About Chenil de Loucyn, Belgian Malinois Breeder

Fat Louie Des Barriques FR III

Loucyn Belgian Malinois

Breeding for sound mind, body and working ability

Loucyn Belgian Malinois

A Quick History,

For the better part of the last decade, I have had Belgian Malinois in my life. I have an incredible appreciation and passion for the drive, athleticism, power and courage of the Malinois. My goal is to preserve the amazing working qualities of the Malinois through careful, well planned breeding and selection. I have learned from many of the most successful Malinois breeders internationally and I understand well the history behind the Malinois.

It seems that today, everyone is a breeder. There has been an explosion of Malinois breeders popping up and the majority of them have no regard for what the Malinois should be. They have not closely studied the different bloodlines, they have no specific selection process and they compromise quality for quantity and money. These poor standards have sent the working Malinois into a downward spiral of weak, small, thin nerved dogs with no real character or courage under pressure. These mediocre dogs are made 'great' by extensive and prudent training over the years. While they may develop into impressive competition dogs, they are a false representative of a breeding quality dog. Though these dogs may produce a good dog here and there, it is important to keep in mind that consistancy in quality is what should be strived for and it is equally important that we are producing dogs of true breeding caliber, not just 'points dogs'. That doesn't mean a great breeding quality dog cannot be titled but it takes a knowledgable, experienced eye to notice the difference. A great breeder should be looking to strengthen their line, not weaken it and should know the difference between these dogs. Very rarely does a dog come along who is known for both competition and reproducing.

In 2003, I started the well-known Barriques Malinois breeding program with Waleed Maalouf. We imported and bred many influential Malinois over the years including Dovre Fjeld Xhone aka Byrak, the great Rodin du Calvaire aux Acaciasand Fat Louie des Barriques to name a few. I have created an Influential Dog page on my site in the hopes that interested people would be able to learn more about these individual dogs. The Barriques breeding program introduced some much needed new blood into the US and helped to raise the standard of working Malinois here. Unfortunately, in late 2006, Waleed and I had different goals and plans in life so we decided to go our seperate ways. Waleed kept the Barriques name and I started Chenil de Loucyn. To this day, we remain in contact and occasionally work together in our programs.

Since the inception of Chenil de Loucyn, there have been many changes to program including new dogs, a cross-country relocation and even higher standards when it comes to selection.

I have also welcomed and utilized the help of Jeremy Talamantes for the program. Jeremy is a well respected, professional trainer as well as a nationally certified French Ring decoy with a knack for exposing weaknesses in dogs. He is crucial to the program as he is the main decoy for all the Loucyn dogs and our Los Angeles Ring Club. He also helps to raise and traain many of our dogs. You can see his bio here. We work together professionally training dogs and I am greatful to have his assistance and endless support in the program. If it weren't for Jeremy's help and dedication, we would not have the extensive program of the present nor would we have such a beautiful place to call home. Thanks Jeremy for all you do!

'The Ranch'

We are currently located on a beautiful and scenic 1545 acre ranch just north of Los Angeles, California. We have everything from sandy riverbeds to wooded foothills and endless canyons to explore...and we do, a lot! My dogs live and work around the many facets of the ranch so they are not just competition or kennel dogs but are involved in our everyday happenings here. We have horses, cattle (30+ head), chickens, other dogs and a variety of wildlife native to Southern California including deer, coyotes, bobcats, foxes, birds of prey, songbirds and lots of smaller critters as well. We take many of the Malinois out on our adventures either on foot, horseback or more frequently, on ATVs.

We are also fortunate enough to have an 8000 sq ft dog park. We mainly use our dog park for client's dogs but do frequently let our Malinois have a good romp in there as well. We think its a great break up from the rigidity of training and kennel living while also being useful in socialization of young dogs. There is just something special about cutting loose a litter of Malinois puppies to follow you around the ranch and explore. It's an opportunity that most dogs never get, let alone experience often and I think our Malinois are very lucky to have all these wonderful amenities even though, at the end of the day, they are working dogs and many of them double as legitmate ranch dogs. The ranch plays an important role in the selection of dogs for the breeding program as many of the daily tasks and chores will greatly test the stability, nerve, character and grit of a dog.

I have to make something clear from the beginning; I am not like most other Malinois breeders. I normally do not let people come out and pick their puppy from the litter. The main reason for this is believe it or not, they usually pick the wrong one and it ends up being completely unsuitable for them. The buyer usually doesn't understand the bloodlines like I do, they are not watching the puppies interact everyday and puppies change as they develop and grow. Instead, I prefer to place my puppies in appropriate situations. I look for consistancy in traits and behaviors while observing their reactions to certain stimuli. For example, if I have a puppy that is dominating all of his littermates and guarding everything, I would not want that puppy to go to someone who has not had many Malinois puppies. Nor would I want that puppy to go to someone looking for a nice, easy competition dog. I would place that puppy with a buyer that understands this type of dog and what he will and will not be.

