# Weight of Maltese



## Delilahs Mommy

What is the largest Maltese that you have ever seen? Weight wise? I ran into a really nice couple today, who say they have a 13lb Maltese and also has grade 2/3 LP. Poor guy is going in for surgery this week.

We got to talking and I am really begining to think that they do not have a full blooded Maltese and that he isn't really overweight. That they either got a bad representation of the breed AND/OR they got a mixed Maltese/Bichon. I say this, because she told me what she has been feeding him and it's all been healthy food and within the guidelines of what he should be getting, actually a little less as far as dry food goes.

I asked them how much did he weigh at 12 weeks and they said about 8 lbs. So at 11 months old, 13 lbs now. Wouldn't that be putting him at around 20 lbs, according to the estimation thing we use??? Anyway I asked if they would bring him in so I could see him. I also told them about this wonderful site. So hopefully they will join us here or at least read all the wealth of info and can get another Malt in the future.


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## jmm

That estimate is for the average Maltese from a reputable breeder. You cannot predict the growth rate of a dog from unknown background. Yes I've seen purebred Maltese from poor quality parents grow to large sizes. You breed an outcross of 8 and 9 lb parents and big might be in there. That's the likelihood of genetics to a degree.


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## Cosy

I don't think you can estimate if he's a mix. Sounds like he's definitely that.


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## myfairlacy

I've seen a lot of large maltese. I've also seen a lot of large yorkies. Hard to know if they are completely purebred or not..it IS possible though so large size alone wouldn't make me think a dog is a mix. My Dad's cousin has had a few maltese. Her current maltese came from a show breeder and was placed as a pet because he was oversized. I think he's about 10lbs. Sometimes genetics are tricky...dogs can end up smaller or larger than you are hoping for.


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## pinkpixie1588

I think the majority of Maltese you see around on the streets are from BYBs and Pet Shops (Puppy Mills) so it's hard to know for sure their background. Very possible that lots of them have been outcrossed to Bichons either unknowingly or purposefully to make the birth less complicated. Lots of Maltese I see have courser/curlier coats, too. Of course I would never say anything, but almost every person I meet asks me if Leila is a teacup or a miniature Maltese because they've never seen one so small. Most people on the street haven't ever seen a well-bred Maltese, unfortunately.


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## casa verde maltese

Weight is tricky and hard to judge.. Atticus & Rugby are litter mates (both from Grace) - they are from a reputable breeder (Aria Maltese). Atticus weighs 8.5 lbs and Rugby weighs 5.3 lbs and Grace weighs between 6lbs - 6.5 lbs - depending on her diet (she can be a little porker - but that's my fault). So, I would be highly offended if someone told me Atticus wasn't a full blood maltese, because he weighs too much or that he came from a less then reputable source. Standard is: Under 7 pounds; 4 to 6 pounds preferred. So, Atticus is out of standard, but his parents were both below 7lbs. Genetics is tricky, both of my parents have brown eyes & I have blue eyes. My Genetics instructor in college told me there was a lot going on there.. I just needed to pass the class.. so I took a pass on learning more.


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## gypsyqueen

*My girl is 13pounds*

I got her from a pet shop my husband bought her live and learn at 4 month she was 1pd 4 oz. (think they lied about her age) she is aca registeredHe paid 1800 for her I paid 2000 to have her eyes fixed bad tearing and hair growth on inside of the eyelids so i guess poor breeding is all over I would never breed her but people will breed anything for MONEY.


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## pinkpixie1588

casa verde maltese said:


> Weight is tricky and hard to judge.. Atticus & Rugby are litter mates (both from Grace) - they are from a reputable breeder (Aria Maltese). Atticus weighs 8.5 lbs and Rugby weighs 5.3 lbs and Grace weighs between 6lbs - 6.5 lbs - depending on her diet (she can be a little porker - but that's my fault). So, I would be highly offended if someone told me Atticus wasn't a full blood maltese, because he weighs too much or that he came from a less then reputable source. Standard is: Under 7 pounds; 4 to 6 pounds preferred. So, Atticus is out of standard, but his parents were both below 7lbs. Genetics is tricky, both of my parents have brown eyes & I have blue eyes. My Genetics instructor in college told me there was a lot going on there.. I just needed to pass the class.. so I took a pass on learning more.


I wouldn't think that Atticus wasn't purebred because he's 8.5 pounds. Honestly I think it's hard to tell the difference between a Malt that's 5 pounds vs. 7 pounds vs. 9 pounds. Unless you feel their body it's hard to tell with all the fluff. 

But, when you're talking about a 15-20 pound "Maltese", you have to wonder.


