# Standard Frame Size



## ZoeGirl's Mommy (Feb 8, 2006)

I adopted A 2 yr. old maltese 10 weeks ago. She came from a show breeder who had kept her as her own pet because she was too small to show or breed. She weighs just under 3 lb.(2.13). I had her at the vet last week & a lady who is the office manager there told me that she breeds maltese & that hers average between 7 & 9 lbs. & that Zoe( my maltese) is as tall & long & has as big a frame as hers do??? This really worried me because surely that can't be good. Does anyone have any knowledge on this?? The breeder lives thousands of miles from me & I have emailed her with questions & concerns so much that I really woul rather not this time. I have replied to a post about various weight at certain ages but can anyone give me an idea as to overall dimensions??


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## Bonnie's Mommie (Mar 2, 2006)

What does your vet say? If I'm reading your post correctly, the office manager is telling you that her 7 & 9 pound Maltese are as tall/long as Zoe? That makes it sounds as if Zoe is grossly underweight. Again, I would go with what your vet says. If she's healthy and happy and eating properly, that's all that counts.


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## charmypoo (Sep 11, 2004)

My Maltese who are around 3 lbs are around 7 to 8 inches long and tall.


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## LMJ (Feb 16, 2006)

I don't know if this will help you, but Jeffery is 10-11 pounds. He is 12 inches tall and about 13-14 inches long from neck to butt. I agree that if the office lady's pups are the same size as your at 7 pounds, then it makes yours seem very very skinny. I'd go by what your vets thinks is a healthy weight for your puppy's size and don't pay too much mind to what she said.


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## MissMelanie (Feb 13, 2006)

My Bella is almost 9 inches tall from floor to top of back and from neck to tail is almost 11 inches. She weights 4.10. Many times when I look at her I feel she looks a bit long but she is GREAT so, so what.









Hope you find the answers you need.

enJOY!
Melanie


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## Kisses-4-Princess (Dec 4, 2005)

I just measured princess and she is 7 inches in height and lenght ( is that okay that she is the same in height and lenght?) She weights about 2.5 lbs right now.


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## Cosy (Feb 9, 2006)

Cosy is 3 lbs and just 6 inches long and tall. LOL She's rather pudgy.


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## abbey (Apr 4, 2005)

How long & tall is Zoe? I would think she is probably the size Abbey was around 6 or 7 months!  Abbey is 15 months old & weighs 4 lbs. (at least by my scale - vet still has her weighing 3 lbs 12 oz). Abbey is 8" tall & 10 1/4" long. 
It's probably very hard for this lady to really tell without seeing your maltese beside hers. I never realize how small Abbey is until she's at the vets or the groomer's when there's other bigger dogs to compare her to!


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## k/c mom (Oct 9, 2004)

> I just measured princess and she is 7 inches in height and lenght ( is that okay that she is the same in height and lenght?) She weights about 2.5 lbs right now.[/B]


I believe I am correct in stating that it is the Maltese standard to be the same height as length.


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## Deanna (Jan 14, 2005)

I think without having them side by side it's hard to really say if your dog and her's are the same size. 

As long as she is healthy, and not underweight then I wouldn't worry about it.


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## kodie (Aug 24, 2004)

> As long as she is healthy, and not underweight then I wouldn't worry about it.[/B]


I agree... as long as your pup is not underweight... she should be fine. I believe kodie is 3.5lbs 8" long... I have to check on the height measurement...


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## ZoeGirl's Mommy (Feb 8, 2006)

> What does your vet say? If I'm reading your post correctly, the office manager is telling you that her 7 & 9 pound Maltese are as tall/long as Zoe? That makes it sounds as if Zoe is grossly underweight. Again, I would go with what your vet says. If she's healthy and happy and eating properly, that's all that counts.[/B]


I wasn't able to ask the vet about it, I had already paid & was on my way out when the office manager told me this. but I thought exactly what you did, that she must be very underweight and/or unhealthy. When she said this I asked her if I needed to feed her more than the 1/4 cup of Eukanuba that the breeder instructed me to do & she said maybe?? I can't help but worry, she is such an angel & the light of my life, I want to take good care of her & make sure she is healthy. I do feed her Denta-Biscuits as treats & to help keep her teeth & gums clean. Should I be supplementing with anything else?



> How long & tall is Zoe? I would think she is probably the size Abbey was around 6 or 7 months!
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Im not sure. I am going to measure her this afternoon & will let you know. Im thinking maybe 8 or 9 inches tall from floor to top of back & 8 or 9 long from neck to the rear ( where the tail starts). She looks to be very square. Ill let you know tonight. thanks so much for the replies!!


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## Deanna (Jan 14, 2005)

It sounds like a 1/4 cup a day would be right for her weight. Wilson is almost 8lbs and I feed him 1/2 a cup a day. If your vet thought she was underweight the vet would have said something to you during the exam. 

