Page 17 - ShowSight Presents - The Beligian Malinois

your approach, never fearful and showing good manners. The standard says, “The dog may be reserved with strangers but is affection- ate with his own people.” By nature the Mali- nois is an active dog and likes to move about. They also have a wonderful sense of play and it does not take much encouragement for them to exhibit their humorous side. Never accept poor temperament, excusing a dog that is having a bad day is okay.
The Belgian Malinois is not a head breed, but a correct head is a thing of beauty. The head should be in proportion to the rest of the body, well-chiseled with no looseness of skin. The head is long but without exaggera- tion, strong but not appearing heavy. The length is equal from nose to stop and stop to occiput—the skull should not be wider than its length. The planes of the head are paral- lel and the topskull flat. Look for a head that is balanced and a slight wedge. Commonly seen head faults include a too short muzzle, a rounded topskull, cheekiness, or head planes that are not parallel. The eyes should be almond shape and a dark brown, with an alert, intelligent and kind look. Round or light colored eyes can destroy the look of a good head. Their ears are high set and not large, an equilateral triangle in shape and moderately cupped. The ears should be firm and not soft even when the dog is moving, although they can fold them back against their heads. Ears hanging as on a hound or semi-prick ears are a disqualification. Cor- rect eyes and ears are essential to good breed type. When combined with proper head structure, the Malinois head should never be confused with that of a German Shep- herd, a Collie or an Elkhound. The Belgian Malinois is to have a black mask —that may be simply a black muzzle and black ears or a nearly black head. My preference is a mask that extends beyond they eyes, but color
is a finishing point to me. A black mask is rarely solid black, there will be a combina- tion of dark brown and even fawn hairs, but the overall appearance is to be a blackened mask. There is often what we refer to as “frosting” on the chin—white hairs—this is acceptable and normal, some puppies are born with it. Pigment around the eyes and mouth, as well as the nose, should be black.
Expression in the Malinois includes the balance of head proportions, the earset, the eyes, the masking and ultimately, how they use it. When judging, you will see the best expression when the owner/handler is allowed to bait their dog, rather than you attempting this. Remember the stan- dard stating “may be reserved with strang- ers but affectionate with his own people”. If you notice a dog looking away from the handler into the crowd, chances are he has found his owner; they are vigilant in keep- ing an eye on those they know.
As a herding dog, the bite is of consid- erable importance; traditionally the bite most desired was a level pinching bite. As a breeder though, I am more comfort- able using dogs that have a scissors bite. Either a scissors or level bite is accept- able, please check this (or have the handler show the bite). Full dentition is desired. Although it is rare that a dog is missing teeth other than premolars, we do want judges to check for full dentition, but do not pry open their mouths—simply lifting the lips usually offers the necessary informa- tion. The standard reminds us “An overshot or undershot bite is a fault. An undershot bite in which two or more of the upper incisors lose contact with two or more of the lower incisors is a disqualification. One or more missing teeth is a serious fault.” You may see short center incisors, which are not a disqualification in an otherwise correct bite.
204 • SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, JUNE 2014