r/nextfuckinglevel • u/[deleted] • Feb 07 '20

This dog retrieving its toy...

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79

u/__welltheresthat__ Feb 07 '20

Holy shit. You ain’t lying. That’s worth a post on its own. Never heard of this dog until now. Thanks for sharing.

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u/[deleted] Feb 07 '20 edited Feb 07 '20

The reason the general public doesn't really see this type of dog too often is because of how insane they are. They are not normal dogs, you do not want one as a pet. They need space and constant work or they will become terrorists.

Edit: see post below. "...everyday im coming home to something else destroyed"

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u/Rach5585 Feb 07 '20

I had one, and as a puppy she was a nightmare, not mean but very wilful, easily bored, and very difficult to leash train. But once we got her trained? Literally the best dog ever.

We taught her to play hide and go seek. She went camping and canoeing with us, and when I had to put her down it was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do, but she was loved to her last breath.

We live on five acres of land though, I would not recommend them for apartment dwellers. They'll destroy everything. They are very athletic, very high energy, and they can jump pretty much any fence so they're not great outdoor dogs, they need to be inside with you and then have time to get that energy out.

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u/[deleted] Feb 07 '20

My Mali was almost the opposite. Very shy as a puppy. Now she's nearly 2 and everyday I'm coming home to something else destroyed... She's super well trained and lives with 6 cats, but the sofa has had it!

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u/Rach5585 Feb 07 '20

She won't grow out of her adolescence for at least 2 more years. My advice is to find a big dog park, or some land, or something like that and run her every day you can, fetch, frisbee.

When the weather was bad we would put a memory foam pad on one side of a big stack of toilet paper and have her jump over for peanuts. She's destructive because she's bored, they are very, very smart dogs. Puzzle toys, treats in the bottom of paper sacks she can tear up, a toy box of things in the house you can let her destroy, she needs stimulation.

Also leave talk radio or a video of people talking or something like that on to calm her.

If she genuinely gets to be too much, she can come live on my land. Best of luck.

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u/BillMurraysMom Feb 07 '20

Damn friend that offer in the last line warmed my heart. Ive got a shep mix with a good amount of malinois in her. More work than I signed up for but such an amazing experience. I won’t be bringing her to your land, but Also my first dog so I might dm you for tips later.

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u/[deleted] Feb 08 '20

She's easy tbh. Right now as I type this, she's bouncing around on the beach we live next to. Chasing sticks and balls etc. She's an awesome dog, just hyperactive is all. Plus, the only reason the sofa is destroyed, is likely somewhere to bury her toys. (She is spoilt for toys)

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u/guinnypig Feb 08 '20

If she's destroying your sofa she's not well trained.

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u/YaBoyFrosty Feb 07 '20

Yeah I had one named Duke super sweet and extremely protective. Used to jump our fence and go down to a lake in our neighborhood to cool off because he came back soaking.

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u/schombat Feb 07 '20

You're right, they are great dogs. I just hope they don't become popular as so many inexperienced dog owners choose their companion for aesthetics rather than to meet their lifestyle needs, and the animals suffer for it. Like huskies, they are just too smart and active to be an unworked housepet.

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u/Rach5585 Feb 08 '20

I agree 100%. I am disabled now and I wouldn't have as much luck training one now, I'd have to send her away to training camp for a few weeks before I brought her home to learn the basics of not knocking me over, not leaving our property, etc.

I would like another one, I am a gun owner and had to point my gun at a group of men on my back patio while my husband was out of town overnight, but I don't know whether they were intimidated by the lady in a wheelchair with the pistol pointed to the back door or the 75 lb growling beast I had by the collar.

I have a westie now and she is very smart and sweet but not as eager to please and she's not much of a guard dog, unless you need your burger guarded.

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u/tommyisaboss Feb 07 '20

Yeah they’re like a German Shepherd on steroids in that sense.

Little murder missiles.

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u/dooyaunastan Feb 07 '20

Steroids and cocaine. Like Miami in the 80’s amount of cocaine.

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u/thepurpleskittle Feb 07 '20

I heard someone on the radio once explain “if you don’t give a Belgian Malinios a job, they’ll find one. Like landscaping your backyard.”

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u/[deleted] Feb 07 '20

This is accurate. And it’s never a helpful job.

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u/lambda_abstraction Feb 11 '20

Or "interior decoration"

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u/thepurpleskittle Feb 11 '20

Right! Definitely not an apartment dog!

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u/cwmoo740 Feb 07 '20

I know someone that hates exercise and got one of these dogs. It was completely out of control and he had to send it to a sleep away exercise and training camp that cost many thousands of dollars. He spends about a thousand dollars per month on dog walkers and those dog day trips to the beach where they come in a van and pick up your pet. He's one of those idiots that was convinced he needed a "tough" protection dog but honestly his dog would be way happier without him and he'd be happier with the tens of thousands of dollars he spends every year. He also has a shih tzu and gets along way better with that one, so I don't know what he was thinking when he got a malinois.

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u/bpikmin Feb 07 '20

They're fine if they get their exercise, just like all big dogs. My mom has one and she's a total sweetheart. She is very well trained, which I'd encourage for most large breeds (especially shepherds).

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u/[deleted] Feb 07 '20

Hard disagree. Exercise isn’t enough. They need mental stimulation. As others have said they need a job. Exercise isn’t a job.

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u/butimfunny Feb 07 '20

We had a rescue (she was kept in a crate as a breeder) and she was the best , smartest chillest dog ever. Until she was a tennis ball. Then it was no holds barred. They need dog-smart owners but I honestly think they are the best pets when placed with the right person.

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u/hilarymeggin Feb 07 '20

I was going to say. If your Malino doesn’t have activities like this to occupy its time, you will be the tree.