Important Information

To reflect before acting 

To stick the company of a dog is not a decision which is caught with the light one. A dog is an alive being which requires attention and care. Do not act in an impulsive way: will be able you to grant time necessary to him to its walks, the maintenance of its hair; will be able you to assume the costs related to its food and the expenses of veterinary surgeons; what you will make during the holidays... When you seek a stockbreeder take patience: a dog is not an article of consumption which, after a few weeks of use, will land in the dustbin. It will share, during years, your life of family, will claim attention... and friendship will return to you so much. There thus remains a purchase which must be maturely considered. This is why, I ask you to take the trouble to read what follows:

Importance of the pedigree

When a person lets herself allure by a small ball of hairs to the tenderizing glances and that it is found, one year later, with enormous molosse, that can sometimes pose problem.... If on the other hand, she had known the parents of this pup, she could have known that she was likely to see developing such a giant.

Why a dog with pedigree? 

With what is used the pedigree?

The pedigree is often regarded as "an useless paper reserved to the snobs and to the frimeurs". However, the elements provided by this "useless paper" will condition 10 to 15 years of the family which will accomodate the nice doggie.

Indeed, if one decides to acquire a race rather than another, it is because it  shows particular physical characteristics (size, length of the hair, ears falling...), but also a specific character and aptitudes (calms or nervous, hunting, company, watchdog  ...). But how to be sure that the small tenderizing ball of hairs will become well the pedigree dog which you chose ?

To check the origins of the dog

The only means, is to check the origins of the dog, to make sure that his/her parents, grandparents and great-grandparents belong well to the same race. And the pedigree fulfills this role: mini family tree, it recalls at least on three generations ascending dog. It is for this reason that one says that "the pedigree testifies to the purity of the race". 

Do all the pedigrees have the same value?

The value of a pedigree will thus depend on the exactitude of the origins of the dog and consequently of serious and of quality of the organization which delivers it. This is why it is commonly allowed that the pedigrees delivered by the Royal Company Saint-Hubert constitute the best guaranteed to have a ' vrai' pedigree dog. Indeed, company founded in 1882, it holds the Book since then of the Origins Saint-Hubert, gigantic family tree of the racée Belgian canine population (more than 870.000 indexed dogs). Thus, certain dogs born today result from lines centenaries! It is not for only it is only recognized in Belgium by the FCI, (Federation Cynologique Internationale), true quality control mark and world authority as regards cynology. 

Which guarantees offer the pedigree?

Above all, the pedigree is not a guarantee of good health of the pup. It does not replace to in no case the notebook of vaccination (that the stockbreeder must give you with the pup).

Actually, the pedigree contains a genealogical mini-tree behind going up three generations. Thus, one can check the origins of the dog, that his/her parents, grandparents and great-grandparents belong well to the same race. It is for this reason that one says that "the pedigree testifies to the purity of the race". The pedigree thus offers a certain guarantee as for the origins of the dog.

Where to buy your Maltese Bichon :

The stockbreeders amateurs are the best source. To obtain their co-ordinates, you address to the BELGIAN CLUB OF the BICHON secretary: Mrs. Rita De Bruyne-Douwen, Kriekendreef 12 To 2860 St-Katelijn-Waver - Tel:015/55.73.13

or at the ROYAL COMPANY SAINT HUBERT Tel.. : 02/245.48.40. To avoid the small advertisements. Do not buy a dog at a person who cannot show you the mother, indeed, any stockbreeder has the mother of her pups !!! with regard to the father, it is not always present in the stockbreeder ; this last saw some time abroad !!! The stockbreeder has a photograph of the father of his pups as well as a copy of the pedigree  of the standard.

With which age to acquire your Maltese?

The responsible stockbreeders, let leave the pups in their new family between 8 and 10 weeks. When it acquired an identification with the species, that its curiosity gives him the desire to discover and explore.

