Belgian Malinois

A high-drive working dog used in police and military roles worldwide.

The Malinois is an extremely active and focused Belgian Shepherd variety, famous for its use in tactical roles. It is intensely loyal, intelligent, and thrives on purpose-driven activity. This breed is best suited to experienced dog owners who can meet its demanding exercise and mental needs.

Quick Facts

SizeMedium
Breed GroupPastoral
Lifespan10–12 Years
Exercise NeedsMore than 2 hours per day
TrainabilityExceptionally trainable and responsive, especially in working environments. Needs a knowledgeable and dedicated trainer.
Grooming NeedsLow
SheddingYes
Barking TendencyHigh
TemperamentAlert, confident, and driven. Loyal to family but can be overly protective without proper training.

Available Belgian Malinoiss

53 dogs available
Ace, a 11 months old male Belgian Malinois available for adoption from Greenleaf Animal Rescue in West Yorkshire

Greenleaf Animal Rescue

Ace

West Yorkshire
SexMale
Age11 months
BreedBelgian Malinois

Ace is an eleven-month-old, male, Belgian Malinois crossbreed and he’s looking for his forever home. He’s full of energy due to his young age and will benefit from ongoing training due to a lack of socialisation around other dogs. Ace is reactive to people at the front door and if left on his own may bark, cry, and behave destructively. He’s not lived with other animals but has lived with children. Please enquire.

Angel, a 6 years old female Belgian Malinois available for adoption from German Shepherd Rescue Elite in Essex

German Shepherd Rescue Elite

Angel

Essex
SexFemale
Age6 years
BreedBelgian Malinois

“I have a GSD x Mali came in as welfare, skinny and suddenly gained a lot of weight and was pregnant! She had 6 puppies and sadly 5 didn’t make it as were born with cleft palate. Only one survived and is doing well but the mum had been quite stressed and has suffered as she started to chase her tail and biting/chewing it to the point her tail needs to be amputated. Angel is friendly with people and quite a sweet girl, is dog reactive.”How could we say no to this poor girl. Angel is microchipped and spayed. No young children as we do not know her full history. Would probably need to be the only dog although has been ok around placid males. Unknown with cats.Angel will need a home experienced with the breed to give her the life she deserves please.

Arti, a 14 years old male Belgian Malinois available for adoption from German Shepherd Rescue Elite in Cheshire

German Shepherd Rescue Elite

Arti

Cheshire
SexMale
Age14 years
BreedBelgian Malinois

We were asked by a pound to take in this young lad whose time was up. Arti is a GSD cross Mali we believe. He is now microchipped we believe he is between 1 & 2 years old. Still entire and vaccinations to be restarted.Arti is a little nervous of new people but no malice in him. He loves toys and seems to be a typical energetic, young lad! No young children as we do not know his history. No reaction to other dogs at the kennels so far but further assessment here will be done.Arti will need an experienced home that can continue teaching him that people and the world are not as scary as he currently thinks.

Astrid, a 5 years old female Belgian Malinois available for adoption from Help2Rehome Scotland in Scotland

Help2Rehome Scotland

Astrid

Scotland
SexFemale
Age5 years
BreedBelgian Malinois

Available: Astrid Astrid is a 5 year old female German Shepherd x Belgian Malinois. She is available and looking for a new home. Astrid is chipped and spayed and also healthy with no medical issues. She would suit a home with someone who is active and can give her plenty of walks and attention. Astrid eats a mix of wet and dry food and can be left on her own. She travels well in the van with her dog walker but can be car sick. She sleeps in her owners room at night either on the bed or her own bed on the floor. Astrid likes to meet new people and gets excited. She would be fine around teenagers but not small children. Astrid doesn’t like cats. She is registered with the vets. She is fine on group walks but when she is with her owner she can be reactive to other dogs as she thinks she is protecting her owner. A home with no other animals is best for Astrid and her needs. She is use to spending time alone at home with background music left on for her. Astrid is excellent at letting you know when she needs the toilet. She is kept on a lead when out on walks as she can be reactive to other dogs but not all dogs. She is also use to a long lead and loves to play with her toy or a ball. Astrid sees playing with toys or a ball as a job and doesn't pay much attention to other dogs unless they come into her space.

