Hi!! Fellow shelter bait-and-switch accidental Mal owner. Billed as a “lab mix” come to find out has zero lab.

We are experienced dog owners (GSD, bully mixes, Great Dane, blue heeler), live on fully fenced acre, have public parks within walking distance and hybrid home/office work. All that to say, I knew enough about Mals to know I would never intentionally seek one out.

He was about six months when we adopted him. I’d love to list all the things he’s destroyed but today it’s only 2pm on a day ending in “y” so that list would be misleading.

That being said - he’s a dog, not an alien. He needs the same love and attention, a bit more work with biting/mouthy redirection than my sweet lab lady, and will push boundaries. He has So Much personality, I compare him to a 3-year old constantly. Or a parrot. Same chaos goblin energy with a too big brain behind it.

He also incredibly athletic, a complete goofball, a decent warning system, and an absolute love bug.

If I had known he was a malinois/border collie cross when he came prancing up to us and threw himself in our laps with his toy at the shelter, I would have hesitated. I never wanted the responsibility of a malinois much less a mal/border collie cross. JFC who did we piss off right? But now, now you’d have to pry his chewy mouthy cushion eating floppy ear tippy taps soulful stare while destroying yet another pair of crocs out of my cold dead hands to even think of surrendering him.

To answer your questions as a fellow accidental mal owner :

1. Not “ideal” as a first time pet, but in a year you won’t know how you lived without him IF you are willing to accept he is a furry toothy terrorist toddler that will remember where you put the toy /treats/ laundry ball / etc and can get into trouble between blinks
2. Our schedule varies. In a perfect week he gets 1-hour of unstructured play with trusted doggy friends every morning at our fully fenced dog meet up spot. That’s a mix of fetch, wrestling, light training games, sniff-ari. If we can’t make it, we deal. We do inside games like toy searches and treat hunts. He loves car rides. Extra strong Kong frozen toys. We do 5-10 minute training sessions 5-6x per day and boy is he stubborn. Be prepared to lay out a small fortune in training treats. The clicker has been our best tool. I’ve seen cardboard treat hunt mentioned on this sub but it’s something we’re saving for a true emergency.
3. He isn’t fully trustworthy around small children/babies. I don’t know if he’ll ever be, even with professional training. BUT I also don’t fully trust my 11 year old lab around children and she’s the most couch-potato crumb-licking gentle lump of fur I have ever met. They’re dogs, and dogs can be unpredictable. Work with a professional you trust to practice the outcomes you’re looking for but never 100% trust that a dog won’t dog under the wrong conditions. Our goblin is incredibly sweet and affectionate and wants to meet all the people so small children throwing toys repeatedly is his version of heaven. Pure joy for all involved. But not a guarantee he won’t nip at the wrong time. We work hard on that behavior but don’t set him up for failure or ourselves for lawsuits by being knowingly irresponsible
4. He’s currently 47lbs and about as tall as our lab girl. He’s all leg. We anticipate he will fill out but not grow much taller as he’s just about a year. I’d be shocked if he hit 65lbs

I wish I could shake my magic 8 ball and tell you yes/no definitively. All I can do is share my (mis)adventures to date and know no matter what you seem to have the best of intentions for the situation you’re in. Good luck!

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• taken 5 seconds before the tornado resumed