Hey everyone! Welcome back to the Dogroll! Sorry, I know it’s been a long time since you’ve gotten any posts from me. I’m really going to try to post more regularly from now on so you guys don’t miss a single Z-Beary Pawz update. So without any further ado, here’s the first Dog of the Month for this year: the Belgian Malinois!
The Malinois (pronounced “mal-uh-nwah”) is actually one of four types of a breed called the Belgian shepherd. The other three varieties are the Tervuren (ter-vee-ur-ren), the Groenendael (grow-nen-dale), which is also known as the Belgian sheepdog, and the Laekenois (I think it’s pronounced “lake-nwah or maybe like-nwah”?). These names look so easy to pronounce, don’t they? 😄 I’ll tell you more about these other Belgian shepherds in future Dogroll posts.
The Malinois can sometimes be confused with the German shepherd dog, since they tend to look very similar and are often used to do the same jobs (like being police or military dogs). But the Belgian Malinois is smaller and leaner than the German shepherd and also typically doesn’t have a black “saddle” on his back like the GSD does.
Belgian Malinois have short, sandy-brown coats with black “masks” over their faces. They are loyal and intelligent dogs who are protective of their families. They also have a ton of energy and so need adequate exercise! They can get along great with kids, but since Malinois are herding dogs, they need to be taught not to chase the kids.
If you’re looking for a Belgian Malinois to add to your family, be sure to consider adopting one instead of buying from a breeder. Here are a few links to websites of some Malinois rescue groups to help you get started:
American Belgian Malinois Rescue: https://www.malinoisrescue.org/
Adopt-A-Pet: https://www.adoptapet.com/s/adopt-a-belgian-malinois
Petfinder: https://www.petfinder.com/dog-breeds/belgian-malinois/
Well, that’s all for this one. Stay tuned for April’s Dog of the Month!
-Zariya
Top photo credit: charlie_rbt@ymail.com 03.07.2016 via photopin (license)
Bottom photo credit: charlie_rbt@ymail.com 03.07.2016 via photopin (license)