Axel, a 5 years old male Belgian Malinois available for adoption from German Shepherd Rescue Elite in Essex

German Shepherd Rescue Elite

Axel

Essex
SexMale
Age5 years
BreedBelgian Malinois

“Axel, now what can I say about this gorgeous boy who is one massive overgrown pup who doesn’t realize his size most of the time. Axel does have nervous aggression meeting people due to his rubbish start in life but he is better meeting people off lead in the paddock, and it really doesn’t take him that long to get to know people. Axel loves the female dogs so a confident female or male dog in a home would be brilliant for this lad. This lad loves a game of football and just loves loves a cuddle and to play in a puddle.”Please meet Axel who was born 6.5.21 according to his microchip. He is vaccinated and now also neutered. We believe he is a Malinois cross GSD. We were asked to take Axel in from other kennels where he had been taken in by the police and this is what we were told:“I’ve received this message from my boss asking if you can help. This is a new dog that came in on Friday. Very nervous aggressive but actually quite sweet when he knows you but will definitely bark and in the wrong hands bite. But before he gets put down I just wanted to see if Lizzy would give him a chance but only if it’s not a problem for her. I feel a bit sorry for him only 6 months old and been in 3 or 4 homes already and deserves a chance. “How could we say no! Axel is quite full on, but he is settling in fine and really happy with the people he has met so far. Great toy drive and typically full on for his breed and age, but in the right hands, Axel will make a super dog.A no to children because of his history. He has been fine with other large breed dogs but unknown with smaller dogs.Axel just needs an experienced home that can give him the exercise, training and mental stimulation a dog of his breed needs, and in return you will get a super loyal dog.

Bear, a 3 years old male Belgian Malinois available for adoption from Celandine Wood in Wales

Celandine Wood

Bear

Wales
SexMale
Age3 years
BreedBelgian Malinois

Our beautiful boy Bear is still waiting for a home to call his own… Bear is nearly 3 years old, and heartbreakingly he has spent most of his life in kennels. He was handed into Sheffield Pound as a stray at just 8 months old. His previous family were contacted – but they said they didn’t want him back and suggested he be put to sleep. Thankfully, Bear was given the chance he deserved instead. When Bear first arrived with us, he’d clearly never been shown much guidance. He was an unruly, energetic pup with no training to fall back on. But with time, patience, and kindness, he has grown into an absolutely wonderful dog. He is now the “easy” dog in kennels – the one any volunteer can walk, the dog we trust to help assess others, the boy who knows his routine and never causes a fuss. He enjoys playgroup with his friends, and when it’s over, he happily takes himself back to bed. He asks for so little… and deserves so much more. Bear recently spent time in a temporary foster home to give him a break from kennel life – and he received nothing but glowing reports. He enjoyed pub lunches, puppuccinos, countryside walks, a swim, and even a ball pool! His foster carer couldn’t speak more highly of him. Sadly, due to work commitments it was only short-term, and poor Bear is now back in kennels again. • Malinois x Bull breed – clever, loyal and full of character• Needs an experienced home who understands his need for mental & physical stimulation• Would prefer to be the only pet• Best suited to a home with older dog savvy teenagers• House-trained and crate-trained• Walks well on lead but needs ongoing support around passing traffic• Affectionate, playful and desperate to bond with “his” person Bear has so much love to give. He deserves to be someone’s best friend, not just another kennel dog whose posts get scrolled past. We truly don’t understand why he’s been overlooked for so long. Please – could you be the one to finally give Bear the life he’s been waiting for? If you can’t adopt, a share could make all the difference. Bear is currently at our Wrexham kennel facility

Bear – Pearl Puppy, a 4 years old male Belgian Malinois available for adoption from German Shepherd Rescue Elite in Surrey

