In spite of the stupid movie, in spite of all the nonsense that is written, the dog in "A Dog of Flandres" is not a Bouvier des Flandres. This canard seems to regain traction each time another version of the movie is produced.
The simple fact of the matter is that the Bouvier is not and never was a draft dog. In point of actual fact, the “dog of Flandres” was not a Bouvier at all, but a short coated, yellow, bulky dog of the common Belgian draft dog type, now extinct. Justin Chastel, among others, pointed out the differences in the requisite physical structure and temperament; a cattle dog must be quick and agile rather than have the massive and bulky form of the draft dog.
The dog is described thusly: "A dog of Flandres - yellow of hide, large of head and limb, with wolf-like ears that stood erect, and legs bowed and feet widened in the muscular development wrought in his breed by many generations of hard service. Patrasche came of a race which had toiled hard and cruelly from sire to son in Flandres many a century - slaves of slaves, dogs of the people, beasts of the shafts and harness, creatures that lived straining their sinews in the gall of the cart, and died breaking their hearts on the flints of the streets." The graphics in the books clearly show a short coated dog.
Although the author Marie Louise de la Ramée or "Ouida" was English by birth her Father was French, a culture she closely identified with. She was a political and animal rights activist; and eventually the draft dog function did become illegal in Belgium and the Netherlands.
"A Dog of Flandres" needs to be seen in the context of Belgian history and politics. The Dutch speaking Flemish were always looked down upon by the French segment of the population; a division so deep that there is serious agitation to separate Belgium into Flemish and French independent nations even today. It is thus easy to read this book as propaganda directed against the cruel and heartless Flemish portrayed in their treatment of the boy Nello and his unfortunate dog.