The choice of the sex :

Male or female ?  The men and the women inevitably use the same means of communication, neither between them nor with the animals. The men enter a hierarchical relation more easily, the women try of advantage of obtaining a close relationship to confidences and search for contact. You should thus choose your dog according to your personality.

Education :

The guiding principle of a good education is " coherence ". However, one always does not see the human being showing constancy in his thoughts and his behavior

Any dog must learn the good mannerss. It is thus necessary to inculcate good practices to him as of its youth, if not you are likely to sully your future relations.
Its education is based on two principles: authority and justice. More the dog feels that its Master likes it and that it can trust him, more its education easy and will be successful.

With its arrival

Plan the arrival of the new member of the family and arrange you to have sufficient spare time, for example one weekend or your holidays. Keep the visitors away to allow the pup to adapt to your family and her new entourage before seeing itself confronted with the rest of the world.

With its arrival, and once the excitation of the moment passed, you will offer small to him to taste after which will leave it again to you and will encourage it to go to lie down at the place that you will have to reserve to him  with his cover and his toys.

If there is a part of the house which will be prohibited to him, the room for example, one should not bring to it the first days under pretext which it cries the night! It is the same thing for the armchairs and settees which are not intended to him. The bad habits are caught quickly and been difficult to correct later.
A pup not being yet quite clean, better is worth to think than it will be easier to clean a tiling than a fitted carpet...
It is necessary to make in the same way for the corner which is intended for its meals by paying attention not to change its food brutally because it risks digestive and intestinal disorders. It is for these reasons that the stockbreeder, in general gives a little food when the pup from goes away. Not to forget always to leave fresh water at its disposal.

You will avoid the uninterrupted visits of your relations which will be of course curious to admire the baby! You will learn with you children that it should not be unceasingly tripoté, that a pup of this age  still requires to often sleep, to also teach them that the sleep of the pup is respected. On the other hand, you will not let the pup play by mordillant them or while grognant because it must understand immediately that it will not be dominating it.
If you have already one or more dogs, do not poke their jealousy by occupying you only of new arrived. With the opposite, not to change anything with your practices, respect the usual hierarchy, anything in their practices does not have to be modified. Thus they will become the guards of small new.
As for the cat of the house, to let it as much spit once or two! Comply with the same rules that for your dogs and it will be able to accept the new one come.
Education can be done only in good mood, calms it, with a certain rigour, without discouragement when the dog does not include/understand a continuation.

Especially never forgotten : what east allowed or prohibits is for always !!!!

Dangers of the house for the pup

The balcony: the dog can fall. To put netting.

Electric cables: the dogs are likely to bite them and receive an electric discharge. Protect the cables.

Poison: to avoid the pesticides in your garden.

Plants: to avoid the toxic plants in your house.

Small objects: the pup can swallow them.

Staircases: to carry the pup in the staircases, or to very supervise it close, it risks to slip and be wounded.

The detergents and other products of cleaning are toxic.

Cleanliness

With the 8 weeks age, the pup is able to retain maximum 2 or 3 hours.

As soon as you see the pup putting itself in position, raise the voice to distract it.

The tendency to cleanliness  will be facilitated by making it leave just after the meals. The reprimands when it "was forgotten" inside allow the installation of a new nervous control of the dog which will learn how "to retain itself".
Reprimands do not want to say to maltreat the animal, of course! The practice which consists in putting the muzzle of the pup in its excrements is not used for nothing. It is even truer when the "silly thing" has not just been done. The dog would not include/understand the relation between the punishment and the fact that one reproaches him.
The word "not" is very important for its education; pronounced curtly, it will quickly be included/understood, and not only when it is not clean. As soon as it is forgotten, it is immediately necessary to leave it and congratulate it when it made its needs outside. Especially do not forget not congratulated it !!!!

Of course, this education is facilitated if one has of a garden or a court; in apartment, that is likely to take a little more time.

The Walk

The pup likes to walk but it is necessary to hold account of its physical capacities! It is useless to draw the pup at the end of one leaves until the moment when it will lie down on the side.

