Quick Links: Table of Contents
- Belgian Malinois Breed Overview
- History of the Belgian Malinois Breed. Where Belgian Malinoiss came from
- What the Belgian Malinois Looks Like
- How Much is the Belgian Malinois Puppy?
- Best Belgian Malinois Breeders
- Adopting or Rescuing the Belgian Malinois
- Belgian Malinois Growth
- The Temperament of the Belgian Malinois
- How Long Belgian Malinoiss Live
- Belgian Malinois Litter Size
- How Fast Belgian Malinoiss Can Run
- Good Names for Belgian Malinoiss
- How Intelligent are Belgian Malinoiss?
- How Popular are Belgian Malinoiss with New Dog Owners?
- Health Problems in Belgian Malinoiss and How to Prevent Them
- How to Take Care of Belgian Malinois
- Dog Breeds That Are Similar to Belgian Malinoiss
- Other Things to Know About Belgian Malinoiss
Belgian Malinois Breed Overview
The Belgian Malinois is a large-sized dog.
The adult Belgian Malinois stands 22 to 26 inches tall at the shoulder.
The Belgian Malinois belongs to the Herding Dogs group.
Dogs in the Herding Dogs group, like the Belgian Malinois, were bred for moving livestock, including sheep, cattle, and even reindeer.
Herding dogs work closely with their human shepherds, and their natural intelligence and responsiveness make them highly trainable.
Herding dogs have high levels of energy, which needs to be channeled properly to prevent destructive behavior.
Herding breeds are protective of their people and property and make excellent watchdogs. Their intelligence, agility, and activity level make them well suited to dog sports.
The fact that the Belgian Malinois belongs to the Herding Dogs group is one of the reasons why Belgian Malinoiss have the personality and temperament that they have.
The temperament of the Belgian Malinois is generally described as:
- Reserved
- Aloof
- Friendly
- Assertive
History of the Belgian Malinois Breed. Where Belgian Malinoiss came from
Prior to the late 1800s, nothing is known about the history of the Belgian Malinois breed, though it is possible that these canines have assisted shepherds in tending to flocks for hundreds of years.
Professor Adolphe Reul discovered connections between several newly emerging dog breeds in Belgium in the 1890s.
Records indicate that one of the first dogs of this breed to be registered was born in 1891 and was given the name Charlot.
In 1911, the breed was recognised by the American Kennel Club.
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What the Belgian Malinois Looks Like
Due to the breed`s usual equal or almost equal height and length, the Belgian Malinois frequently looks to be square in appearance.
Dogs of this breed have powerful hindquarters and front legs that are straight and athletic.
This powerful and capable dog has tall, trapezoidal ears and an upright-held head.
The mouth has strong jaws and a level, scissors-bite-shaped intersection of teeth.
This active dog has a long tail that curls upward and is usually carried horizontally or downward.
They have a short, dark brown or lighter tan coat with black ends that is typically longer around the dog`s neck and rear.
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How Much is the Belgian Malinois Puppy?
The average price of a Belgian Malinois puppy is $1380. The price of a Belgian Malinois puppy ranges from $850 to $1800.
A lot of factors determine the price of the Belgian Malinois. These factors include what health records the Belgian Malinois puppy has, the lineage of the Belgian Malinois puppy, the US state the breeder is located in, etc.
To estimate how much you can expect to pay for a puppy Belgian Malinois based on the many factors that determine the price of the Belgian Malinois puppy, check out our calculator that lets you estimate how much you should expect to pay for the Belgian Malinois puppy based on what you want in the puppy.
When looking to buy a puppy, look at buying a puppy only from well-established breeders that breed puppies primarily for the love of the Belgian Malinois breed, and secondarily for profit. Do not buy a puppy from a puppy mill. Puppy mills mass-produce puppies in bad living conditions for maximum profit.
You may also consider adopting instead of buying a puppy. Adoption costs are very low compared to the price of a puppy.
Best Belgian Malinois Breeders
We have researched reputable Belgian Malinois breeders that you can buy a puppy.
Go to this page for our complete list of reputable Belgian Malinois breeders in various states in the United States.
On this page, you will see how much these breeders sell their puppies for, and how many puppies they have available.
A few of these breeders are listed below.
San Tan Valley Malinois
Puppy Price: $2,000.00
Morning Star Malinois, Inc
Puppy Price: $1500 for females & 2000 for males
Elizabeth davidson
Puppy Price: $1000.00
Angela Chamberlain
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
Conin Coffey
Puppy Price: $2000
Adopting or Rescuing the Belgian Malinois
You may consider adopting a dog instead of buying a puppy. Many dogs, Belgian Malinoiss included, are currently available for adoption in your local dog shelters.
These helpless but adorable dogs are waiting in dog shelters hoping that someday someone will rescue them. Dog adoption costs are lesser than the cost of a new puppy. Dog adoption costs are usually around $300 or even less.
In addition to your local dog shelter, another good place to find dogs that are available for adoption is petfinder.com.
