9 Month Old Male Malinois Rescue Dog - Page 1

Hi everyone,

This is my first time here and I am looking for some general advice.  I am the current owner of a 2 year old feamle GSD and am considering adding a 9 month old male rescue BM (neutered) to my family.  There are no children in the household nor are there any cats.  My GSD is a family pet and has not been raised for either show or breeding purposes and I will raise my poetnial BM in the same manner.  The GSD is a very loyal and mellow dog which suits me fine. 

We went to see the rescue dog (who is currently keneled) this past weekend  to see how the two would get along.  Initially we just let them sniff and feel each other out and them let them run together.  The BM was understandably full of energy and chasing my GSD all over the yard.  My GSD was probably a bit intimidated by the BM byt when she got fed up with the chasing she raised her hackles and menacingly growled at the BM.  At this point both dogs were seperated and a potential fight was avoided.  I understand that this was their first meeting but does these seem normal to you or do sometimes two dogs "hit it off" greatly initially?

Also, the rescue person was very honest and said the BM shows "food aggression" (she didn't say how severe) and sometimes nips at people when they approach his food.  Would this also be somewhat "normal" for a dog that has been in a kennel since November?  And, is "food aggression" something can never be modified?

Thanks for your help and I look forward to your comments/advice.

Is the malinois going to have a "job" or do you expect him to hang around the house as a nice pet?

Do you have any experience with working dogs?

Why do you want a mal?

Introductions like this are stupid, you need to be a leader, and that does not mean letting two strange dogs work it out, or letting the new mal harass the weaker dog. She hackled and growled because she was insecure and you were doing nothing to protect her. Get a working dog because you want to work the dog, or get a softer mellower breed if you want a doggy friend to get along with yours. There is more to life than show or breeding :) Mals need to work :)

Food aggression... Relax. Feed the dog in a crate, don't mess with his food, and if you must, always take him away from the food instead of taking the food from him. It will not be an issue. If you mess around trying to modify this somehow without knowing what to do, you can create a bigger problem, making him more posessive and defensive.

Cykodog,

Thanks for your response and if your name is an indicator of the type of dog I am looking for, I guess, you are right, a Mali is probably not the type of dog for me.

Thanks again you your valuable insight.

It's not a big deal don't worry about it. If you had 8 dogs different breeds, 6 of them
would be food agressive. Look at the dog over all, you just might have a really
good dog. After all he is Malinois.

Ty,

I had 8 month old rottweiler that was off some tough lines. And I got
behind on his socialization.  So I took him to a puppy class, and thought
that he would be the their biggest problem. This dog school was owned
by an internationlly known dog trainer. But one of her students ran the class.
The worst dogs in there to were the small breeds. It cost about
$85.00 back in the 1980's. I was training dogs back than but I felt this would
be very good  for this male Rott. This Girl about 19 years old comes out with her
assistant, and there was 30 people there with puppys, from 5 months to 1 year old.
At the beginning of the day they all were jumping up on the owners and food agressive.
barking and pooping.  By the end of that day not one was jumping up on his owner, food
aggresive or barking. The people and the puppies had the time of their life, And that was
just the first lesson of a five day course. Once you are done with the course your dog  will sit, down and stay.
They will show how to use food and praise as a reward. But everything starts with the sit.
My dog was in the top 10 of his puppy class and I had a blast. I almost did not take him
because I thought he might be to tough for the trainer. I was very wrong, he was putty in her hands.
I still use the things I learned in puppy class to lay the foundation for my dogs.

Jon,

Thank you VERY much for your advice ... I sincerely appreciate it!

I REALLY do like this Malinois and it's a shame that he has to sit in a kennel waiting for adoption.  As I mentioned earlier I have had two GSDs and neither has ever displayed "food aggression" so maybe I am spoiled by that.  I just want to make sure that I make the right choice, not only for me, but, more importantly, for the GSD and Malinois as well. 


When I went to go see the Malinois last weekend with my GSD he seemd as though (while playing with her) that he wanted to be the dominant dog .... is this normal in Malinois or is my GSD maybe a bit too submissive?  My GSD is now 2 years old and used to being the only dog in the house as I have never had two dogs at the same time before.  Will the dogs establish dominance among themselves or would I have to do this for them?  

Yes, many questions as I am a novice at having two dogs together at the same time and I do appreciate your help.

Sincerely,

Joe  

I would worry if I had two males that were playing together. But if he shows dominance
over a female I would  not worry. I am not being a sexest, But the females have there own way of dealing
with males. It is typical in most breeds, more so in some breeds. I have seen Kelpies from some  lines
that males really beat up the females. And I have seen Kelpies from other lines, where the female
 ran the show. Where is Joyce Brothers when you need her.  I have two Malinois from the same litter,
and they are as different as day and night. One has to be right next to me all the time and the other is
lay back. But when it comes to the work they were bred for they are both very competitive of each other.
They are very good dogs I was very lucky to get them.

 

The 5 day  course will resolve a mulitude of sins. Give you a much
better start, and allow your puppy  to socialize with other dogs. It's a lot of fun to.