The Bouvier des Flandres is an obedient dog and is pleasant natured and gentle. They need a good amount of exercise to keep them calm.  This breed is even tempered and fearless making them excellent guard and watchdogs. They are enthusiastic and learns relatively quickly making them easy to train, however they need an experienced owner to prevent dominance and overprotectiveness. The Bouvier des Flandres need socialising at an early age to avoid shyness and reservation with strangers. The Bouvier is excellent with children and extremely loyal. They get along well with other cats and dogs but beware of keeping them with other household pets. Dominant Bouvier’s can be aggressive towards other dogs and need a firm training and leadership from their owner. They are slow to mature, taking about two to three years.