Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez landed in England after being world champion with the Argentina national team and one of the first things he did was buy a dog.

The Aston Villa goalkeeper acquired for approx €20,000 (3.8 million pesos) to a belgian shepherd malinoisa variety of the breed that has several peculiarities.

Malinois are called “military” dogs because they are the ones that use the SEALS (United States Army Air, Sea and Ground Teams) and the Special Air Service in Great Britain to carry out the various tasks of surveillance and patrolling the territory. They are, without a doubt, watchdogs.

According to the Daily Mail, the “Dibu” did it “to protect his home in Birmingham”.

Martínez adopted it with the help of the specialized company Elite protection dogswho had already helped other top-level footballers playing in the English league, such as the Frenchman, in the same quest Hugo Loris.

The ‘Dibu’ is said to have bought it in view of a growing wave of insecurity in England in recent months.

Talking to the Daily Mail, a member of Elite Protection Dogs explained that “Belgian Malinois are working dogs chosen by the military and police as number one in the world” and underlined that “the US Navy Seals have used Malinois in action of bin Laden’s capture operation.

The company insider described the breed as “super athletic and agile, with an extreme drive that makes them prime candidates for any task on the job.”

What are Belgian Malinois like?

Based on information from the Belgian Shepherd Dog Club of Canada, Malinoisclub.com, and the Northern Belgian Shepherd Dog Club, if Malinois are properly raised and trained they can be very active, friendly, protective and hardworking.

Additionally, their energy levels are among the highest of all dog breeds, especially up to three years of age.

have a high prey hunting and they can be excessively exuberant and joyfulas well as destructive or develop neurotic behaviors if they don’t get enough stimulation and exercise.

They are medium to strong dogs that require basic obedience training and love to be challenged by learning new tasks. They are known to be easy to train due to their high understanding.

Males usually weigh between 25 and 34 kilograms, while females between 18 and 27. As regards the height at the withers, the former measure between 61 and 66 centimeters and the latter between 56 and 61.