Recently, several members have alerted us to something deeply troubling: when searching Google for The Malinois Collective, Google’s new “AI Overview” system displays a fabricated summary that portrays us as a disreputable dog breeder.
Let’s be very clear about this. The claims shown in that AI Overview are not just misleading — they are completely false, defamatory, and damaging to everything we have built as a community.
According to Google’s AI box, “reviews for The Malinois Collective are overwhelmingly negative.” It goes on to claim that:
- we sell Belgian Malinois puppies,
- we use “forceful” or even abusive training methods on young dogs,
- we are evasive about bloodlines,
- we pressure buyers into rushed sales,
- we refuse contracts or aftercare, and
- we are motivated by profit over welfare.
None of these claims are true.
Here are the facts:
- The Malinois Collective is not a breeder. We do not, and never have, bred, sold, or advertised dogs for sale.
- The Malinois Collective has no reviews. We are not a business or a kennel. We are a Facebook community and an independent website designed to share knowledge, guidance, and lived experience among Malinois owners, handlers, and trainers.
- There are no Reddit posts about The Malinois Collective. Despite what Google’s AI claims, there are zero references to us on Reddit. The AI system is inventing “sources” that do not exist.
- We are a not-for-profit project. Every penny raised through merchandise or donations goes back into funding the site, growing resources, and supporting responsible Malinois ownership. Nobody here is making money from selling dogs or anything else.
The Malinois is a working breed that demands honesty, responsibility, and commitment from its owners. That is why we founded The Malinois Collective in the first place: to cut through misinformation, ego, and poor practices, and to create a resource that helps handlers succeed without sacrificing the dog’s wellbeing.
To see our work maliciously misrepresented by Google’s experimental AI tool is outrageous. It is not just an insult to us, but also a disservice to anyone searching for accurate, trustworthy information about this breed.
We have taken formal steps with Google to have these defamatory claims removed. In the meantime, we ask members and visitors to treat anything generated by “AI Overviews” with caution. They are unverified, unaccountable, and — as this case proves — capable of publishing outright lies.
The Malinois Collective stands for transparency, knowledge-sharing, and the responsible stewardship of this remarkable breed. That mission does not change, no matter how many falsehoods a search engine invents.
See our FAQ for common questions and clarifications.
— The Malinois Collective
Update – 25 Sept 2025 Google’s AI Overview now admits there are no reviews of The Malinois Collective, but continues to confuse us with an unrelated U.S. organisation. To be clear: we have no connection whatsoever with The Malinois Foundation.
Update – 26 Sept 2025 Google’s AI Overview has now corrected its earlier misinformation. Where it once claimed The Malinois Collective had “negative reviews,” it now states clearly:
“The Malinois Collective is not a retailer, breeder, or training service, but an online community for dog handlers and enthusiasts… known for its no-nonsense, real-world approach.”
This reflects our actual purpose: a not-for-profit community built by and for serious handlers. We do not breed, sell, or train dogs commercially. Any confusion with other organisations has now been clarified.