Posted on 06/18/2015 8:16:52 PM PDT by chrisinoc
“Max,” the Warner Brothers movie starring a Belgian Malinois, comes out in theaters June 26th. It is based on the true story of a military working dog named Max that served on the frontlines in Afghanistan with his handler, U.S. Marine Kyle Wincott. After Kyle’s death, Max returns home to the United States to live with Kyle’s grieving family. It’s a tale of healing and redemption, depicting the work of Military Working Dogs -- one of the most important roles that purebred dogs fill in our society.
However, the Belgian Malinois is an alert, high-energy breed, and the qualities that make the breed one of the leading police and military dogs in the world may not translate into an easy home life for every family. AKC would like to remind moviegoers about the importance of making wise, educated decisions when it comes to adding a dog to their home.
(Excerpt) Read more at akc.org ...
If our rescue has any Belgian Malinois available, potential adopters must be experienced German shepherd or Belgian Malinois owners.
We had a Shepherd named Max. His displacia (sp) got so bad last winter we had to put him down (sniff, sniff).
He was the most naturally smart, instinctive animal I’ve ever owned.
I miss him terribly.
Two of the police dogs to which I attend are nothing but a joy with which to work. They are attentive, gregarious and responsive. I look forward to seeing them for routine checkups. Again, these are handled and worked which means they are trained and used to being handled. I am anticipating the movie, Max, and having worked with MWD in the USAF hoping to see a good depiction of one.
I was privileged to have two wonderful Belgian Malinois share their lives with me,
These are wonderful dogs, and I worry about them being “popularized”. They are very sensitive, very smart, and are best for farm work, with a close relationship with their human family.
I truly love this breed so much, and hate to see greedy breeders try to get in on a fad, and ruin these wonderful dogs. It hurts.
God bless my two, now over the rainbow bridge, Hanna and Shadow, who never left my side, and never failed in keeping the farm and garden safe from any and all predators and varmints.
And, in my opinion, way better than the GSDs that the AKC, in the USA, has ruined over the years, with their stupid breeding for looks, not working ability or temperament.
I have had two Belgian sheepdogs (black long haired version of this breed) and one Belgian Tervuren, the long haired version of the black and tan Malinois. Our Tervuren male is our only dog to bite an invading black bear right in the butt. That bear never came back! Sadly, Larson is gone now. They are really smart dogs.
Mine is a rescue dog, got him when he was 2.
10 years old now, he is the best.
Very smart, and sweet to other critters.
He wants to play, until things get weird....than he can be really scary.
The neighbors are terrified of him, and I like it that way.
*smile
“These are wonderful dogs, and I worry about them being “popularized”.
That was my first thought as well, but I fear this movie will do just that.
^^^This^^^
It is curious how different breeds have such different distinctive behaviors. Our two Dobermans are so different from my old hunting dog it is amazing. Unlike Labs they hate water! Who knew? My old Virginia Coon Hound was a dang ballerina compared to these two. 100 lbs of seriously clumsy, both of them. They are both just as lovable as teddy bears but they do have sort of a hair trigger temper. You just have to quickly point out who is bigger than whom when they try to unpack it and they pack it right back up again. I wouldn’t want to be a stranger in the yard uninvited though. Especially at night. They have this “stealth fur” that is like zig zag when you look up close. It reflects NO light. On a dark night they are just black holes. They love to lie under bushes and jump out suddenly. It will make you change underwear and I know them. Like I said, I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end if the unload and I ain’t there to stop it.
I don’t think this movie is going to have that big of an audience... it’s not Benji.
Thanks for ping Joe!
Hip issues are pretty common with Germans. Part of the reason is that many breeders are always trying for that “perfect” hindquarter curve, which ends up being very very weak.
Larger dogs tend to have hip issues. The good news is GSDs tend to have less hip issues these days than in the past.
Someone on IMDB claimed there was some trivia stating Max is a Belgian/Shepherd mix, not pure Belgian. Which I was ecstatic about because I could not see him being quite purebred.
The head looks too German Shepherd, not that Collie-like fineness totally. Also the racoon-masked markings coming through, which I don’t think I’ve seen on a Belgian before. And the tail seems a bit too feathered whereas BelMals are pretty smooth-Collie-like whiplike again.
Yet it seems everyone is saying he is a pure BelMal?
1) The movie has to be really popular, first of all.
2) BelMals look too much like German Shepherds, and most people will not care to find out so won’t know the difference. If anything, likely more popularity problems for GS.
Some breeds are simply not the average pet. The Belgian Malinois typifies this statement. They are very bright and they will find things to do if ignored. Those activities may very well involve shredding household items, including furniture.
They have high prey drive (chase instinct) combined with protective tendencies. If not socialized heavily as pups, they may be fearful. A fearful Belgian may bite without much provocation.
That said, for the right people, one cannot have a better partner, be that as an agility dog, herding dog, obedience competitor and, of course, as a Ring sport, IPO or Schutzhund dog.
I have one as well, I’ve owned numerous GSD, dobes, etc., this one is far the easiest to train, and the athleticism is off the charts. Mine is from a pretty high end line of sport and working dogs, and very social, while extreme in protection.
The biggest problem with these is that they learn fast enough that you have to NEVER let them get away with anything. Great with kids, but big time bitework.
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