An important thing: one should not be afraid of the other dogs which you will meet. Yours would feel it and modify its behavior. To draw on its leaves is an error. One is likely to cause an aggressive reaction in the other animal. Or then your dog could become an adult aggressive, ready to attack those which it crosses. Will also know that you will be often approached by people curious to meet your small animal , who will wish to especially cherish it to let make, that formed part of its social education, thus it will learn how to let itself touch without fear.

Barkings

The pup barks easily and almost never without reason. With you to discover the cause and to cure it so that it does not become a noisy dog with the piercing voice which will be difficult to support, for you, your family and your vicinity.

To live in Company

You will have to learn the good mannerss with your dog. One should not especially: he to give to eat when you are with table; to let jump you above when you return to the house; you to let lick the figure, the hands or the feet; you to leave mordiller the bottom of the trousers or the coat.

The Maltese and children :

Attention, the Maltese is not a toy, with the children, it alternates the moments câlins and the track races as well in the house as in the garden. Mischievous and ridden companion with springs, it shares the plays of small with enthusiasm.

 It is however necessary to learn to the small girls who it is neither a cuddly toy, nor a headstock and which the nodes in the hairs, brushings to be finished moreover it and the perfume are not what he prefers.....

To reserve for the true headstocks !!!!

Punishments

The punishments are necessary to education. But it is not a question to be violent. There is necessary to remain right and coherent: not to punish what one authorized the day before, not to punish the pup for a silly thing which it did not make.
When it is in fault, the dog must be called immediately. If it is long in coming, if it adopts a low attitude, then it will have understood that it badly acted, it will thus accept more easily the punishment.
It is necessary to speak to him severely. Few words are useful but they must be pronounced in a manner which does not allow the doubt about your dissatisfaction. The howls are useless...
But the best solution is certainly to be unaware of it even for little time. It is sensitive there because it is unhappy to feel isolated and to be likely to lose the affection of its Master.

To learn has to remain alone

It is regrettable to meet dogs presenting of the serious disorders of the behavior because of the stress related to the absence of the Masters.
In the majority of the cases, these behaviors are due to a bad education Indeed, the dog which divides the daily newspaper of human of "its family" is unceasingly with listening and will feel the absence of the latter as if it lost a part of itself.
The anguish will be less strong if there are other animals at the house, the practice of the pup to loneliness must be done as of its arrival with the hearth.

Small council : to install your pup for the night, place in its basket an old tee-shirt, sweater, or cover, its preferred toy, as well as a small lamp. But attention, your efforts will be useless if you do not adopt the good attitude at the time of separation. Your departure must be natural, without demonstration of particular tenderness, as if you will return a few moments later. With the return, you do not precipitate on him, in response to its demonstrations of joy; quite to the contrary, let spend a certain time before making him a câlin and from going to walk it.
If, before your departure, it could make good strolls, to play with you and to receive a small gatery; that it is the same after your return, are sure that he will accept your absence much better.

Food

Difficult to resist its imploring airs and its eyes in buttons of boots ! But you do not leave "embobiner", you will find yourselves well quickly with an obese dog, which is not beautiful whole ! Moreover, obesity harms its health seriously, and the excess of sugar refineries, can in the long term cause enormous problems of metabolism. All the sugar refineries in particular the chocolate are very dangerous for its even fatal health !!. The meals are also a very good occasion to teach him some rules from education. If it tends to come to beg with table, as many send it in its basket with firmness time as that will be necessary, you will make a dog thus of it educate well that one can take along everywhere.

The meal : You have 2 possibilities, the first to make confidence with the products offered on the market or to prepare yourself to him its meals.
To please to him or to reward it, one can give him small delicacies ; small piece of hard cheese, bone to chew or other bought in the trade.

the dry food is of excellent quality. The stockbreeder will have indicated the product to you which it uses. Do not forget that the dry food requires of drinking much. The dry food gives whole satisfaction in the majority of the stockbreeders and, moreover, facilitates the life :

The food has to avoid are : Pigmeat, pointed bones of chicken and rabbit, the cabbage, all the starchy food too rich and difficult to digest, Onions, garlic and other condiments.

