Getting a Maltese

I have 2 children, 7 years & 17 months. Would a Maltese make a good family pet for the children? Can anybody advise how a person should go about looking for a Maltese?

• My eight year old daughter does great with our Maltese. She is gentle, but we spent a lot of time making sure she understood how easy Chase could be hurt. We learned the hard way that some children can not be trusted. A friend spent the night. After being told to leave the puppy alone while I took a shower, she got the puppy from his crate and dropped him from about chest. We are very lucky that Chase suffered no more that a sprain neck. My vet said it could have killed him.

  I would consider a seventeen month old far to young to be around this small of a dog. If you got a Maltese you would have to keep them apart any time you were not right with both of them. Maltese are wonderful dogs, but the can not take the ruff play of a small child like a Golden Retevier can. Good luck in what ever you decide.
  ChrisL

• I have 3 children ages 4, 5, and 7 and they absolutely love our little maltese. They are great with her and she loves to play and cuddle with each of them. She will sleep on their beds at night if i let her. Of course, they had to be taught to be gentle with her whne she was just a young pup but that was no problem. I would keep an eye though on your 1 1/2 yr old when she/he handles the puppy. the baby can be taught over time to be gentle as well. As far as where to get one, it depends on your budget and reason for having one. If you just want a sweet little pet and aren't concerned about champion bloodlines, etc, you can pay a little less by looking in you local classified ads. Make sure you get a guarantee from the breeder tho, that if you get the dog checked out by your vet in next day or two and anything is wrong you can return it for your money back. If you want a maltese with a possibly superb bloodline you will probably pay a little more but I would start looking for a serious maltese breeder. (check the MalteseOnly Webpage for a list of breeders) . Personally, we got our maltese (as well as our lab) out of the classifieds and have been quite pleased. Good luck!
  dani