Belgian Shepherd Dog (Malinois)

The Belgian Shepherd Dog (Malinois) is a type of the Shepherd Dog and is pronounced as Mselinwa. It, like the rest of the Belgian Shepherd Dogs originated from Belgium. They are called as the Belgian Malinois in United States and are called as the Mechlinian by the French. The Dutch happen to call them as Mechelaar.

Like most Shepherd Dogs from Belgium, this breed is a medium in size and is square proportioned. Their height and the length are almost the same; this gives them a square proportioned body as compared to the other breeds that are longer than their normal height, which gives them a rectangular proportioned body. But unlike the Belgian Shepherd Dog (Groenendael) that come in an all black coat, the Belgian Shepherd Dog (Malinois) come in a brownish yellow coat with only the ears and the nose being of black colour. Their ears stand straight up; they are more like a smaller version of the German Shepherd.

The healthy and fit Belgian Shepherd Dogs (Malinois) weigh around 55 to 65 lb (25 to 30 kg) while there are some huger dogs that top the weighing scales at around 65 to 75 lb (29-34 kg). The male counter parts of these dogs stand tall at around 61 to 66 cm (24 to 26 in) and the females stand tall at around 56 to 61 cm (22 to 24 in).

In most of the countries around the world, especially United States, Australia and most of the European countries like the Netherlands and Germany and Belgium, the Belgian Shepherd Dog (Malinois) is popular for its working abilities. They are seen working as in military and police forces as detection and rescue dogs. They are also used for personal protection many a times. The Royal Australian Air Force and the United States Secret Service use this breed on a daily basis. They prefer them to the German Shepherds because the Belgian Shepherd Dog (Malinois) are of lighter build and hence more agile.

The well fed and well raised Malinois are very active and friendly as a breed. They are very protective of their owners and their belongings. They tend to be very playful and mischievous as little puppies. But with good obedience training during the process of growing up would make them excellent and obedient adults. They are very strong built and like new mental and physical tasks.

A healthy and a fit Belgian Shepherd Malinois would live up to around 10 to 12 years. They are considered to be healthy than the normal German Shepherd Dog, but come with a large number of hereditary diseases. Some of the more serious diseases that happen to affect them are thyroid, cataract, and hip dysplasia. Epilepsy is also another common disease, although they can be prevented from the first itself by very selective breeding of the dogs. However, in the hands of a professional breeder, these problems can be significantly reduced.