A number of daily meals:
between 2 and 4 months: 3 to 4
between 4 and 6 months: 2
as from 6 months : 1

Hygiene

Being the privileged host of your residence, you hold so that your dog is clean and it is quite normal. In addition, you draw pride from his beauty! All that requires some attentions which will not become too constraining if they are regular. Moreover, a neat dog is an animal which saw better and longer.

The Bath

A good shampoo and a good after-shampoo (Special white dog) enable you to wash your Maltese each time that it is dirty

Always should be disentangled the front dog. 

Place near the hand all which you will need: a soft shampoo adapted to the long hairs (not of shampoo for poodle) after shampoo will be useful to prevent the static electricity, do not forget a large towel to dry it.

Maintain the dog of a hand, other wet it, put diluted shampoo, gently mass the skin and the hair. Attention not to get mixed up the hairs. Rinse abundantly, start again with shampoo, make well penetrate. Sponge the surplus of water, pose the dog on the table, plug it to dry it to the maximum, but in all the directions, you do not rub it would get mixed up its hairs. With a hair drier not too hot, dry à.fond well, above, below like a blow-dry. 

Make its daily toilet if not its smooth hair and flat risk to felt. It is necessary a brush on rubber cushion, a comb with broad teeth and a fine comb for the moustache, tweezers and scissors for you.

Start with the lower part, by maintaining your dog with back on your knees. It is then enough to remake it every month. Benefit from that to release the lower part of the bearings and to round the hair of the legs, then brush while starting with the root towards the points to remove the possible dust and nodes.   

Put it on a table in front of you, speak him to give him confidence. Brush it, pass the comb on all the body, defeats with the hand the possible nodes by holding the base of the hairs between the inch and the index without drawing.

Make a line of the nape of the neck to the tail on the medium of the back. Attach him to them hairs of the top of the head as soon as they are sufficiently long with a small rubber band.

Take the practice to cut the hairs around the anus by leaving a half cm length, that will avoid many nuisances.

Eyes

To clean the eyes using a cotton soaked with boric water or other produced specialized

Especially make it tous.les.jours after the meals to avoid the yellow traces.

Ears

Using a cotton bud, the ear lobe, especially do not penetrate in the content of the ear, you clean would be likely to wound it. With the tweezers, remove the surplus of hairs, but take the practice to leave some a little, to avoid with the dog catching a épillet. If you note brownish secretions, consult without awaiting the veterinary surgeon in order to treat it with an adequate product.

Teeth

Once per week, the teeth of the pup will be cleaned with a small brush with tooth, or with a rubber finger. It will be accustomed to show you its teeth.

Nails

The little going dog will see its nails lengthening inordinately.

You will have to then cut them preferably after the bath, which will have made them soften. To avoid crossing too short and making it bleed, better is worth to use a special nail-clippers.

The majority prefer to shorten the hair in order to make maintenance easier. the cut with the scissors is advised. Speak in with your toilettor, without forgetting that the hair is an insulating naturalness !!!!!  Never not to let shave your Maltese !!!

If you aim at the titles, the preparation of your dog must be consequent and constant. The fur will be toilettée carefully and gradually it will be necessary to learn how in your Bichon to support the curlpapers ask council to the stockbreeder.

Holidays

 Do not forget to take along with you the notebook of vaccination as well as the certificate of good health international given by your veterinary surgeon at the time of your last visit for the up to date handing-over of its vaccinations, the anti-rabic vaccine is obligatory for the foreigner.

SI you travel by the plane : The small animals remain with their Masters in a bag, or a bird cage with an additional charge. The others are constrained to travel in the compartment.

If you leave without him : The ideal is of being able to leave it at the house in company of a person whom he knows. Thus, your Maltese will not suffer from your absence, and will keep his practices. Another possibility, to leave it in parents or friends who know it well.
There also exists of many pensions. You near your veterinary surgeon inform who will advise you.