THE MALTESE STANDARD— Moderate & MediuM froM Head to toe & tHe Misunderstood “Coat LengtH” issue by ViCki abbott W hen reading the Mal- tese standard, one cannot help but notice that in the Maltese
again), not short, upturned or too long and never down-nosed. The skull is slightly rounded, not apple-shaped or domed (a moderate skull). It should not resemble the head of a Japanese Chin or Brussels Griffon. Eyes should be dark—and very importantly ROUND. Look carefully to make sure that the eyes are not oval-shaped like a Poodle or almond-shaped like a Chinese Crest- ed. The proper shape gives the Maltese its gentle expression required for cor- rect type and improper eye shape can be a problem in the breed. Balance is important in the head as well—eye and nose placement should, looking head— on, resemble an equilateral triangle. Nose and eye size should be balanced. Halos around the eyes (pigment on the skin) is NOT required in the Maltese standard. It is okay, but not called for, or even mentioned in the standard. The only pigment called for is black eye rims, black nose and black toe pads. To reward a dog with a lot of facial pig- ment that is a lesser quality Maltese just because you think the pigment is better is incorrect. Handlers are finding ways to “paint” in that facial pigment because they think the judges will put up the dogs that have it over others that do not. Again, it is not required in the Maltese standard as it is with a Bichon Frise. A very dark eye with good black eye rim is very pretty and very correct. Neck should be “sufficient,” which does not translate into a very long neck (another extreme); in fact, length of neck should maintain overall balance. Topline is lev- el and the tail should be a continuation of the spine and should be carried up and over the back gracefully with its tip (the actual tailbone, not just the hair) definitely lying to the side of the quar- ter. If the tip does not come down so
far as to lie to the side, it is an incorrect tail set, which would be called either a “flag” or “gay” tail and is usually a result of it being too low set off of the croup. Other tail problems on Maltese include “pig” tails. All incorrect tail sets destroy the outline of the dog—and while this can be corrected by the handler when posed, should be checked by the judge on the table and when gaiting. Size —This is a moderately-sized Toy Breed. The Maltese breed standard says “weight under 7 pounds, with from 4-6 pounds preferred. Over-all quality is to be favored over size”(the size stated in the standard, of course). However, the standard stresses the importance of the legs being fine-boned “so as to eliminate any suggestion of coarseness”. By stress- ing this requirement for fine bone, the standard attempts to ensure that the Maltese will not become a dog so large and coarse that he will not be able to function in the manner for which he was bred. Exhibitors do not like to hear judges state that they have a preferred size in this breed (they hear “I like them smaller, or I like them big enough for the group”). Any dog within these lim- its stated in the standard is the size a toy companion and lap dog should be— which is the purpose of the breed. Do not penalize a great quality dog because you have personal preferences—if it falls within the standard—it is correct— larger or smaller! If you have two dogs very close in your mind in comparison overall, then the “4-6 pounds preferred” should come into your evaluation. Com- pared to some of the other toy dogs, right under 7 pounds is still very small if it is fine-boned. When you are in the ring judging Maltese, there can be a big difference in size if you have a 3 pound dog and a 6 ¾ pound dog. Do not let that
standard, words repeatedly used are “moderate” and “medium”, reminding us that this breed is moderate in all ways and not extreme in any part. Silhouette —Balance in the Maltese breed calls for a moderate dog. If any- thing is extreme and attracts your eye to it and not the overall dog, then it is out of balance. Silhouette incorporates the total outline of the head, length of body and leg, length of neck, topline and tail set—in other words, the out- line. But you must “see beyond the hair.” A good tip is to picture the dog in your mind with its coat off. Length of body should be slightly OFF-SQUARE or at the most, only slightly rectangular. The Maltese standard states exactly where the square is, “Height from the with- ers to the ground is equal to the length from the withers to the root of the tail.” A Maltese that exceeds the proportion in the standard and has excess length of body probably also has excess length of loin, which is a debilitating fault. Balance is when all parts of the dog fit well together. No one part should be exaggerated to the point of disruption. Therefore, the outline for the Maltese should have everything in moderation. The lack of this balance destroys breed type. The length of the dog is extremely important as is the proper amount of leg. If a dog is too long, too short or does not have enough leg, it lacks type. Head —Again, we are talking about moderation. The head should be in proper proportion to the size of the dog—not too big for the body, not too small. Muzzle should be of proper length—medium (there’s that word
t5 01 / 05$) 5 0:4 . ":
Powered by FlippingBook