GSD X Mali......can anyone advise

[maisie06]

Not for me, I'm a spaniel person, but is there a trainer/breed group etc that I could put someone in touch with? A customer of mine was asking about this cross, I did say it wasn't a great idea and anyone considering one would need to be experienced and confident with large dogs and that they should either go for one breed or the other, but hey, people will do what they want.....apart from offering to find contact details for a trainer used to such breeds I'm keeping out of it!

 

[Sandstone1]

No way would I want one and I have had gsds for years...

 

[Equi]

I think malis are quite a hard breed. They are very much a working dog. gsd are also a working dog but can also accept a pet home if they are the right sort...but i really don't see any point in a mali x gsd cross other than to work and work hard. malis are not family pets unless the family is up for lots of runs and active energetic and mental work daily but it will never be settled.

 

[Hackback]

We have one, he's 12 now. Both parents were working security dogs (GSD bitch, Mali dog) owned by the same guy. He said they had started introducing Malis into the mix because they didn't have the back and hip problems that GSDs can suffer and that made sense to us. We had a GSD previously so didn't think it would be so different.

However he turned out to have an extremely strong drive and is just OTT with his guarding instincts. He's fine with us but he can't bear our other dog to even move before he's making an ear splitting growly yappy noise and pinching everything he can get his mouth on to make sure the other dog cant have it. The other dog isn't remotely interested. That's now when he's old and mellowed a lot.

When he was younger, even at puppy training classes they made me sit in a corner away from the others with him securely on a lead when children were present as he would stalk them. We'd never trust any dog 100% with small children but there's no way we would have trusted Paddy around a child. Nor with other animals.

In more recent years I met a woman at dog training classes who had a pure Mali. She was a very experienced dog lady and had other dogs which she did obedience with. However her Mali had to wear a muzzle in classes because he would suddenly lose it and turn on her if he got too worked up with the training. I don't think he was deliberately attacking her as such, they just seem to be so highly strung that they tip over the edge easily. There's someone else in the village with one and she keeps hers muzzled and on a lead when she's walking him.

Our dog should have been a working dog not a pet really. Saying that, he's very loyal and affectionate and when he was younger was a great exercise companion because he'd run alongside the bike and never bother about other dogs or people.

 

[CorvusCorax]

In terms of sports/competitions, not many clubs/trainers affiliated to a breed association (either GSD or Malinois) will spend a huge amount of time or effort on a dog which can't get higher than club/local events because it has no pedigree.
None of the crosses I've ever seen have inspired me to want one and Ive seen stacks of them. Including one that looked exactly like a skinny GSD but was washed from the police because it had Mali environmental issues and didn't like loud noises, slippy floor or open stairs. And that was an import from a 'good' kennel in Europe which specialised in selling to police and army.

 

[scats]

My brother has a Mali. She is a fabulous dog, but I don’t think it would be a breed for me. She never stops. Extremely intelligent but needs to be active, both mentally and physically.
The right type for my brother, who is obsessed with walking, so the Mali joins him every day and they go for miles.

 

[Moobli]

I can sort of see the appeal in a working environment but not if primarily going to be a pet.

 

[kathantoinette]

Our gamekeeper has a pure bred Mali. I’ve chatted with her now and again in his company. Wouldn’t want to meet her in the dark not on a lead ?

 

[Mynstrel]

I can sort of see the appeal in a working environment but not if primarily going to be a pet.

I thought that, could be a hell of a worker but definitely not a couch potato!

 

[AdorableAlice]

West Mercia Police have some. The one I met was with a female handler who could barely hold the dog. It was only 18 months old and not fully trained but I hated every minute it was on the yard despite being told it was very highly thought of as a future top police dog. It never stopped barking and on the odd occasion she walked it after doing her horse it terrified me when she got it out of the vehicle, it would have piled into anything in its way.

I don't doubt it will go on to be a super police dog but there is no way it would have been a pet.