German Shepherd Rescue Elite

Bear – Pearl Puppy

Surrey
SexMale
Age4 years
BreedBelgian Malinois

This is Bear’s original write up:“Pearl was picked up as a stray in December and was heavily pregnant. No microchip and nobody to claim her, so we were asked if we could help. Pearl is quite nervous when meeting new people and we suspect she has had a good hiding at some stage, but once she realises you mean her no harm, she is a sweetheart. She likes her space from other dogs but no issues with them at all. Has totally ignored the horses in the field next door as well. On the 22nd December Pearl gave birth to 11 puppies, 4 boys and 7 girls. Sadly one little girl was not breathing and despite getting her started and suckling, she passed over Rainbow Bridge just over 24 hours later.Pearl is a GSD but not knowing what dad was we did a DNA sample on one of the girls which came back as: 56% GSD, 29% Belgian Mali, 7% Border Collie, and 6% Greyhound.The pups are all confident and tear around the place causing bedlam as you would expect. They do all like a snuggle though as well. The pups will need homes that have some experience of the main breed at least as they will need plenty of exercise and mental stimulation as they get older. “Bear came back at 11 months old quite simply the person who adopted him failed to give him the training, socialisation and boundaries he needed, so whereas all the other pups are super with people and other dogs, Bear still mouths, still jumps up, reacts to anything that moves when out on lead….To say he has been let down is an understatement. Did his adopter take him regularly to training like she said she would? No! Did she contact anyone to say she was having issues? No! The first we know about it is when he is snapping at the children when they take things off him and suddenly he has to go immediately otherwise she has booked an appointment at the vets to murder him because a volunteer said it may take a couple of weeks to find him somewhere.We don’t always get the homes right and most certainly did not in this case, but Bear is now safely back where he was born and settled straight back in. He will learn some of the manners he missed out on from the older dogs but there is no malice in this gorgeous lad, purely he is behaving as a young male pup would not having been given the proper direction.Bear definitely deserves a special home now please!

Bentley, a 4 years old male Belgian Malinois available for adoption from German Shepherd Rescue Elite in Essex

German Shepherd Rescue Elite

Bentley

Essex
SexMale
Age4 years
BreedBelgian Malinois

This was the first we knew about Bentley at 1 year of age:“Bentley has made a massive impression on kennel staff since he has been with us. He acts like a huge, tough, scary Malinois- however he has proven not to be. Throughout his stay he has proven to be a very anxious dog who is unsure or strangers and new environments. But through time and lots of treats he has gained trust in kennel staff. He is very reliant on the handler and will keep looking to ensure the person is still there. He does need a firm hand to ensure he doesn’t drag you around and try to be cheeky. He has proven to be what we call ‘the biggest wet wipe’ in the kennels- acting very tough until told a form ‘NO’ and he melts away- he really does not like being in trouble. He is a sweetheart really and is struggling in kennels- he is extremely stressed and will bark all day- to either get attention or to tell off his noisy neighbours next door. He is still a reactive boy but we can tell he doesn’t mean it as he clearly hasn’t seen much of the world and is very unsure of what is going on around him. It has taken time and patience, but Bentley has proven that he is handleable and is willing to learn as long as he trusts you and knows he is safe.”Bentley turned out to be a super lad, and pretty much as described. He is microchipped, fully vaccinated and not neutered. Bentley could go into a home with older children. He can be selective with dogs but a no to cats.With a home experienced with the breed he will be a super lad.Bentley was adopted last year but sadly needs a new home due to a relationship split meaning his mum is having to move and cannot take her dogs.Bentley was living another dog with no problem(female) and is fine with others unless they are in his face! If they approach politely he is fine and will play. Hee is now not nearly so nervous of new situations or people, and will walk through a busy town centre without issues.Good on lead with recall and selection of commands. Bentley needs a home that can continue giving him the confidence and calm he needs please. We really do not want him to have to come back into kennels as he gets so stressed!

Buster, a 7 years old male Belgian Malinois available for adoption from German Shepherd Rescue Elite in Essex

German Shepherd Rescue Elite

Buster

Essex
SexMale
Age7 years
BreedBelgian Malinois

Buster is a Mali cross GSD cross Bull breed. We were asked to take him in as he was taken in by another rescue we work with, having done his 7 days. Buster had been chained to a gate and was there for 2 days without food or water we are told. The police had tried to get him but he was giving it large! Our rescue contact went in, told him to shut up and sit down, and Buster was his best friend. He then had to get the chain from around his neck back at the kennels.Buster is now neutered and is microchipped and his vaccinations have been restarted. He can be intimidating as his automatic reaction in new situations is to look big and brave and make a lot of noise, but quickly accepts people if they are sitting down! He initially hated all dogs he saw but is getting better with female dogs. A no to cats, and not keen on cars going past either so is being worked with.Buster is going to a need an experienced and confident home to give this lad the boundaries he will need otherwise he may well become dominant and we suspect that may be the reason he was dumped. A special home needed for this special lad.