Below is an adorable Male Belgian Malinois named Gus that is currently available for adoption on Petfinder.com. You can find other lovely Belgian Malinoiss like Gus on pefinder.com.
Ruger is the name of another Belgian Malinois (Male) on petfinder.com that is looking for a new forever home.
You can find more Belgian Malinoiss that are available for adoption on petfinder.
Belgian Malinois Growth
New Belgian Malinois owners need to know about the growth of their Belgian Malinoiss. This will help them plan their living spaces accordingly.
Also, knowing the typical growth pattern of the Belgian Malinois will help new owners catch the abnormal growth of their Belgian Malinois early.
See our calculator for predicting how big your Belgian Malinois puppy will get. You will also learn about the typical weight of the Belgian Malinois at different ages and how to catch abnormal growth in your Belgian Malinois
The Temperament of the Belgian Malinois
The temperament of the Belgian Malinois based can be summarized as in the table below.
The table shows the scores of the Belgian Malinois for 13 important dog behavioral factors.
We obtained these scores by analyzing raw data from the C-BARQ dog personality survey tool. The higher the score of a dog for a factor, the worse the temperament of the dog regarding that factor.
The C-BARQ tool was developed by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, and it is a scientific tool that is used worldwide for reliably measuring the temperament of dog breeds.
See our complete analysis of the temperament of the Belgian Malinois here.
| Factor | Score |
|---|---|
| Attachment Attention Seeking | 74.4 percent |
| Stranger Directed Aggression | 72.5 percent |
| Dog Directed Aggression | 66.8 percent |
| Prey Drive | 66.4 percent |
| Excitability | 60.1 percent |
| Dog Rivalry | 54.2 percent |
| Separation Related Behavior | 49.1 percent |
| Dog Directed Fear | 38.6 percent |
| Stranger Directed Fear | 31.0 percent |
| Touch Sensitivity | 23.5 percent |
| Nonsocial Fear | 19.7 percent |
| Owner Directed Aggression | 12.7 percent |
| Energy Level | 100.0 percent |
| Stubbornness | 0.8 percent |
How Long Belgian Malinoiss Live
The lifespan of the Belgian Malinois is typically from 12 to 14 years.
Belgian Malinoiss live long if they eat well, drink well, exercise well, and visit the veterinarian regularly.
Belgian Malinois Litter Size
Researchers from the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science did a study where they counted the numbers of puppies in 7 different Belgian Malinois birth litters.
From this study, the researchers found that the average number of puppies that Belgian Malinoiss can have is 7 puppies. Also, the Belgian Malinois can have as few as 1 puppies per litter and as many as 12 puppies per litter.
The number of puppies that the Belgian Malinois will have depends on factors such as the age of the Belgian Malinois, the method of pregnancy, etc.
Click here to see our calculator for predicting how many puppies your Belgian Malinois will have and how the litter size of the Belgian Malinois compares to the litter size of other dog breeds.
How Fast Belgian Malinoiss Can Run
How fast a dog breed can run is a good measure of how athletic the dog breed is.
The American Kennel Club (AKC) regularly conducts dog running competitions. The AKC records the running speed of competing dogs in these competitions. These competitions are open to all dog breeds.
Based on our analysis of the speeds of 340 different Belgian Malinoiss, the average speed of the Belgian Malinois is 27.1 mph (43.6 kmph).
The fastest speed on AKC record that the Belgian Malinois ran in a race is 35.5 mph (57.1 kmph) and the minimum speed on record in a race for a Belgian Malinois is 15.69 mph (25.3 kmph).
Click here to see how the speed of the Belgian Malinois compares to the speed of other dogs and other mammals such as cats, horses, humans, etc.
Good Names for Belgian Malinoiss
Here are some really good names that are typical for the Belgian Malinois ranked by popularity:
- Dog
- Otis
- Apollo
- Tucker
- Jack
- Julian
- Ace
- Atlas
- Lazlo
- Bronson
How Intelligent are Belgian Malinoiss?
| Belgian Malinois | |
|---|---|
| Intelligence Rank | 22 out of 130 dog breeds |
| Trainability | Tend To Learn New Commands After 5 To 15 Repetitions |
According to Prof. Stanley Coren, a Canadian psychology professor/dog trainer, the total intelligence that a dog demonstrates is the addition of three types of intelligence. These intelligence types are:
- Instinctive Intelligence: This is the natural intelligence that comes from instinct. For example, dog breeds that have been historically bred to be guard dogs will have a high `guarding` intelligence compared to dogs that were not bred for guarding.
- Adaptive Intelligence (learning and problem-solving ability): This indicates what a dog can learn to do for himself or herself. Adaptive intelligence is specific to each dog, and not breed specific. You can improve your dog`s adaptive intelligence by investing time to train your dog.
- Working/Obedience Intelligence: This type of intelligence is breed-specific. Certain dog breeds tend to have higher working/obedience intelligence than some other breeds. This intelligence is the closest to what we might call school-learning ability and it is based upon what the dog can learn to do when instructed by humans. This type of intelligence can be measured for each dog breed and compared to that of other dog breeds.