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## Orla

Maltese are very very rare here in Ireland. Its so funny - all the ones from BYB's I've seen have been tiny!! Our standard is bigger than the standard in the states - 6.6 - 8.8lbs so show maltese are usually bigger - although I have seen maltese in the ring that are smaller than that and win


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## jenniferhope423

My Bailey is 15lbs. I don't know anything about her lines as I got her from a family that couldn't take care of her anymore. She looks like any Maltese that I have ever seen but being so big I wonder sometimes if she may have some other breed in there somewhere. I love her big or small :wub: 

Here is my big girl...


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## Delilahs Mommy

And really all that matters, we still love them no matter what size they are! and they are happy and healthy!


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## EmmasMommy

I think Maltese size can vary alot without any "outcrossing".

My grandmother was 4' 10" and my son is 6"4"-not usual but it can happen. 

My 3 youngest Maltese are all related yet they really vary in size....

Mimi is around 4 lbs now an her littermate ( who Mr Tran still owns) will be 6 lbs, yet her full cousin my Twinkle is a wee 2.4-6 lbs and she will never hit 3 lbs ( I think)My JilliBean is almost 5 lbs. and she is their full aunt. 

As Orla said the european/ World (FCI) standard is considerably larger ( up to just under 9 lbs) so its quite easy to imagine one in the teens. 

And really Malts of all sizes are still great dogs. And the bigger ones are probably a better fit with a family with kids that a "tiny" one.

Don't misunderstand me I am not supportive of breeding indiscriminately......its just that they don't have to be part poodle or Bichon to be larger. DNA doesn't always reveal its secrets.


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## 08chrissy08

I definitely agree that size isn't really a good indication of a pure bred. Jazz came from a very reputable breeder and is a moose at 11.2 lbs. His sister from the same litter is just under 5lbs last I heard. Jazz's daddy is pretty well known and his momma is a beautiful girl. Jazz is healthy as a horse, has a gorgeous expressive face, and is the size of a moose, LOL. He was 2.3 lbs when I brought him home at 16 weeks. Go figure. Both his parents are within size standard.


I would say generally you aren't going to get a big guy like this from a really good breeder, but it happens and I don't love Jazz any less for it. He is my snuggle bear and I couldn't possibly love him more then I do!


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## puppymom

jenniferhope423 said:


> My Bailey is 15lbs. I don't know anything about her lines as I got her from a family that couldn't take care of her anymore. She looks like any Maltese that I have ever seen but being so big I wonder sometimes if she may have some other breed in there somewhere. I love her big or small :wub:
> 
> Here is my big girl...
> View attachment 86439


I think your Bailey is just PERFECTLY ADORABLE!!

I think it's a very slippery slope when you start "judging" whether a Maltese is purebred based on weight. Unless you are heading to the show ring I don't understand the obsession with weight. I want my Maltese to be healthy and as long as they meet that criteria I don't care what they weigh. 

It stands to reason that since there are a significant number of "small" maltese from very good breeders that there would also be some "big" Maltese. I don't understand why people look at the teeny tinies as desirable but then stick their noses up at the big ones.


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## Matilda's mommy

casa verde maltese said:


> Weight is tricky and hard to judge.. Atticus & Rugby are litter mates (both from Grace) - they are from a reputable breeder (Aria Maltese). Atticus weighs 8.5 lbs and Rugby weighs 5.3 lbs and Grace weighs between 6lbs - 6.5 lbs - depending on her diet (she can be a little porker - but that's my fault). So, I would be highly offended if someone told me Atticus wasn't a full blood maltese, because he weighs too much or that he came from a less then reputable source. Standard is: Under 7 pounds; 4 to 6 pounds preferred. So, Atticus is out of standard, but his parents were both below 7lbs. Genetics is tricky, both of my parents have brown eyes & I have blue eyes. My Genetics instructor in college told me there was a lot going on there.. I just needed to pass the class.. so I took a pass on learning more.


:goodpost:


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## Matilda's mommy

puppymom said:


> I think your Bailey is just PERFECTLY ADORABLE!!
> 
> I think it's a very slippery slope when you start "judging" whether a Maltese is purebred based on weight. Unless you are heading to the show ring I don't understand the obsession with weight. I want my Maltese to be healthy and as long as they meet that criteria I don't care what they weigh.
> 
> It stands to reason that since there are a significant number of "small" maltese from very good breeders that there would also be some "big" Maltese. I don't understand why people look at the teeny tinies as desirable but then stick their noses up at the big ones.


 :goodpost:


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## maltlovereileen

Bailey is precious!!! 

Our very first malt, Goliath, is always the King of my heart and he was also a big boy - about 11 pounds in his prime, slightly larger as he got more senior. A puppymill dog (before I knew better), so could have been crossed with something like a bichon and sold as a malt, who knows... just know I couldn't have asked for a better boy. Would give my right arm to have him back...