Buzz, a 9 months old male Belgian Malinois available for adoption from Ashbourne Animal Welfare in Derbyshire

Ashbourne Animal Welfare

Buzz

Derbyshire
SexMale
Age9 months
BreedBelgian Malinois

Buzz is a handsome young lad who’s not had the best start in life, it appears that he’s had a couple of homes at least in his short life, and latterly he was being neglected outside to ‘train him to be a guard dog’ apparently! Thankfully a family member stepped in, and he came to us to find a loving new home.Buzz is a Belgian Malinois crossbreed (we suspect the cross could be a Collie, but we’re not sure). He’s high energy, intelligent and full of character! He will need an understanding, knowledgeable home… he wouldn’t be suitable for a first time dog owner.Buzz is friendly with people, but can be cautious of some new people initially… he’s still a big puppy, and we are working on his socialisation here; this would need to continue in his new home. He really has improved massively during his time with us – we are confident that this will only continue. Buzz has never really been around children, and we think that he would be better in a home without young children at the moment. Once he gets over his initial caution… he’s a big softy! He loves a cuddle and is really responsive, he’s a happy boy who loves to get out for his walks, and he particularly enjoys his time in our exercise compounds, playing with his toys.He can be vocal at other dogs when out on walks, however we have let him meet several of our other youngsters and he’s been fine with them – he’s over the top and boisterous, but just wants to play and have a good game! He may be able to share his home with a female companion of a similar size (any existing dogs would need to be neutered).Buzz has had very little training, and will need a new family who can dedicate time to his ongoing training and socialisation. Buzz is reactive to traffic, and can get quite worked up when vehicles pass him on his walks (even at a distance) – he will need some work on desensitisation and positive reinforcement around traffic. He does seem a really bright boy, who will excel in the right home! Not only will Buzz need lots of physical exercise, he will need mental stimulation too to prevent him from becoming bored.

Cadan, a 3 years old male Belgian Malinois available for adoption from German Shepherd Rescue Elite in Cornwall

German Shepherd Rescue Elite

Cadan

Cornwall
SexMale
Age3 years
BreedBelgian Malinois

We received this from a London council we work with:“We have a Mali in that was abandoned by its owner outside a vet hospital, the dog had been brought to the attention of Battersea in Nov last year as the owner couldn’t cope and he was just left in the garden most of his life, he’s now stray with us. He has been refused by Battersea due to behaviour despite not even coming out with behaviourists to see him. He was tied up at vets and owner was running away down the street – vet nurses approached him and he held onto one of their arms – he made a tiny red mark nothing else and this is why Battersea have refused him but he was just left – could still see owner and staff at vets surrounded him so I’m not surprised he reacted how he did but its so you have his full background as never hide anything over behaviour.He is dog very reactive and will jump around and shout when near other dogs and gets agitated in kennels, he also does not like bicycles or people running – which we have to watch him closely as we have to street walk him. He responds well to handling and does his basic commands, we think he could do well with the right training its just he’s had nothing all his life so knows no better, he is only 1 year old and been mostly starved as well, his body score when he came in was around 2-3, he has put on weight since with us with 2x daily feeds and a good routine, he is also very good around food.We are trying everything we can or our only resort would be to put him to sleep as next week we are down two officers and the person left is not as trained on dangerous dogs if he was to escalate any behaviours with her, which would be very sad all round. Not sure if you would be in a situation to help at all but would appreciate your time.”Cadan, as he has been named, as he was called Pink on his microchip, is now safe at our kennels in Cornwall. Absolutely no aggression seen, just a confused young man who is now going to start to learn to live and enjoy life. He is a foodie for obvious reasons, so easily bribed. Despite having put on weight while serving his time as a stray, he still has a long way to go.Cadan deserves a very special home experienced with his breed once he is ready, but his temperament is testament to him after all he has been through so far in his short life!

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