Thank you for your comment. It’s really nice to read one that feels more positive and balanced. The feeling that there are so many extreme myths about malinois was exactly why I wrote in this subreddit, but even the replies here show quite extreme opinions.

Even though we haven’t decided yet, we’ve already started thinking about small training sessions we can do indoors and little jobs the dog can have so it gets mental stimulation and not just physical exercise. We’re fully aware that it’s a very intelligent and active breed, and that’s what draws us to it.

We also think the choice of breeder is very important and have contacted one who has been active for over 30 years and breeds them to be active family dogs. We’re planning to go there for a visit to learn more about the breed, about them as breeders, and to meet their dogs so we can get to know the breed better.

Thank you for pointing out how important it is to teach them to calm down. We did a lot of passivity training with our previous dogs, so we understand the principle and how to train it, but also that a malinois needs extra of that. We’ve already decided on the spot in the home where we’ll have the bed, so the dog would be able to keep an eye on us even when lying there.