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## myfairlacy

puppymom said:


> I think your Bailey is just PERFECTLY ADORABLE!!
> 
> I think it's a very slippery slope when you start "judging" whether a Maltese is purebred based on weight. Unless you are heading to the show ring I don't understand the obsession with weight. I want my Maltese to be healthy and as long as they meet that criteria I don't care what they weigh.
> 
> It stands to reason that since there are a significant number of "small" maltese from very good breeders that there would also be some "big" Maltese. I don't understand why people look at the teeny tinies as desirable but then stick their noses up at the big ones.


:aktion033: I have never understood why some people think tiny equals more desirable either. A dog isn't any more cute to me just because it's tiny. Now, I've seen some absolutely beautiful Maltese on this site that are tiny..but it's not because they are tiny that I think they are pretty. I personally don't want a Yorkie or a Maltese that is on the smaller side of the standard..I like a 5-6lb dog myself if I had to choose a "perfect weight". Anyway..just a pet peeve of mine when I see people that are obsessed with TINY.


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## SugarBob62

Yeah I don't think weight necessarily determines anything. Like Andy was definitely purebred, and his mom was tiny...however he ended up being 12lbs. When we talked to other breeders when looking for Nelson, we said we were looking for one that might be on the larger size when full grown...nothing like 4lbs because we were used to Andy being 12. Granted I know they can't for sure guess the adult weight. But they said it is rare to get a larger one, but it does happen...that they will sometimes "throw a bigger dog".
I mean just like some people are born and end up being 7ft. tall...and have shorter parents or something.

And Nelson's dad was about 4.5lbs, and his mom around 7...and at 6 months he was already 6.5lbs. I don't know what his final adult weight will be. But alot of it has to do with the bone structure and stuff too. Like Andy wasn't fat at all, he was just bigger all over. And with Nelson we picked him out of 3, and went with who felt like they had the biggest bone structure. I dunno what his brothers currently weigh, but I can probably guess or assume he is the largest.

So I don't really think you can say "oh it must not be purebred then because its 13lbs." Ok so maybe it would never be a show dog, but that doesn't mean it isn't full Maltese and otherwise perfectly healthy. Andy being 12lbs never had joint problems and was healthy all his life until the very last month. So I believe he was bred very well, tempermant and physically.


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## Cosy

I think more often than not dogs over 13 pounds are mixed (usually with bichon). It's not uncommon at all.
It's a mill thing (and even some byb's do it). It doesn't have anything to do with loving them. I thought it was just a question regarding size and possible mix. After all these years I have yet to see a maltese that was 13 (or more) pounds (purebred and not fat) so I'm going on what I see and have heard from other breeders. I do believe you can have a 7 or 8 pound maltese and chunk them up enough to maybe reach that weight. Of course, it's not healthy.


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## Tina

Just because a dog is on the bigger side of the scale dosen't make them mix breed. A lot of the over seas dogs are bigger. A lot of US breeders sell their bigger dogs to over seas breeders. I've personally not had a dog of my own go over 9 lbs, but I have seen purebred Maltese be bigger. It all has to do with genetics, like everyone is saying. In an outcrossed litter between my very first Maltese I could get a 2 to 3lbs puppy and an 8 lbs puppy. My Nikki's dad was Ch Al-Mar's Bob Bob A Loo. My understanding was he was quite large at around 9lbs. His mom, and I saw her, was barely 5lbs. He (Nikki) has big and small Maltese behind him, so he throws both depending on the girl he was bred to. He is retired now. The largest that Nikki has thrown is 9lbs. Simon. Simon is the spitting image of his Grandfather. I've seen pictures of Nikki's dad but never saw him. 
Come to the Maltese National Specialty and attend the seminar on ABC's Of Breeding Dogs, by Claudia Orlandi on May 7th. She teaches the basics on genetics.


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## sheila's malt

My sugar is at 9lbs. bigger if i don't watch the diet but i can asureyou that she is full malt. I am not sure i would want such a small dog, as i have read they have alot more health problems. As long as you give them love, honestly who cares what they weigh.? She also has a baby doll face and one of the prettiest malts i have seen. I would show you a pic if i could figure out how to do it. (lol)


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## Delilahs Mommy

I am sure he is Maltese, but I am just saying that I have never seen a 13+ maltese, unless it was mixed. Another thing was the litter size- 6 babies. Even the local BYB, says most of her litters are 3-4 pups and she has 7-10 lb Maltese and the ones that are a little over 10 lbs are a tad overweight. But I know, without testing DNA or unless it's obvious, you can't say 100%. 

My gripe is that I dislike greeders who pass of their dogs as full blooded Maltese and know they have another breed mixed in. Then sell to people who don't know any better. Like one lady I met, she bought and paid for a full blooded Maltese. And her words were "I got screwed". While you could tell he had Maltese in him, you could also tell, he had Bichon. Face/tail looked all Maltese, body size/weight (he was 14 lbs) and the curly/wavy hair said otherwise.


