I was also wondering if Maltese have any medical problems that are common to this breed?
I have a five year old daughter who is a gentle, not rough,
pleasant, wonderful, well behaved, (well I could go on but won't)
...I have seen some warnings of children being rough and needing
supervised but I feel my daughter will pick right up on how our
Maltese should be held and played with. So otherwise, will the
Maltese be a good pet for her? She wants a little dog, that will
stay little, so she can have a lap dog, and they are sooooo cute.
Any suggestions or comments appreciated.
Keely
However, I would like to voice my concerns regarding a Maltese and your five-year-old child. These little devils might be small but they can be extremely feisty--wiggly might be a more appropriate term. My five-year-old Splitter is so excited to see me when I get home it's often hard to control her enthusiasm. (Of course, she's usually got to go when I get home so her greeting may be a quick yet emphatic plea to go O-U-T.) What I'm getting at is that even though you can educate your daughter in proper dog handling etiquette, she may not yet have the strength and/or agility to handle 4-6 lbs of Maltese go power. A couple in my office recently obtained a Maltese puppy. They, too, thought they had properly instructed their small child on how to handle the new puppy and try to supervise their child's interaction with the puppy. Unfortunately, the child dropped the puppy on two separate occasions for reasons I am not aware of. Fortunately, the dog does not appear to have been injured.
As a side note, my Mother is visiting me for several months and
she has Parkinsons which has reduced both her strength and
agility. I've asked Mom not to "handle" Splitter unless she's
seated and seated in a chair I've approved for a number of reasons.
Anyway, I'd be very hesitant and/or cautious about adding a Maltese
to your family at this time but I can't say I blame you. They are the
sweetest things on two or four legs!
Tonya Flynn