# Belgian Malinois?



## CAR83 (Jul 3, 2013)

Ok- first off let me say my pup came from a kill shelter- she was 8 wks old & the mom was a black lab...fast forward to now(she is 6 months) and I've noticed her hair changing. It is becoming darker and tipped. I'm now thinking what I thought was a lab/gsd pup is actually a lab/malinois. So anyone have any experience with these dogs?! How do they differ from GSD? She has the highest energy of any dog I've ever seen- and the highest prey drive! She is very mouthy(we are still working on this) and I know she'll be a great dog, but I need advice! When I was asked what puppy I wanted, and I simply said "the one with the black muzzle", I could've never imagined all of this! Lol I love her like crazy though


----------



## Bentley's Momma (Oct 15, 2013)

Do you have any pics of your pup?

I'm not sure I can give advice per say, but I will say - I'm in a very similar situation! We adopted a little guy who's Mom was a black lab and they assumed the father was a german shepherd. After taking him home and meeting a trainer and vet, both think he's actually belgian malinois. We're actually going to have a DNA test done out of curiosity.

That being the case the trainer gave us some pretty good tips which I think would be similar for a GSD too (he is very high energy, extremely smart and quite mouthy). 

Are you doing any formal training? Puppy Kindergarten / Obedience classes with other dogs so far IS THE BEST thing we have ever invested in. Our trainer has GSDs and Tervuren and understands this high energy /high working breed really well which I think is key when finding a trainer. We do LOTS of mental stimulation each day, LOTS of socialization with people, dogs, kids, busy streets, and LOTS of physical exercise. If we don't, the evenings are spent getting nipped and the furniture getting chewed...


----------



## martemchik (Nov 23, 2010)

Yeah, post some pics, then we'd probably have a better idea.

But just so you know, real working labs have tons of energy. I've met some really good labs that are nothing like most people are used to. The things are sleek, skinny, and go go go.


----------



## David Winners (Apr 30, 2012)

Seriously high drive lab here  he's an animal lol it's not just mals that have drive for days...

http://i470.photobucket.com/albums/rr69/dwinners/8bd5c3c2-ebe2-4a0b-97bb-1bd723d8371f.jpg

David Winners


----------



## CAR83 (Jul 3, 2013)

I'm not good at posting pics-haha but I'll try this!!! Hope it works!


----------



## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

Hard to tell from that pic - but I don't see any Belgian malinois in your pup - the muzzle is too heavy. I'm thinking she is more of a boxer mix? More pics from different angles, and pics showing him from the side standing up would help. 

It is hard to tell with puppies - they often don't look anything like what they are going to end up as. I saw a pup that I swore looked like a pure-bred Belgian Malinois, and the owner said it was a Border collie/Malamute mix - she got the pup from people she knew, and had seen the parents. Saw the same pup as an adult, and yup! Definitely Border Collie/Malamute - never would have known it from how the dog looked as a pup.


----------



## CAR83 (Jul 3, 2013)

Ok- here's some more pics


----------



## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

This shows a completely different pic! 

I've no idea what your pup may be mixed with, but the black muzzle does look good on her! Still no Belgian Malinois that I can see - I don't really see GSD either, but with mixed breeds, you never know.


----------



## CAR83 (Jul 3, 2013)

Ok last pic- this is the most recent thanks everyone for your help! She's def feisty! No formal training- as much as I would love to, I live in a very rural area- so not even any puppy classes within an hour. But this has caused me to be more aware of making sure she's trained- great dog, except she bites when overly excited. She doesn't break skin (not since having adult teeth) but that's her biggest issue. So exercise is great, but it's never enough!! She's all about play, play, play!


----------



## NoVAGSDGuy (Mar 7, 2011)

She has a little look of an Anatolian Shepherd....

My neighbor has a dog I swore was an Anatolian crossed with a bloodhound.....it's a BIG dog, but they said they know the parents and the father is a small longhaired GSD....lol


----------



## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

So pretty, I guess Lab/Shepherd mix.


----------



## robk (Jun 16, 2011)

I think she could have some Mal in her.


----------



## shepherdmom (Dec 24, 2011)

Many years ago I had a boxer mix who had very similar coloring and markings on his face. His mom was a boxer his dad was something that jumped over the fence.


----------



## Muskeg (Jun 15, 2012)

Probably no malinois- but pretty pup anyway.


----------



## vwitt (May 22, 2013)

Does she clap her teeth when excited? 


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## CAR83 (Jul 3, 2013)

I've really only seen her do that once. She usually has a toy in her mouth or I am trying to stuff a toy in her mouth:/


----------



## shepherdmom (Dec 24, 2011)

vwitt said:


> Does she clap her teeth when excited?
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


I know a dog that does that. Is that a mal trait?


----------



## vwitt (May 22, 2013)

I think lab & malinois mix is possible in your dog, more so than german shepherd. Very cute. With ours we had to work on bite inhibition a lot. He doesn't bite hard anymore but mouthing and "teeth clapping" are his preferred methods of communicating excitement. He does learn very quickly and is eager to please so that has helped. Exercise and socialization are also very important! Otherwise something like this happens









Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## vwitt (May 22, 2013)

Shepherdmom- I don't think it's exclusive to mals but mine does it a lot and I've read it's a common 'quirk' of theirs. I've heard it called the 'Mali clack' 


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## sarah1366 (Nov 3, 2013)

I have gsd x belgian and shes like racehorse on legs never sits still also mouthy when young we use keep saying here have this and shove toy in her gob lol now dont do it very often now
But is very high drive and loads energy we have to run it off her but thank god shes never been a wrecker 

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## brembo (Jun 30, 2009)

shepherdmom said:


> I know a dog that does that. Is that a mal trait?


Mine did that, it was a stress/excitement thing. Her rear legs vibrated and she chattered her teeth.


----------



## David Winners (Apr 30, 2012)

It's called drive leaking, when the dog is struggling to control itself. It happens in very high drive dogs, especially when they are young and haven't learned how to cap, or turn on and off.

David Winners


----------



## OrangeJillius (May 29, 2013)

[/IMG]


Your dog looks very similar to a foster I had last year (included a pic). We had him from age 5 months to 7 months. We were told by someone in the rescue (who had a Mal) that he looked like a Mal mix. But we were also told that he looked like a boxer mix. So who knows. He was a very powerful dog and he did the teeth clacking thing a couple of other people mentioned. He had a crazy high prey drive and crazy high energy. Now that my girl is 6-7 months old I can compare her energy to the his and he had her beat by miles. I would run him next to my bike for 2-3 miles, play fetch, walks, training, you name it and he would not tire. I jokingly called him the puppy that never slept, because it really felt like that. He was a very fun dog, although stubborn and cat obsessive. I think he would have been great at dog sports. I am sure your girl will bring you lots of fun and love.


----------



## brembo (Jun 30, 2009)

David Winners said:


> It's called drive leaking, when the dog is struggling to control itself. It happens in very high drive dogs, especially when they are young and haven't learned how to cap, or turn on and off.
> 
> David Winners


I called it "the buzzies". She buzzed for me when I got home, got her Kong out or right before dinner. Peppy was high drive and always on task. It took me minutes of gentle massage to get her to click of into la-la land and relax.


----------

