Resources
for our Malinway owners

About the Malinois

The Belgian Malinois (mal-in-wah) was first bred around the city of Malines in Belgium and is one of four types of Belgian Shepherd, also known affectionately as the Mali or a Mali. While in some countries the Belgian Shepherd is grouped as one breed, the characteristics of each breed type can vary in relation to temperament,, trainability and workability.

Mali’s have been the go-to dog for Belgium sheepherders and cattlemen and are also favoured by the police, military and security industry. They have been bred for courage, commitment and an emphasis on performance. As confident, curious, agile, versatile and highly intelligent dogs, Mali’s need to be mentally and physically stimulated. If you own a Mali you have the privilege of and responsibility for a very smart dog that has the potential of being a very effective and obedient working dog as well as a loving companion. Your Mali comes with naturally protective and territorial instincts and needs you to provide regular and fulfilling physical and mental along with extensive and ongoing socialisation opportunities so that your Mali does not develop problematic anti-social habits from boredom or insufficient socialisation.

Mali's love to be with their pack, you! and are very social in this regard. You need to be careful not to mistake this social side to easily transition outside of the work or family environment. This is not the case, a young Mali needs to be guided and socialised so that they understand community and acceptable/unacceptable behaviours outside of work/home.

Mali's are loyal and eager to please. Work and activities that involve agility, retrieving, jumping, tracking, herding, catching and any game that combines mental and physical challenges are great stimulation for a Mali. They excel at competitive Mondio, Schutzhund (IPG) and Ring Sports. Training regimes that involving tracking, obedience, jumping, and protection activities. Malis’ also enjoy, dock diving (a sport where a dog leaps off a dock to retrieve objects thrown into the water).

With sufficient exercise and stimulation, the Mali can become a well-mannered and calm house dog. Without sufficient exercise and training, it can be extremely destructive and headstrong, especially when it is young and even more problematic if owners don’t address the cause and behaviours become embedded. Given the breed’s athleticism, Mali enclosures may require a very high fence.

Worming, Vet Check, Vaccinations, Fleas and Ticks

Worming

Your malinway puppy has been wormed with Drontal Puppy Suspension at 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks of age. You will need to continue worming your puppy at 10 and 12 weeks of age. After 12 weeks of age repeat every month until 6 months of age. After 6 months of age repeat every 3 months.

Vet Check and Vaccination

Your malinway puppy is vet checked at 6-10 weeks of age and C3/C4-C7 vaccination is completed, dependent on age. You will need to arrange boosters at 14 and 18 weeks depending on product used and if adoptng tri-annual C3 vaccinations you may need a further booster at 6 months. C7 vaccination is not recommended for the first vaccination but can replace the second and third boosters if you prefer the broader coverage of this vaccine you shoud commence this vaccine at the Vaccinations should be scheduled in accordance with your vet instructions.. second booster instead of C3/C4.

Annual heartworm vaccinations can also be provided at the time of the third booster.

Annual boosters are then usually provided thereafter for whatever vaccinations you select.

Fleas and Ticks

All dogs on our property are treated with Bravecto Flea and Tick treatment (either chew or pippete). Whilst we have never had fleas on our property, ticks are problematic on the East Coast.

Because your puppy is growing month by month, it is recommended that you treat your puppy with recommended Bravecto dose rates that allow for growth in the next 3 months. Your puppy will have its first dose of Bravecto at 8 weeks of age before it leaves our property so you will need to organise the next dose 3 months from date of treatment. You still need to be vigilant and check your puppy for ticks.

Feeding your puppy

We feed our dogs premium food such as Taste of the Wild Kibble (online and Costco) and use high reward premium treats such as cooked chicken meat, Prime 100, Prime Quality. This has worked well for us.

For our new owners convenience our puppies are on Eukanuba or Royal Canin Large Puppy Kibble. If you wish to change your puppy's diet to another preferred brand we recommend that you wait until your puppy is 6 months of age when its digestive system has matured and it has settled into your home. It is very important to gradually chage food over a 7-day-period.

Most puppy feeding guides will be based on the estimated adult weight of your puppy and not their current weight. Different size puppies have different nutritional needs and like people puppies are all different and you may need to adjust quantities. Watch the dog, not the dish.

The first 5 months of your puppy's life is an important developmental stage, with muscles, bones and digestive system all developing. This means that puppies can only handle smaller quantities of food at a time to avoid getting diarrhoea from having too many nutrients to digest.

We would advise from 8 weeks of age up until 12 months of age to feed the daily portion of your puppy's food as 4 meals 2-4 months and 3 meals 5 -12 months. This will help ease the stress on the digestive system. From 12-18 months continue with 2 meals a day of large puppy kibble.

Keep treats as small as possible to make sure that your puppies diet remains balanced. Usually no more than 10% of totdal daily intake. Small portions of carrot, apple, or green beans are healthy, low-calorie snacks that most puppies will try. Our Malis are high food drive and will train with kibble however we feed our Mal's kibble meals and use Prime100 for training. Fresh water should be available at all times. To avoid a buildup of bacteria and biofilm, wash your puppy’s water bowl daily.

