Description
A sheepdog for every taste is Belgian. There are short-haired, and long-haired, and wire-haired, and even colors from jet black to sand, so that everyone can choose the four-legged friend that he will like
A beautifully built rather large dog, the contours of the body resembling a German and Swiss Shepherd. Her head is proudly raised, and her movements are smooth and graceful. The ears are large, erect, triangular in shape, the muzzle is rather narrow, wedge-shaped, the eyes are small with an attentive expression.
The body is generally square, but in bitches, which are shorter than males, the length may slightly exceed the height at the withers. The back is straight, without tilting towards the tail, like in German Shepherds. The tail is set rather low, usually carried down, but never curled.
The wool is coarse and thick. It can be quite short (Malinois), long and lush (Grunendael and Tervueren) and hard (Laekenois). Colour: solid black in the Groenendael (a small white spot on the chest and on the tips of the hind legs is allowed) and red with blackening and a black mask in the rest of the varieties. For a turveren, the shade of red is important - the brighter it is, the higher the score in the ring. The same white spots are allowed on the Laekenois as on the Groenendael.
Origin story
The Belgian Shepherd is an artificially bred breed. At the end of the 19th century, Belgian dog breeders set out to get dogs that would become the national pride of the country.
It all started when cynologist Nicholas Rose, a breeder of a wide variety of European Shepherds, noticed a completely black puppy in a litter of one of his dogs. When she grew up, he found a suitable male for her (and it turned out to be a girl), and thus received pure black offspring. It was these dogs that formed the basis of the variety of the Belgian Shepherd Groenendael, named after the city in which Rose lived and the cafe he owned.
In 1891, a Belgian Shepherd Club already existed in Brussels, but at that time there were no strict requirements for either their size or color. Groenendaly became the first breed with specific standards.
Rose found followers who continued to work on shepherd dogs, so three other varieties were born: long-haired tervuren, wire-haired Laekenois and short-haired Malinois. But in general, they are all classified in Europe as one breed - the Belgian Shepherd.
But in the USA, on the contrary, the term "Belgian Shepherd" is understood only as black Groenendael, but Malenois and Tervuren are considered separate breeds. Wirehaired Laekenois are not recognized by the American Kennel Federation at all.
In recent years, Belgian Shepherds have been rapidly gaining popularity in Russia. This is especially true for Malinois. Groenendael is slightly less common, but Tervuren and Laekenois are still rare.
Character
Friend, guard, shepherd, companion, nanny, companion - all this is a Belgian Shepherd. The varieties differ slightly in temperament, although their working qualities are excellent in all. Particularly good watchmen are black grunendals - they are absolutely fearless and zealously guard the master's property. These dogs adore their family and are ready to babysit small children, while they treat strangers quite distrustfully, but without aggression. This is perhaps the calmest of the Belgian Shepherds. And now the Laekenois is ready to play outdoor games all day long, rush around the yard after the ball, and his smiling face always expresses his readiness to support the owner in any of his business.
Malinois are also active dogs that need constant exercise - both physically and mentally. They are easy to train and enjoy learning new commands. If you wish, you can bring up real artists from them.
Turverens are perhaps the most impulsive of the entire Belgian company, so if you do not have the opportunity to devote a lot of time and effort to the dog, it is better to choose another breed.
In general, Belgians are typical shepherd dogs: smart, quick-witted and completely owner-oriented.
Care and maintenance
Belgian Shepherds are very easy to care for, especially the shorthaired Malinois. In fact, wool is almost the only difficulty in keeping these dogs. The rich fur coat of the Groenendaels and Tyurverens must be kept in proper order: combed out, washed from time to time (but infrequently!) And the coarse wool of the Laekenois must also be trimmed. The second necessary condition for the life of all Belgian Shepherds is physical and mental stress. These are by no means indoor dogs, they feel great in nature or at least in the yard of a private house. And if they already live in an apartment, they need many hours of walks and mandatory training.
Education and training
Like all other shepherds, Belgians are campaigners. They love to learn and are always happy to follow commands, no matter how difficult they may be. Therefore, start raising a puppy from early childhood, without postponing your studies for later. After all, these dogs, like no other, need a strong and wise owner who would become their leader, leader and indifference lofty authority. If this does not happen, they will not be able to determine their place in your small pack and will either try to take the place of the leader themselves (and then they will simply cease to reckon with you), or, having not decided, they will become nervous and simply unhappy, and possibly even aggressive (which will also be a manifestation of neurasthenia and insecurity).
To prevent this from happening, do not neglect classes. First teach your puppy simple commands like “come”, “no” and “place”, and then go through a general course of obedience and training with him.
Health and disease
There is no need to talk about any breed diseases in Belgian shepherds, but they, like all dogs, can get sick. Especially if you do not get vaccinated against such common ailments as enteritis, distemper, rabies, etc. on time.
It is very important to monitor the diet of your four-legged friend, because Belgian Shepherds are prone to obesity, and it entails a whole bunch of other problems. However, you should not go to the other extreme - if a dog has been starving since childhood, it will, firstly, grow small, and secondly, it may have problems with the skeleton (including rickets), and it will simply look bad. Therefore, be sure to check with your veterinarian about the optimal diet for your pet.