Professor Stanley Coren measured and ranked the working intelligence of about 130 different dog breeds.
Prof. Coren found that the Belgian Malinois has an obedience intelligence rank of 22 out of 130 dog breeds. Thus, Prof. Coren put Belgian Malinoiss in the `Excellent Working Dogs` category.
This means that Belgian Malinoiss tend to learn new commands after 5 to 15 repetitions.
However, we should mention that a dog should not be judged based on its intelligence alone. There are other important factors you need to consider when deciding on which dog breed to get. These other factors include sociability, adorability, and compatibility of the dog breed with your lifestyle.
See the intelligence ranking of some other dog breeds below:
| Breed | Intelligence Rank |
|---|---|
| Doberman Pinscher | 5 |
| Irish Water Spaniel | 24 |
| Cardigan Welsh Corgi | 26 |
| Chesapeake Bay Retriever | 27 |
| Welsh Springer Spaniel | 31 |
| Manchester Terrier | 32 |
| Affenpinscher | 37 |
| Bedlington Terrier | 40 |
| Curly-Coated Retriever | 41 |
| Dachshund | 49 |
| Akita | 54 |
| French Bulldog | 58 |
| Maltese | 59 |
| Chinese Crested | 61 |
| Old English Sheepdog | 63 |
| Bull Terrier | 66 |
| Bullmastiff | 69 |
| Pekingese | 73 |
| Bloodhound | 74 |
| Afghan Hound | 79 |
How Popular are Belgian Malinoiss with New Dog Owners?
Every year, the American Kennel Club (AKC) publishes information on how popular a dog breed is in that particular year. The AKC gets the popularity information of a breed from how many dogs of that breed the owners register with the AKC every year. The AKC collects this data for about 200 dog breeds.
The graph below shows the popularity trend of the Belgian Malinois.
The popularity of the Belgian Malinois averaged over the years is Number 46 out of about 200 dog breeds.
Do not get a dog breed just because it is a popular dog breed. And do not reject a dog breed just because it is an unpopular breed.
Health Problems in Belgian Malinoiss and How to Prevent Them
Every dog breed has its own set of health problems that it tends to develop. There is nothing like a perfect dog breed.
The Belgian Malinois is prone to certain genetic health conditions. The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) is an organization that keeps track of genetic health problems in dog breeds.
From the extensive records that the OFA keeps, the OFA knows what health problems each dog breed is naturally prone to develop.
Hence, the OFA recommends which health screening breeders should perform on a dog breed to make sure that the breeders won`t breed `defective` dog parents that can pass down defective genes to their puppy offspring.
If you want a Belgian Malinois puppy that will grow up to be healthy, make sure that your Belgian Malinois breeder screens your puppy or your puppy`s parents for the health problems that the OFA recommends for your puppy`s breed. This will increase the chances that your puppy is free from genetic defects.
The following are the health tests that Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) recommends that breeders should screen Belgian Malinoiss for:
You can find out more about OFA`s recommended tests for Belgian Malinoiss here.
How to Take Care of Belgian Malinois
To take good care of your Belgian Malinois, you need to make sure that you groom your Belgian Malinois regularly.
Secondly, you need to find a veterinarian in your area that will routinely check the health status of your Belgian Malinois regularly, and give you appropriate recommendations on your Belgian Malinois`s preventative care.
Thirdly, you need to commit some time to exercise your Belgian Malinois daily. Regular exercise helps improve the health and quality of life of your Belgian Malinois.
Also, you need to feed your Belgian Malinois high-quality dog food, and the food should be of the right amount to prevent your Belgian Malinois from getting overweight or underweight.
See our recommendations on what to feed the Belgian Malinois and how much food to feed the Belgian Malinois at different life stages.
Finally, you need to make sure that your Belgian Malinois has access to clean water all the time. See our recommendations on how much water your Belgian Malinois needs to drink at different ages.
Dog Breeds That Are Similar to Belgian Malinoiss
If you have not made up your mind on which dog breed to get, you may also want to consider some other dogs similar to the Belgian Malinois.
We crunched the numbers and found that the following dog breeds that have similar behavior and temperament as the Belgian Malinois:
- Berger Picard (77 percent match with Belgian Malinois). Learn more about the Berger Picard here.
- Black Mouth Cur (76 percent match with Belgian Malinois). Learn more about the Black Mouth Cur here.
- Border Collie (75 percent match with Belgian Malinois). Learn more about the Border Collie here.
- German Pinscher (80 percent match with Belgian Malinois). Learn more about the German Pinscher here.
- German Wirehaired Pointer (79 percent match with Belgian Malinois). Learn more about the German Wirehaired Pointer here.
Other Things to Know About Belgian Malinoiss
Here are some of the very important characteristics of the Belgian Malinois that you need to know about the Belgian Malinois breed: