"About Us"
as a Belgian Malinois Breeder
As a Begian Malinois breeder our small farm in Haverhill Massachusetts provides the perfect environment to have raised your next puppy!
If you take the time to understand my research of the Belgian Malinois locally within New England, then on a national scale and finally the breed in Europe, you’ll understand why I’ve decided to breed Belgian Malinois. Specifically, these Belgian Malinois bloodlines.
Our Backgrounds
My professional background is in the wellness field. My husband has spent his career optimizing and, when necessary, repairing high-performance motorcycles. Together, we have a small 10-acre hobby farm on Scotland Hill in Haverhill, Massachusetts, where we share our home with our horses, donkeys, and other dogs.
In the European breeding tradition this first litter will be our "A" litter so all of the puppies' names will start with the letter A. Although our website is Belgian Malinois of Boston, our kennel name to use on AKC registration papers is "vom Scotland Hill". So if your puppy were named Amboss then his registered name with the AKC would be "Amboss vom Scotland Hill". Of course you can use what ever name you wish to use for in everyday life.
Our Back Story
It wasn't until Crash was seven years old that I began thinking seriously about breeding.
When I first became aware that Crash might become available to us, I began researching the Belgian Malinois breed. In knowing Crash, what I read—and what I watched online—didn't make much sense to me.
I knew Crash from the time he was a puppy. I knew his size. I knew his personality. I knew that he had never met anyone he didn't absolutely love. I also knew what it was like to watch him work.
Watching Crash work in obedience or protection was something else entirely. He possessed tremendous raw power, but that power was perfectly managed and contained through an extremely advanced level of training.
Even though I wasn't looking for another dog, much less a Belgian Malinois, when Crash became available, it was an instant YES.
At first, I simply wanted to understand the dog I had fallen in love with. The more I learned, the more questions I had.
A Step Back
Let me step back a little further.
Crash was raised and trained by John Whittaker, owner of Naked Dog Training in Methuen, Massachusetts. John, his wife Ruth, and my husband and I have been friends for years.
Before John started Naked Dog Training, he had built and later sold Canine Protection International (CPI), one of the largest protection-dog businesses in the world.
John imported approximately five to eight dogs a month, training dogs to serve as “Elite Family & Estate Protection Dogs” before placing them with clients throughout the world. The average price of the dogs he sold were approximately $35,000 to $65,000, and sometimes were in excess of $100,000.00. Among those dogs were both German Shepherds and Belgian Malinois.
I knew John selected extraordinary dogs for his own personal companions. Of the few dogs John took on as personal dogs ultimately someone would come along and "make him an offer he couldn't refuse". So it was with his dog Crash. This time it was to a long term client and friend in California.
John then began customizing Crash’s training to work as an elite security team along with a German Shepherd. That is how Crash ended up moving to California.
Unfortunately, over time, the German Shepherd became increasingly unhappy with Crash. Eventually, the two dogs had two fights. The German Shepherd belonged to the wife, and she insisted that her dog was there first and that Crash had to be returned to John.
And that is how Crash came home.
What Makes These Dogs So Different?
It was easy to fall back in love with Crash as soon as he returned. Again, research on the Belgian Malinois began as I wanted to make Crash part of the family.
First, the research was casual, then I found myself doing a deep dive much further than I had ever expected. I guess you could say I was hooked.
The Belgian Malinois in New England
I began researching breeders. What I found in New England was, frankly, confusing.
Many of the breeders I encountered were producing small, unimpressive dogs that, at least to my eye, went through the motions in protection work without possessing the substance, power, or presence I had seen in Crash. They seemed like little toy dogs playing a game.
Then there were a few dogs that were physically impressive. But as I learned more, I found that some of these dogs were not allowed to socialize with people because they weren't considered particularly friendly or trustworthy. It often seemed to me that "not very social" was simply another way of saying dangerous. That wasn't Crash, nor could I understand why that would be appealing to anyone.
I couldn't understand why being a viable protection dog had to mean being a dog that couldn't comfortably interact with people. So I expanded my search. I looked at breeders throughout the United States. Then I turned to Europe. And I found more of the same.
The Belgian Malinois in Europe
This is where my research became much more interesting.
I began to understand why there was such a strange phenomenon within the breed.
Throughout Europe, Belgian Malinois have typically been bred for that country’s national dog sports, which include French Ring, Belgian Ring, Mondio Ring, KNPV, IGP, and SVV, among others. Each sport has specific requirements, and the breeders in these countries breed for those requirements.
In countries such as Belgium and France, I found that many breeders tended to favor what I would describe as smaller dogs. I also learned that, despite my preference, that size is the traditional size of the Belgian Malinois.
Examples would be Dutch dogs, which tend to be larger and tend to have off-the-wall levels of energy and drive. They can be spectacular dogs to watch, often said to be “flying” in the long-attacks found in the Dutch KNPV sport. The KNPV sport is designed for civilians to prepare a dog for K9 law enforcement. The majority of dogs get sold immediately after earning the PH I or PH 2 titles. As K9 law enforcement, the Dutch want dogs who can work (detect drugs, explosives, or do building searches after building searches) for hours upon hours. Thus, the off-the-wall energy. They also tend to be one-person dogs, not social and prone to handler aggression. This is why so many end up biting their own handler or other officers they work around. Of course, this isn’t true of all of them. It seems not to be uncommon either.
It’s often said that if you leave a Dutch-bred Belgian Malinois at home, you’ll come home to a house that’s been shredded and you’ll have footprints on the ceiling! Well, thank you, but no thank you.
The question still remained: why was Crash so different?
That was when I began to appreciate why, after decades of importing, training, and selling five to eight German Shepherds and Belgian Malinois every month, John had chosen Crash.
Adonis Na-La Dvor
Crash was chosen by my friend John only after seeing Adonis Na-La Dvor for the first time. That was while John was a German Shepherd Dog enthusiast. Adonis is responsible for so many dog sport enthusiasts “converting” from German Shepherds to the Belgian Malinois – as long as they’re out of Adonis.
John relentlessly tried—and failed—to buy Adonis. That turned into an obsession that if he couldn’t own Adonis, he would own the best son out of Adonis. That required a lot of research from Boston, as well as while in Europe. Also of help was the fact that a few of John’s friends in Europe who competed yearly at championships also shared the same obsession.
This led to researching which breeders had committed to breeding females to Adonis in the next year. Of these females, which one had already produced exceptional puppies? Then, who in Europe had the personal relationship with the breeder to help obtain the pick-of-the-litter?
What made Adonis so attractive isn’t one thing; it was everything. First, John used to speak of Adonis being “a Rottweiler stuffed into a Belgian Malinois body.” A reference to his size and incredible build. Then there was his beauty. Given his size, he should have been slow like a Rottweiler. Instead, Adonis’ obedience was flashy, and protection was like the Dutch dogs in speed, commitment, and bone-crushing bite.
His puppies were already beginning to develop a reputation for being remarkably similar to Adonis.
I then learned Adonis himself didn't come out of nowhere. His type was planned as a result of the breeding. As the saying goes: The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
Adonis was extraordinary, but he wasn't extraordinary by accident.
Berry Sabathore
Adonis's father was a dog named Berry Sabathore. Berry developed a reputation as a highly sought-after stud dog among people who knew of him. What made that particularly unusual was that many of the breeders interested in Berry were breeding for the Schutzhund/SVV dog sport (now IGP), yet he wasn’t involved in the sport.
Berry earned a title early in his “career” and then went on to one in K9 law enforcement. Normally, dog sport enthusiasts breed their females to stud dogs with track records to top placement at championships. Nevertheless, Barry’s reputation grew.
Experienced breeders recognized that Berry consistently produced extraordinary dogs.
So, the qualities I valued in Crash were present in his bloodlines. Crash was some type of exception; he was planned and expected, based on genetics.
The Decision to Breed
Obviously, I’m biased, but I think anyone who wants a Malinois would want Crash. If not Crash himself, one just like him. After my research, I felt almost morally obligated to breed him.
What to Expect
I don’t know exactly how any puppy is going to turn out. I can tell you Crash was raised in an apartment, using an elevator for bathroom breaks. He would lay around playing with the same 6-inch rubber tire and deer antler for hours on end. If the puppies are anything like their father, raising them should be a cinch.
Attack
When it comes to working ability, there’s very little footage on video. A few things I can tell you that set him apart. With the command "Attack," is given, you see a large, powerful Belgian Malinois launch through the air and engage the decoy in the upper arm. He bites as deep and as hard as physically possible. When told "Nuff," everything turns off – biting, barking—everything.
PAIN (Shock & Awe)
If, instead of being told “attack,” he is told “PAIN,” it’s something else altogether. The “Pain” command instructs Crash to strategically target the crotch of the would-be threat. Something he takes great pleasure in doing. He not only bites full, but has been taught to always try to bite deeper and deeper. In his younger years, as he would let up pressure slightly, then with all of his power try to swallow more of the crotch, he would end up lifting the decoy (threat) up off the ground each and every time. He did this continually. The force would often not only take the decoy off their feet but often slam them into nearby walls, posts, and furniture.
Guarding the Threat
Then, if told to release while biting under the attack command, he would let go and guard the person while standing in front of them. He could also be told an alternate guard command, which would instruct Crash to go in between the decoy’s legs and bark. He did so with such INTENSITY that you knew he was just daring them to move so he could do another crotch bite.
Crash Today
At 8 years old, Crash still does all of the same things, and does so powerfully. Unfortunately, his thrusts while biting to get deeper bites typically don’t lift the decoys off the floor anymore. I’m told his bites are no less painful to experience.
I will be scheduling a little demonstration of Crash on the Saturday when owners are picking up their puppies at 8 weeks old. John will also be on hand to answer any questions on raising puppies and training.
New owners will receive a “friends and family” discount at Naked Dog Training.
My Criteria for Breeding
When I decided that I would breed Crash, I wanted to add one more piece to the criteria that had produced dogs like Adonis and Crash. That was to place health at the same level of size, power, and soundness.
Longevity and Vitality
The European-bred Belgian Malinois generally has a life expectancy of approximately 12 to 14 years. In Europe, the breed is known for longevity, vitality, and a strong immune system. At the end of the day, every individual dog is different. Today, treating a serious health problem can be extraordinarily expensive. More importantly, no one wants to watch a dog they love suffer from any condition.
So I set out to find a female who had been thoroughly health tested—not just herself, but through generations of her pedigree.
As anyone who knows me can attest, I am relentless when I put my mind to something.
I searched and found my girl. Her name is Ginny, whom I call Freya.
Ginny — Our Foundation Female
Ginny became the foundation female for the “vom Scotland Hill” breeding program. Her pedigree contains generations of dogs with 0/0 hip (the highest hip certification) as well as genetic testing for many dogs, even before testing became known.
Ginny gave me the opportunity to add that missing piece to the qualities I already valued in Crash's lineage.
