. So you correct your puppy for grabbing your pant leg and he just bites harder. Your wood fence has a couple of knot holes and soon you find a dog sized hole and your Malinois running loose in the neighborhood and going after the neighbor’s cat. Belgian Malinois have been bred to have an intense prey drive, to chase and grab moving objects. Valuable when a suspect is running away but not easy to live with and it can especially be a problem around small children.

If you still think you would like to own a Belgian Malinois consider helping out a rescue Malinois. Temporarily fostering a Malinois in need is a great way to find out if this is the right breed for you. If you are still interest in finding a Malinois puppy or adult and wish to adopt a pre-screened rescue or find a responsible breeder please check out the following links:

Belgian Malinois Rescue:    http://www.woofproject.org/

American Belgian Malinois Club:   http://www.malinoisclub.com/abmc/

A responsible breeder who cares about producing healthy puppies will have documentation that both parents have OFA cleared hips and elbows at a minimum. The OFA will not document a dog under 2 years as being clear of hip and elbow dysplasia. Go to the OFA website and search to double check. http://www.offa.org/

A responsible breeder will care about what experience you have had with Belgians and ask about your plans for future training. You should be able to at least meet and interact with the mother of the litter and the father if he is on the property. They should be able to answer specific questions on how the parents are with children, other dogs, strangers and what training and titles the parents have. Talk to lots of Malinois owners! Meet as many as possible. Then make up your mind on if this is a breed that will fit your lifestyle for the next 14 or more years.