If I have a buyer asking me for a serious competition prospect, I would look to send them a puppy that is biddable, confident with nice drive and has good nerve. I do not want to send them the puppy that is challenging everyone and everything and has his own ideas of what he can and can't do. That is a puppy for a very experienced owner that wants the challenge and/or understands that 'points' may not come easily. In short, I want to send a buyer a puppy that is appropriate for them and their situation. I would never knowingly send anyone a 'bad puppy'. Bad puppies do happen in every bloodline (some have more than others I should mention) and it is my duty as a breeder to cull (does not mean kill) that puppy. If I send someone a bad puppy, it is a lose-lose-lose situation. I get a bad reference, you get a pup you are unhappy with and the poor puppy is caught in the middle. In my opinion, there is no such thing as 'picks'. The puppies are usually either working quality or not with little differences between them. At some point, you need to take the plunge and trust the breeder. If someone doesn't trust me enough to pick a pup, I would rather they don't buy from me and will happily recommend them to another breeder.

Let's talk about maturity. I am often finding myself explaining why I think one puppy is better than another even if he is not 'showing' as much as the other at a certain age. This has to do with maturity in good puppies. I say good puppies because you surely can have bad puppies that show nothing but there is a major difference between that and a nice pup that matures slower.

You have to understand bloodlines first. I will use my own dogs in example. Puppies from Rodin are very different than puppies from the Contes d'Hoffmann lines. Rodin puppies normally mature very fast and can show a lot at a very young age. This can be very impressive to someone who hasn't seen many different lines and they may become involuntarily smitten with this type of puppy. I know, however, that this type of puppy usually plateaus earlier and can be very reactive and sometimes nervy later. On the other hand, a nice slower maturing pup may not be screaming at the end of a leash at 4 months old but rather he is stable, confident, has nice drive and nice grips but his intensity comes as he ages. This type of

puppy gets better and better, more and more until he is fully mature which may not be until 3 years old. In the end, this type of puppy is usually more dog than the first. There are exceptions like anything else. When it comes to getting a new puppy, there are a few things you have to remember. Number one thing is, he is a puppy. He is not a 3 year old IPO III dog that has been there and done that. I have yet to meet a puppy that was perfect from the start and I've seen hundreds. Puppies spook occassionally, sometimes at the dumbest and funniest things. As they grow and teeth, they may go through phases, sometimes acting out of character. A puppy that had great drive may temporarily drop in drive. A normally social puppy may snap at someone. I have seen and owned many different Malinois from different lines and this can be a very normal thing. Puppies can have off days.

Number two, you HAVE to put work into your puppy. Good puppies love biting (among other things) and genetics give a good puppy the desire to bite full and hard. This can all easily be screwed up through bad training or lack of training. It is up to you maintain the nice grips on a pup. It is up to you to build him and teach him what you want. If you are not experienced in doing this, you need to find someone who is or you should not be surprised if you mess it up and need to start over.

Number three, you must socialize your puppy. Although the pups see many things here at the ranch, they do not understand the outside world. Puppies need to be carfefully exposed to new places, people and things on a regular basis.....especially Malinois puppies. Malinois are very smart dogs that carry drive, reactivity and some level of aggression. This can easily go the wrong way if a puppy is not properly socialized. They need to learn how to act and how to tolerate strange situations.

Training puppies and young dogs should be consistant and steady. A 3 month old Malinois puppy biting on suit pants is not impressive to me but it used to be when I didnt know any better. A good Malinois puppy will bite almost anything in front of him, putting him on a suit too early does him no favors just the same as putting a little puppy on a hard trial arm.....seriously, why? Just because he can doesn't mean it's a bright idea.

Foundation, foundation, foundation........genetics only go so far, the rest is up to the buyer!

Quality Guarranteed

I am probably one of the most supportive Malinois breeders out there. I care greatly about my dogs and my puppies. I want feedback from my puppy buyers. I want to know the good, bad and the ugly. Feedback helps me determine the direction of my breeding program and helps me in my decision making. I stand behind my puppies and want my buyers to be happy.

Upon picking up your puppy, you will have one week to make sure he is the right puppy for you unless otherwise discussed. I give a week because it sometimes takes a few days for the pup to settle in his new home and it also gives ample time to get him to a vet for a quick check up to make sure nothing is wrong. If for some reason you are not happy with the pup within that week, send him back and I will replace him as soon as possible. I give a 3 year guarrantee against any major genetic health defects (ie hip displasia, heart problems, retained testicle) and will replace the dog (with a puppy from a future breeding) upon proof of the defect.

Unfortunately, even if I provide you with a puppy that has the potential to compete nationally, I cannot guarrantee you will train/socialize him properly, nor can I guarrantee something bad never happening to him. I can only guarrantee what I can control. Part of buying a puppy is taking a risk. We all go through it and sometimes WE are the ones that end up failing to do the puppies any justice.

I understand sometimes life situations change and always try to help and work with those who have purchased puppies from me.

~Stephanie O'Brien

Stephanie with Rodin du Calvaire aux Acacias in 2010

Stephanie with Byrak at the NVBK clubhouse in Hoboken, Belgium 2002

This page should give a little insight on the history and purpose of the breeding program program

If you have any questions, feel free to call me at 631.872.6315

Puppies