[Strahinja]

Hello everyone,this is my first post here,so i had neighbours who left the city and rented their home to some people that just left the owners dog, and the owner kinda didnt have what to do and didnt really cared that much,so i thought i will take it and he agreed..So the breed is Belgium Malinois its a she and she is not a puppy by any means,i would say she is at least 3 years old.The problem i have is that in the past few months i had her i was vey busy and couldnt walk her very often, now that i have time and know i have to give her attention and love as much as i can i run into a slight issue,she is very unpredictable,im very intimitated by her because she is pretty big and she has huge and sharp teeth,she likes to be pett and she turns on her back so i can scratch her tummy so theres a bit of trust.But like i said she is very unpredictable,energetic and out of focus, she sometimes comes to me as soon as i call her but sometimes she couldnt care less.It appeares that she was taught to sit and give paw on comand when she was young,but i am afraid to start teaching her anything with food cuz im afraid she would bite me because she looks kinda careless..I dont think that she is an agressive dog i just think she is not aware that she can very easily hurt me.My question is how do i fix this and is this happening because i didnt walk her and bonded with her alot ? Can she be anxious, out of focus and "crazy" because she didnt go out of her (pretty big "house") ??? Anyways today i spent alot of time with her and she was very affectionate and she was enjoying me petting her, tho at one moment while i was petting her she saw a fly and she tried to bite it and had almost bitten me...When im sitting and petting her while she is sitting if i make any sudden moves she jumps like somebody poked her and its quite scary cuz i dont know if she is afraid or what.....Anyways sorry for such a long post and for bad english,i reall like this dog and i want to teach her alot of stuff and make a great bond with her but i need help.

 

[redbell12]

I had a senior dog (Akita mix) that lived to the age of 16, and it was around the age of 15-16 that she too became incredibly restless. She would constantly pace and walk, getting up a few seconds after laying down even though I thought she was going to finally rest.
I finally spoke to my veterinarian about her restless behavior once she no longer responded to me like she used to. All her life, she'd at least relax and cuddle with me, but she eventually got to a point where it was as though she were looking right past me and no longer calmed by my presence. He mentioned how she she likely had an onset of canine dementia. This could possibly be what is occurring with your senior dog.

 

[Strahinja]

Thanks for the reply! Its been some time that i am walking and training with her every day, and she got a bit calmed, of course not too much because she is a malinois but she listens to my commands, plays tug and fetch very well and walks on a loose leash, now i will start training her and representing some distractions because when there are some she is less likely to listen to me sometimes..

 

[3GSD4IPO]

This is a Belgian Malinois. She needs to be treated like a dog with clear and structured training. This is a very high energy breed that requires consistent handling and training. They are usually handler sensitive but not exactly cuddly dogs at all. Petting is not so much their thing as is a quick couple of pats and then get moving. The relationship is built on activity and play. Not just walks, but engagement.

Three years old is perfect age to give this dog structured and consistent training and handling. I would seek help with that and with this breed, I have NO IDEA where you live but this dog can be a LOT of dog and you need help to understand what you have here.

 

[Strahinja]

Thanks for the reply! i found out she is about 6 years old, i researched a lot on the internet and have been watching Robert Cabral on youtube, since i live in Serbia and here there is not much of a professional trainers that i know of, i spend about 4 hours in 2 sesions with her every day, after maybe a bit more than a month i teached her to play tug and release the toy to me (and i let her win often), she loves fetch as well, i teached her to sit, lay down, give paw, walk on loose leash and we are in the process of learning the heel command. She really connected with me alot in such a small period of time, im also trying to start with some introduction to distractions and teaching her to be a bit more calm when there are some distractions and to listen to me. And im slowly tryong to socialize her with other dogs since i dont know how she feels about that, she is very positive with meeting new people and we have no problems there. Im so happy to make this dogs life finnaly a good and healthy lige and u can really see the happines in her eyes. If u have any tips with introducing distractions and new dogs to her please consider giving me them. Cheers!

 

[Strahinja]

 

[Deacon.dog]

good luck, they are not pets, and even respected dog trainers have admitted to not knowing how to handle them. Get yourself into a sport with her ASAP.

here are some resources.

This guy talks for a hour about mals, and teaching his son the basics -

Talks about a average lady who owns a mal -

Settling & being calm in the house -

You probably need to start with the basics so here -