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## CloudClan

Tina said:


> *Come to the Maltese National Specialty and attend the seminar on ABC's Of Breeding Dogs, by Claudia Orlandi on May 7th. She teaches the basics on genetics.*


Good advice. I plan to be there for sure. I have read most of her book now. I still have a couple of chapters to complete. 

I know that some people will figure this is just for the breeders, but really she explains genetics so well in her book and I think it would be truly helpful for anyone who wants to understand what breeders are trying to do. It also might dispel some myths that seem to float around about how only BYB or Mill dogs have health issues or larger size. The fact is that good breeders try their best, but it is not like baking a cake. 



sheila's malt said:


> My sugar is at 9lbs. bigger if i don't watch the diet but i can asureyou that she is full malt. I am not sure i would want such a small dog, as i have read they have alot more health problems. As long as you give them love, honestly who cares what they weigh.? She also has a baby doll face and one of the prettiest malts i have seen. I would show you a pic if i could figure out how to do it. (lol)


I'd love to see a picture of your baby. My first Maltese was also big, but beautiful. 

I would say it isn't necessarily true that the little ones are more prone to health issues. It is just that the greeders who try to breed for tiny tend to be more focused on that than health and so you end up with not so vigorous results. Also, one of my vets once told me that anything under 5 pounds becomes harder to treat with many of the common medications on the market (yes even compounded) because so often they are designed for something much larger. 



Delilahs Mommy said:


> I am sure he is Maltese, but I am just saying that I have never seen a 13+ maltese, unless it was mixed. Another thing was the litter size- 6 babies. Even the local BYB, says most of her litters are 3-4 pups and she has 7-10 lb Maltese and the ones that are a little over 10 lbs are a tad overweight. But I know, without testing DNA or unless it's obvious, you can't say 100%.
> 
> My gripe is that I dislike greeders who pass of their dogs as full blooded Maltese and know they have another breed mixed in. Then sell to people who don't know any better. Like one lady I met, she bought and paid for a full blooded Maltese. And her words were "I got screwed". While you could tell he had Maltese in him, you could also tell, he had Bichon. Face/tail looked all Maltese, body size/weight (he was 14 lbs) and the curly/wavy hair said otherwise.


I honestly think it is a terrible thing to say she "got screwed." :angry:

Yes, there are breeders out there who are passing themselves off as breeding purebreds, when they have done little research or have little understanding of what they are doing. BUT I think that she has to blame herself just as much for not doing her own research. 

Plus, saying she "got screwed" is a very derogatory way of looking at a pet who only deserves her love and affection. It certainly is not the dog's fault that people have such expectations.


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## I found nemo

CloudClan said:


> Good advice. I plan to be there for sure. I have read most of her book now. I still have a couple of chapters to complete.
> 
> I know that some people will figure this is just for the breeders, but really she explains genetics so well in her book and I think it would be truly helpful for anyone who wants to understand what breeders are trying to do. It also might dispel some myths that seem to float around about how only BYB or Mill dogs have health issues or larger size. The fact is that good breeders try their best, but it is not like baking a cake.
> 
> 
> 
> I'd love to see a picture of your baby. My first Maltese was also big, but beautiful.
> 
> I would say it isn't necessarily true that the little ones are more prone to health issues. It is just that the greeders who try to breed for tiny tend to be more focused on that than health and so you end up with not so vigorous results. Also, one of my vets once told me that anything under 5 pounds becomes harder to treat with many of the common medications on the market (yes even compounded) because so often they are designed for something much larger.
> 
> 
> 
> I honestly think it is a terrible thing to say she "got screwed." :angry:
> 
> Yes, there are breeders out there who are passing themselves off as breeding purebreds, when they have done little research or have little understanding of what they are doing. BUT I think that she has to blame herself just as much for not doing her own research.
> 
> Plus, saying she "got screwed" is a very derogatory way of looking at a pet who only deserves her love and affection. It certainly is not the dog's fault that people have such expectations.


:thumbsup:


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## marleymaltese

Hy!
My puppy is 8 month old, he is 25cm high but he is 5,4kg :huh:
isnt he too young for a diet?
sorry for my bad english :blush:


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## iheartbisou

marleymaltese said:


> Hy!
> My puppy is 8 month old, he is 25cm high but he is 5,4kg :huh:
> isnt he too young for a diet?
> sorry for my bad english :blush:



What are you feeding him? How many times a day?

I don't think puppies should be on diets, assuming that you are feeding him correctly. 

By the way, 5.4kgs=11.9 lbs. Is he a Maltese, mixed or another breed?


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## marleymaltese

I feeding him 2 times a day, with Hills, about two months.Earlier, he ate three or four meals ( and between meals often gets treats - cheese,yogurt, apple,dog biscuits )
He has no pedigree - but he is maltese( has all the charasteristics according to standard - except weight):blush:


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