It really depends on the individual dog, how you raise it, or if you get it as an adult the experiences it has already had, etc.

I have a range of personalities in my own dogs, but for me I like a dog that isn't to sensitive (ie if I accidentally step on it's foot it thinks that's a major correction) but not to in-sensitive either (can hit it with a 2x4 and it just says 'yeah, whatever'). And I've seen all of that range in the Malinois. Dogs who were very handler sensitive and a calm "no" was about the only correction it ever needed, maybe a tug on a flat collar. I've seen other dogs whose owners were flat out abusive with them, who just shook it off like it was no big deal and kept right on working. Some can be very forgiving of handler mistakes, others are not. In general I think the breed is less forgiving though then say a GSD.

I think the biggest thing when training a Malinois is a handler with a good "feel" and timing. Mals are fast. Fast thinkers, fast learners, fast reactors. You need to really be on your ball with the timing of praise and correction or the dog will learn something you didn't mean for it to learn. And sometimes it can take months to 'unlearn' it. I've seen it happen, I've had it happen with my own dogs. We made a mistake in training, dog said "OK, this is how this works" and 2 months later we were still trying to get the dog to realize that was not how it worked. But that can work in your favor also, I have had Malinois who after 1 training session understood a scent discrimination exercise, or to give focus with some distractions.

Thank You Kadi, thats helpful info for me.

What kind of differences do you find between Mals and Tervs? I've heard them described as Mals with an off switch.


Lisa

 Quote: lisa kidd

What kind of differences do you find between Mals and Tervs? I've heard them described as Mals with an off switch.


Lisa

It is like the beauty and the beast.

Tervs Groenendaal and Lakense are supposed to be the same dog as a mal but with other coats.

In fact the first 3 have beautiful coats and were picked early on by show and pet breeders for their looks

The mal is a common dog and wasn't that interesting for show or pet. So they were used to work hence a difference in working ability and spirit

Greetings

Johan

Generally when someone describes a dog or a breed as having an "off switch" it is a red flag to me.

For a good top quality working dog, the off switch should be to wear the dog out. There is no other off switch unless the dog lacks drive, energy and/or persistance.

To me if a dog had no off switch unless exhausted then he would lack a brain. What fun could it be? There is a time and place for everything. I would want a dog who knew what was expected in different situations.

Never had a Mal but no off switch would be as annoying as those ever yappy ankle bitters.

So basically you want a good working dog that won't bounce off the walls without exercise for a few days. Good luck.

As for knowing what is expected in different situations, that's obedience.

 Quote: Johan Engelen

 Quote: lisa kidd

What kind of differences do you find between Mals and Tervs? I've heard them described as Mals with an off switch.


Lisa

It is like the beauty and the beast.

Tervs Groenendaal and Lakense are supposed to be the same dog as a mal but with other coats.

In fact the first 3 have beautiful coats and were picked early on by show and pet breeders for their looks

The mal is a common dog and wasn't that interesting for show or pet. So they were used to work hence a difference in working ability and spirit

Greetings

Johan

I could see that. I've always been attracted to the looks of a Terv and didn't care much for Mals, thought they looked like scrawny shepherd mixes until I got to know a couple and Wow what a dog.

Lisa

The question about Malinois/Dutch Shepherds character is very difficult to answer. There are Malinois and then there are Malinois. You will find everything from handler soft, easy to train dogs to extreme, extreme hard dogs. All depends on the lines. That in some ways in the beauty of the Malinois. What ever type of dog you like you will find it. I personally own Dutchies and got them from the best KNPV lines that also carry alot of Malinois blood. Now these dogs are extreme in all ways. Drives, nerves and pain tollerance. I certainly would not recommend these for the first time owner. Its not that they are dangerous or handler aggressive its just they are extreme in their drives and can be very willful. If they want to try and destroy their kennel, they wont stop until they have. Add to this mix a very high tollerance to corrections, incl electric collars, then you can see where the problems will come from. There is rumours about the old KNPV guys putting some pittbull in some of the lines, and you can see where this comes from.
I do have to back Cindy up with her comments about Dobies and Malis. There are so many "personallity" traits that my Dutchies have that remind me of my old Dobies. The owner/dog bond, the naughty child thing etc. As far as drives and working abilities go the Dobies as a population dont come near the Malis and Dutchies. But then, no breed does.

To give an idea about how extreme some Malis can be, watch this video. It is a KNPV dog called Tornado, owned and trained by one of the top KNPV guys in Holland. Tornado came from a Mali called Arno. Arno produced many, many dogs with aggression and high guarding drives. In the clip you will see Tornado start to guard the decoy from the handler.
http://video.google.nl/videoplay?docid=3938585696137749010&q=knpv+tornado
If this dog got into a green person hands it would not turn out well.