Matt Folsom is a Certified Master Dog Trainer. Matt has attracted over 4.5 Million followers on TikTok and over 125,000 followers on Instagram with his expertly applied science-based, positive reinforcement training methodology.
As the owner of the most famous Malinois puppies in the world, Folsom launched his training company Modern Malinois after his friend experienced a brutal home invasion.
Folsom was eager to help and it was through that experience that his love for dog training began.
Folsom’s training strategies include positive reinforcement to increase high-level obedience, on-command response, socialization techniques and more to help increase security and mitigate threats to personal safety when it comes to high-level executives and law enforcement professionals.
Folsom trains protection dogs on a 40-acre property located in Bend Oregon.
Matt caught up with K9 Magazine to tell us more.
Tell us all about all the dogs you've loved in your life. (this is your chance to tell us everything about your dogs, past or present. Names, ages, breeds - we want to know everything!)
I currently have four dogs. All my dogs have a name, nickname, title and job description.
All my dogs are Belgian Malinois except one. One-year-old Alexandra has the nickname of ThanggG, the title of The Ultimate Puppy and the job description of the future matriarch. She is the most gifted of all my dogs, the wildest, but is so sweet and loving.
@modernmalinois Throwback to the most amazing ThanggG! She’s just some kind of puppy.
Two-year-old Magnus is The Mognaught, his title is The Modern Malinois and his job description is being a himbo. He is the beauty boy, loves snuggles more than any dog alive, but also loves to work harder than any of my dogs.
Three-year-old Alrick is The Poohpup, the title is The Master of Puckishness and his job description is the puppy master. Alrick has the most stable temperament. He can go anywhere anytime and train at a high level.
Nothing phases him. He is the puppy master because he is so good with young dogs. But when it comes to extreme feats of physical performance, he is also your guy. He can run a 5k in under ten minutes and maintain 36mph for six seconds at almost 80lbs.
My oldest, who is also my last GSD, is five-year-old Kaladin. His nickname is The Boopah, his title is The Goodest Good Boy and his job description is the property manager.
He is responsible for rectifying anything that needs to be taken care of on our forty-acre ranch. He loves food more than his life and is always willing to be a booyah.
You're obviously a huge dog lover. How long have dogs been a major part of your life and how would you explain the importance of dogs to someone who hadn't ever experienced the joy of a canine/human relationship in their life?
All my life I have felt like an outsider. I’m autistic and still struggle with human interaction. However, when I’m with my dogs I feel my life makes sense and that it has a purpose.
@modernmalinois Whether it’s a Godzilla attitude, superb grip, or crazy food drive, look for that elevation.
My dogs mean more to me than any human alive. When I am training them it’s as if all the world fades away and it’s just me and my dog, working in sync, flowing with each other in movement and drive.
What are your favourite things to do with your dog(s)?
My absolute favourite thing is bite work. I love the challenge of letting them express their drive and traits they were bred for in a way that has them in control but doesn't diminish their spirit.
I also love snuggles. My dogs rotate each night who gets to sleep in bed with me.
You have a really interesting career... What advice would you give to the many people who wanted to follow your path in career terms? What are the absolute best (and worst) things about your work?
The most important thing is quality education. Don’t try to reinvent the wheel by figuring everything out yourself. Your progress will be slow and fraught with many mistakes that could have been avoided.
Make sure you have quality mentors, people who are where you want to be. Lastly, never think you’ve figured it out. Always strive to improve and be willing to take criticism from the mentors in your life.
Here are our quick-fire questions, are you ready?
Which breed do you prefer and why?
Belgian Malinois. I am basically one myself. I love a dog that can match my extreme energy levels. Also, I love a dog breed that loves snuggles as much as wrestles.
Big dogs or little dogs?
Big dogs.
Calm, relaxed dogs or dogs who live at 100mph?
Ones who live at 100mph but know how to relax.
Dogs who do as they're asked most of the time or dogs who do pretty much whatever they like whenever they like?
They each have their benefits. If channelled properly the Malinois who is headstrong and does what they want can be a stellar trait because they can have the ability to perform anywhere and anytime.
Dogs who love to walk by your side or dogs who like to race off and cover ten thousand yards in 3 seconds?
I want both. Haha!
Days off or days at work?
I haven’t had a day off in 5 years. I love what I do.
View this post on Instagram
The fastest route or the scenic route?
Fastest route.
Nighttime or early morning?
Early Morning.
Describe the last time you laughed out loud because of something you saw a dog do.
Alrick recently spun in mid-air and hit Alexandra with his butt to get her to calm down and not take play so seriously.
What do you like to do in your downtime?
Snuggle my dog, cook great food and play disc golf.
Let us in on a secret that very few people know about you.
I have a degree in Statistics.
What is your current favourite…?
TV show?
I don’t watch TV.
Album?
Anything by Ella Fitzgerald.
Film?
I don't watch movies.
If you had to choose just one, what product or service would you say has most changed your life do you think and why? (can be technology, beauty, food, pet-related, book - anything)
Social Media. It has allowed me to share my passion with the world and made my dream of building a training and breeding program come true.
Tell us about some of the most memorable moments from your work.
The best moments are when I am struggling to teach a dog a concept. I keep reaching into my bag of tricks to try a different approach, but they seem to all fail.
Then finally it clicks. It’s such a joyous moment and keeps me coming back to become a better trainer.
Finish the following sentence, "dogs are..."...
Dogs are my everything.
And finally, this is always a tough question and often requires some serious thought… If dogs had the ability to speak and you could ask your dog just one question and one question only, what would you ask them and what do you think that they'd say?
I really want to know what they dream about. Do they dream in two dimensions like human children or three like adults? Are they running free chasing their favourite ball? Lastly, do they ever dream about me?
This is an opportunity to talk about any causes, projects, business ventures etc. that are important to you and you'd like us to tell our readers about.
My entire brand and all my social media accounts are for one purpose. In addition to my training program, I am building the top Malinois Breeding program in the world.
Selling executive protection dogs and puppies and pushing the boundaries of what is possible in training is our mission.
Thanks, Matt!
I just found Matt on social media and love this article about him. He is so gifted and so likable. I adore him. I have a standard poodle and a little mixed breed so even though I’m miles away from a Malinois, I get so much joy from his methods and videos. He reminds me of my dear friend and Natural Dog Trainer, Kevin Behan, who had similar methods.
I have a 6 month old male Malinois mix and a 9 month old female German Shepherd. They bark at everybody and if I let them go I’m sure it’d be a disaster. I wish Matt Folsom would come to Bellingham and work with me to straighten Zoomie (malinios mix) and Cupcake (German Shepherd) out so they would be super well behaved, love kids, love people, and be extraordinarily good puppies and dogs when they are full grown.
I used to be a K-9 Drug Dog Handler and my first dog was a Belgian Malinois. He was fully trained when I was assigned to him name (Astor). Now, I know his on God’s hand and missed him always and forever man’s best friend. We have now a family puppy 3 months old name LOBU and he is Husky and German Shepherd. Very energetic and loving young boy and smart. His taking a 6 weeks class once a week. His teething right now and he likes to bark, eat, play, sniff,. He is very attractive puppy and gets a lot of attention especially people wanted to pet him. I want to purchase a Belgian Malinois from Matt Folsom and to be part of our guardian angel and most importantly to be part on our community. Thanks to Mr. Matt Folsom for sharing his insights and skills on his YouTube channel, I appreciate it so much and I hope to her from him soon.
Dear Matt, you are so loved and missed by your youtube family. I personally loved every single video you’ve shared. I hope one day you’ll pop in to grace us with your presence.
Blessings