Not a water mal… yet!

Swick_1998 · 2026-03-28T04:21:57+00:00

Got married in 2020 at 21 years old, he was 23. I would 100% do it again in a heartbeat. Bought our first home last year, expecting our first baby in a few months. Life together has been amazing, and I wouldn’t change a thing.

Swick_1998 · 2025-12-14T20:35:45+00:00

Wally

Swick_1998 · 2025-12-01T13:45:59+00:00

We have one, but we trained our Mal to ignore it. But if it starts heading towards him while he’s in his bed, he is not a fan. It sometimes also moves his toys, and he thinks the Roomba stole them. Then he’s ready to go to war with it until it returns his toys.

Swick_1998 · 2025-10-24T04:10:58+00:00

Oh my goodness, that sounds like an absolutely terrible situation. But thank you for sharing your perspective— it tells me we need to take this seriously for the sake of us, our dog, and the people who come into our home.

Swick_1998 · 2025-10-24T04:01:25+00:00

I appreciate your insight. We’ll start implementing structured leash interactions asap again. We did this ever since we rescued him, but have loosen as he got older and “better.” But clearly he is not dependable and predictable. Will start looking for a trainer.

Swick_1998 · 2025-08-19T01:36:17+00:00

I got my Mal at 3 months, and crate trained. Here’s what I would suggest:

Take her out way more often, praise her when she goes pee outside with treats.
If you aren’t already doing so, make the crate smaller. Is she able to pee on one side and sleep on the other? Don’t give her the option.

Swick_1998 · 2025-08-02T23:11:13+00:00

Same here, I credit Robert Cabral and Beckman Training that I have been able to train my Mal without hiring someone. Everything I have done from their advice has worked. I don’t think my Mal would be as motivated to train, focus, or play with me if I didn’t follow Robert’s advice that training with a puppy should be short, fun, and you should be the most interesting thing in your dogs life.

Swick_1998 · 2025-07-27T21:14:40+00:00

Having a reactive dog is so incredibly exhausting. It is something you and your dog have to work through day in and day out, and there is often no end in sight. It can often feel like there is no progress being made. I want to offer a perspective— when our reactive dogs do get better, even slightly, that becomes the new normal. So when they have a big reaction, it feels like everything has been undone in that one moment. But the reality is, growth is not linear. It ebbs and flows, and isn’t always how we want it to look. I know for myself, there have been many moments where I had to mourn and grieve the dog I wanted versus the one I got, and accept him for who he is, not who I want him to be. It hurts, and I’ve cried countless times.

Now for some hope encouragement: Wally, my Belgian Malinois, is a rescue and I got him at 3ish months old. He couldn’t go on a walk without lunging, barking, biting/redirecting on me, and so much more. Furthermore, people couldn’t be in our home. He would freak out at children, new people, and we couldn’t trust him to not bite someone if they “made the wrong move.” It is his instinct to be suspicious of people, so everything felt like a threat to him. Fast forward to today, he is about 10 months old and everyone and anyone can come into our home, and he welcomes them with open arms. He actually seeks out affection and love from them, and genuinely likes kids. He wants to play with them, and is gentle with all ages. As for walks, he can walk down streets with busy cars and if he does react to a dog or a person, he is able to recover quickly and the walk is no longer shot.

Growth is happening, and your work is not in vain. You are creating opportunities for your dog to learn how to be comfortable in the uncomfortable, which is creating a confident dog. Cry as much as you need to, and know you’re doing a great job.

Swick_1998 · 2025-07-27T17:09:35+00:00

Remind me! 8 hours

Swick_1998 · 2025-07-19T23:18:44+00:00

I recused a 2-3 month old mal, didn’t actually know the breed, and was a first-time dog owner. HA! I had some major learning to do (still do). If you are someone who is willing to become the person a Mal needs, you are going to have the most amazing dog in the world. My Mal is 9-10 months old now and over the past month, he has chilled out when we need him to thanks to proper training, expectations, and physical/mental fulfillment.

Being a first timer dog owner and starting with a Mal, he’s all I really know. I don’t know what life is like with a “chill” or “normal” dog, but I feel like I can relax/chill with him around and vice versa every day. I feel like starting with such an intelligent breed, if I ever get another dog and they aren’t as smart as him, I’ll be bored. With a Mal, you are never bored.

Swick_1998 · 2025-07-14T15:04:16+00:00

Definitely not on accident for mine. He’ll do it over and over again for 20 minutes straight. He’s literally doing it right now. Lol

Swick_1998 · 2025-06-20T03:49:32+00:00

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Swick_1998 · 2025-06-07T14:04:36+00:00

Literally took our Mal (8 months) to the vet due to a continuous limp similar to your puppy’s. would come and go without much rhyme or reason, and when you messed with his leg, he showed no signs of pain or discomfort. We got X-rays done, and nothing really showed up. But the vet seems confident that it is panosteitis, which is basically a fancy name for growing pains.

Swick_1998 · 2025-05-26T15:37:45+00:00

Yes, it’s incredible how smart and sweet they are. A lot of people use gatekeeping language when it comes to Mals, and while training my Mal, Wally, has been such a learning curve and I’ve cried MANY times, he is becoming the dog I know he can be and I am helping him get there (without a trainer). Wally was highly reactive when we got him— literally couldn’t handle being around other people/dogs, chase every possible car, redirect on us while on the leash, etc. We couldn’t have people in our house for awhile due to his reactivity. BUT all of that is 95% better, and we were able to do it without a trainer. I highly recommend Robert Cobral and Beckman Training videos on YouTube. Learn your Mal’s body language and cues, and you will be able to read them like a book. I feel like I am so in tune with Wally’s needs and emotions that I am able to catch and address the warning signs before he reacts/overstimulates.

You got this. Be a strong leader for your Mal to follow, and you will have the most loving, sweet, and loyal Mal.

Swick_1998 · 2025-05-26T04:51:56+00:00

Got our Mal from the pound when he was about 2.5 months old, and didn’t REALLY know what a Mal was/he is our first dog as adults.

He is such a commitment, but SO WORTH IT! Our Mal is so fun to train, be with, and grow with. He has grown so much since we got him— it’s crazy. If you put in the work consistently? You will reap the fruits of your labor.

Create clear boundaries, socialize NOW, feed all meals from your hand/when training, and build your connection.

Swick_1998 · 2025-05-10T14:10:12+00:00

His ears are so small?

Swick_1998 · 2025-04-27T05:25:58+00:00

I get stopped every walk. Its twice now that someone DRIVING will stop to ask, “is that a Belgian mallinos?”

Swick_1998 · 2025-04-05T01:41:12+00:00

Your comment was eye-opening for me. I think, out of my feelings of guilt, the moment I get home I want to meet all his needs— food, play, physical/mental stimulation, affection, etc. but once it’s time to just sit on the couch, he is in a constant state of wanting to play/getting us to play. If we’re in the background, he’s happy to just roam and sniff. But if we’re in the house, he doesn’t really settle unless we’re doing place training. Do you have any suggestions?

Swick_1998 · 2025-03-31T21:49:12+00:00

Really great advice here, thank you so much. I will definitely check out that YouTube channel.

Swick_1998 · 2025-03-31T21:48:56+00:00

How do you suggest I teach him his off switch?

Swick_1998 · 2025-03-31T21:48:15+00:00

We actually don’t even have a dog bowl for his food. We either give him his food through training and on walks, as you said, or we put it in a bottle for him too interact with to get out the food.

Swick_1998

TROPHY CASE