Are Belgian Malinois replacing German shepherds? - Page 2

Malinois are specialists. The purebred ones are fast and light.. can be lifted into work areas like truck sleepers and cabs and will fit into a smaller space. They can be devastating if they get a really good running start and the bad guy doesn't see them coming and side step them. The problem is that they just are not big enough to be a serious threat to a man, if he is big. They cannot bring a lot of men down. You see them bringing these decoys down on video, but a lot of them are letting the dog win for show. When you let them look good, they can look great.. spectacular!

For KNPV, most of the malinois are mixed with GSD. This is why so many of them have no papers (?). If they were not mixed, they just would not have enough size and weight.

When a man is really formidable, and drunk or on drugs (and not feeling any pain), it's a tall order to really incapacitate him. I just think you need the advantage of size and mass, within reason. You also benefit from having a dog who is not in it for the chase and catch, but who will enjoy fighting a man. That rules a lot of dogs out as individuals.

Chicago dogs, you think Mals are easier to train? Can you post how many Mals you have trained for departments, vs. GSD? I would be interested in your insight on that statement. From someone who runs a trainer school, and has placed hundreds of Mals in departments, and over 40 GSD, I would have to disagree.

DDR-DSH,

I agree with you between the size difference. I also think Mal's are not that big of a dog. I saw some videos from them and yes when they get a head start and get speed they can hit you with a lot of force, no doubt about it. You will feel it and most likely drop to the ground. They look very athletic with very good speed!

I think though that the German shepherd is bigger and more stronger and can take a pretty big person down. Now, I am not sure about how strong their bite force compares but I would like to think that the German shepherd has a stronger bite force than a Mal.

They both good for police work and law enforcement though but I was surprised because when I think of a police dog I think of a german shepherd. Not saying there isn't good Mal's out there. There's some really good once who get the job done everytime I am sure.

Anybody know the ratio in the United states between German shepherds and Belgian Mals as police k9's?

You are of course refering to the USA, and not Belgium i would think or even Holland and Germany
Steve

Steve,

Yes, I was refering to the United States. I am from germany and I moved here a few years back and I know Germany uses mostly German shepherds.

I was just refering to here where I live and the surrounding counties that I see a lot of Belgian Mal's working on the police force. That is why I was wondering and asked posters what their local k9's unit has.

Best regards,

How can you replace an apple with an orange?

That's odd MJD80 because I just had a house guest for a month, Tobias Kiel of Gottingen, Dr. Helmut Raiser's personal helper who informed me while watching the USA Sieger Show that very few police departments in Germany use German Shepherds anymore, the majority now use Malinois.  Being that this comes from someone who is currently actively involved in working dogs in the home country, I was wondering what you base your statistics on?  Is this just your opinion?  How many Malinois have you personally owned and how many have you trained?

Dear Phil,

I was talking about when I lived in germany. I can't tell you right now because I haven't been there in years. You might of misunderstood me or I might of wrote it differently I apologize for that if that's the case.

When I lived there I saw a few rottweiler's here and there especially in the s-bahn and train stations and so but other than that it was all german shepherds.

As far as If I ever trained or owned Mals - No I have never owned a Mal nor did I ever train one. I was just stating things from what I've seeing and trying to compare it. Don't get me wrong I think they're both terrific breeds and they can get the job done, no doubt about it.

Why do you think Mal's are replacing german shepherds in germany? or have you discussed it with your house guest? I am really interested in knowing more about this.

Again, sorry for the misunderstanding I should of said when I lived in germany.

Best Regards,

I know that this is an older post, but, I think that the one thing that you might be overlooking is cost.
It is much less costly to obtain a worthwhile Malinois than it is a German Shepherd. GSD's are big business and Mals are still pretty affordable. I was also informed that German law places a limit on how much can be spent obtaining a dog for police work. Most of the high quality GSD's are sold for more than that law would allow.

DDR_DSH
I don't know how many Malis you have worked, but I have to disagree with you.  Some of the hardest hitting and crushing bites I have seen came from 60lb malinois.  How much damage is enough?

Price plays a little into the equation too.