Dog Sports

You might like to get involved in one or more dog sports with your Mali. Your Mali will love you for it! Not only will you be mentally and physically stimulating your dog but you will build a stronger relationship with your dog with an extra bonus of being active yourself. If you have good obedience in place this will underpin your sports as it will be easier to give your dog direction through known skills and positive re-enforcement.

The many sports Mali’s enjoy include:

Mondio, Ringsports, IGP, Agility, Tracking, Search, Dock Diving, Dancing with Dogs, Flyball, Herding, You might also like to train in voluntary search and rescue also. Most of all your Mali will love being involved in your day-to-day life, don’t forget to include them.

Bringing your puppy home

After your purchase your puppy you will be provided with a detailed puppy handbook authored Roger H Mayer APM.

Crate training

Crate training your dog is invaluable in providing care and a safe space for your puppy, We strongly recommend that you crate train your puppy. PETMD provides the following excellent snapshot on the benefits an importance of crate training,

"Many people think of crate training solely as a way to keep your dog confined when you’re away from home. But the reality is that a crate offers many positives for your pup.

Provides a safe, quiet space for dogs: Dogs are den animals, meaning they like to have their own space where they can go if they feel stressed or scared. When used appropriately, a crate can provide that den-like comfort.
Aids in housetraining: Dogs don’t like to soil the area they sleep in, so a crate helps puppies learn to hold their bladder for longer periods of time. This is very handy when potty training a puppy.
Emergency evacuation: If you need to evacuate due to a natural disaster, many shelters allow pets—as long as they are crate trained. Dogs that are crate trained are also less likely to be lost or run away in an emergency.
Traveling: A crate helps keep your pet safe during travel and is generally required when flying. "

Crate training can be done at any age however for a puppy the maximum single period of time in a crate is generally one hour for every hour of age plus one hour. Crate training should be a rewarding and positive experience. To assist our owners with crate training their pup our puppies have been fed all their meals in the crate and doors have been shut for short periods.

Please keep in mind that your puppy is experiencing many changes in leaving their mum, litter mates and house that they knew so well and they may feel a bit unsettled, however you should continue with crate training. eg place the blanket in their that smell's of puppy's mumma and litter mates, allow the puppy to sleep in the crate with the door open..

Some useful videos to assist you with crate training.

Robert Cabral How to Crate Train Your Video

Robert Cabral Crate Training Your Dog

Maligator Mom Crate Training 101

Exercise and Training Your Puppy

Being an active dog, it is easy for people to fall in the trap of over-exercise. For a puppy this has can have long term detrimental effects on the joints as growth plates are not mature. These German Shepherd articles share some good over-exercise tips that relate to Belgian Shepherds.

https://gsdcv.org.au/puppies/exercising-your-puppy/

https://www.pitpat.com/exercise/how-much-exercise-does-a-german-shepherd-need/

For older dogs people sometimes choose the easier option of throwing a ball endlessly. While this is physical stimulation it can result in overuse/damage of joints and is not mentally stimulating. Mentally stimulating your Mali is just as important as physical activity and can similarly meet the needs of your Mali where they will challenged and use their working skills. Mental stimulation can be as tiring as physical activity.

Your Malinway puppy has great genetics and comes to you as a clearheaded, calm dog (thick nerves dog). In the first 8 weeks your puppy has been exposed to various environmental experiences including various surfaces and noises, cattle, horses, chickens, cats, cars, many people and unfamiliar surroundings. The next 10 weeks are critical for your puppy as you need to be committed to continuing these various experiences with your puppy so that they are imprinted onto your puppy.

Your Malinway puppy needs daily physical and mental stimulation. The best thing you can do for your puppy as a responsible owner is socialise, socialise, socialise on a daily basis and to take your puppy everywhere so that he continues to be a confident and social dog. Continue also to exposing your puppy to various animals (please take note of the importance Robert Cabral places on inroducing your new puppy to other dogs).

Remember your puppy is a youngster who will become a teenager before becoming an adult and he will make mistakes and sometimes it will be 3 steps forward, 2 steps back.

Be clear on boundaries and be fair to your puppy. Mark good behaviours, address anti-social behaviours straight away eg jumping up on people, lunging, rushing out of the crate or car, chasing small animals.

Malinois are herding dogs with strong prey drive and while it might be fun for your Mali to chase, this may not be fun for a small animal and can quickly become an anti-social and problematic behaviour. Divert this drive into rewarding prey drive in a social way.

Socialisation, luring with food to make training fun, leash training and recall are all important first elements in training. Once you progress it is usually better to train the stand before the sit or down. Trainers often use a 'place' to do this. Focus on a happy puppy who is building a relationship and bond with you and where learning. is fun and not a chore.

Michael Ellis, Robert Cabral and Stonnie Dennis are popular trainers. Below are a collection of freely available educational puppy training videos.