One other thing I wanted to mention; When Wilson's hair is long he looks so big, but as soon as he gets a puppy cut he looks so tiny and fragile, it's hard to believe that he is the same dog. In fact with hair he wears a MEDIUM in sweaters and shirts, with a puppy cut he wears a SMALL! So if her hair is a bit longer, she might appear to be bigger than she really is.

If you can, post a picture of her- that will help.


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## HollyHobbie (Apr 12, 2005)

Noel will be 6 months old tomorrow....she weighs 2.7 pounds...I just measured her and she did not think it was much fun...so they are not exact but she was 8 inches long and tall.

Noel will be 6 months old tomorrow....she weighs 2.7 pounds...I just measured her and she did not think it was much fun...so they are not exact but she was 8 inches long and tall.


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## charmypoo (Sep 11, 2004)

> I just measured princess and she is 7 inches in height and lenght ( is that okay that she is the same in height and lenght?) She weights about 2.5 lbs right now.[/B]


I like square Maltese







That's my preference.


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

As K&C's Mom said, the standard calls for them to be "square". They should measure the same from the base of the neck (withers) to the floor as they do from the withers to the base of the tail.


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## carrie (Aug 24, 2004)

Massimo is 9" x 9".


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## MaryH (Mar 7, 2006)

> a lady who is the office manager there told me that she breeds maltese & that hers average between 7 & 9 lbs. & that Zoe( my maltese) is as tall & long & has as big a frame as hers do??? This really worried me because surely that can't be good.[/B]


I would wonder how knowledgeable the office manager is about the Maltese standard if she is breeding dogs that average between 7 and 9 lbs. Without having one of her dogs standing side by side with your dog I think it would be really difficult to say that they are similar in height, length and bone density.

As for height and length, in 1998 the American Maltese Association published "The Illustrated Guide To The Maltese Standard." As it states in the preface: "This publication was produced by the American Maltese Association, Inc. for the sole purpose of creating a better understanding and knowledge of the Breed Standard for the Maltese. It should be used by breeders, exhibitors, judges, and novices to gain a greater insight and appreciation of our breed."

The standard for BODY is:
"Compact, the height from the withers to the ground equaling the length from the withers to the root of the tail....."

The Clarification is:
"The Maltese appearance should be compact. In other words, a lot in a little space. Balance is achieved by the distance of the withers to the ground equaling the length of the withers to the root of the tail, which creates the illusion of the Maltese being much shorter in body than he truly is. The proportions should produce an off-square or slightly rectangular outline....."

The illustration that goes along with the clarification shows the measurements to be from the withers to the floor and from that same point of the withers along the back to the root of the tail. The root of the tail is where it starts along the backbone, not the back end of the tail.


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## Littlemans Mom (Apr 6, 2005)

I don't know if this will help you but Indy is just under 4 lbs. He is 3.8 lbs and he is 9 inches tall and 9 inches long. Our Vet is happy with his weight, for his size, frame, bone structure and so on. I asked him if Indy still needed to put on weight and he said a little more would be ok, but not much at this point or he would be worried about him being overweight for his size. From what she said I am not convinced that the office manager knows as much about Maltese as she wants you to think she does, but that is JMHO. 

Edited to add: As others have said talk to your Vet and see what he or she says. The Vet is the one to give you the best advice on your little ones weight etc. You can also give the Vet a call and talk about your concerns. I really think your Vet would have told you if there were any problems during your visit. From what I understand from your post , the visit with the Vet was done and on your way out the office manager talked to you about your little ones size. I would not let what she said bother me if the Vet did not say anything was wrong


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## Ellas Proud Mommy (Mar 4, 2006)

Definitly listen to what your vet says. Don't get worried just yet!


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## Cosy (Feb 9, 2006)

Toy is about 4 1/2 lbs but thin. It's not that she doesn't eat. She's just one of those slender dogs with not a lot of rib spring. She eats to live, not lives to eat (like Me!) lol Anyway, so she weighs less that another dog might the same size. I bet your dog may be like this too. Your vet would tell you if she were too thin or lacking something.


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## ZoeGirl's Mommy (Feb 8, 2006)

Thank all of you so much for your words of reassurance & for your wisdom. I measured my ZoeGirl over the weekend & she is 8 " tall & 8" long and from what I have read here that is close to the average & the standard? It seems as if she might be a little lanky but she is very petite and has very fine/fragile bones. I too am wondering about this "breeder" office manager?? I need to tell her about this website!!


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## MissMelanie (Feb 13, 2006)

> I don't know if this will help you but Indy is just under 4 lbs. He is 3.8 lbs and he is 9 inches tall and 9 inches long. Our Vet is happy with his weight, for his size, frame, bone structure and so on. I asked him if Indy still needed to put on weight and he said a little more would be ok, but not much at this point or he would be worried about him being overweight for his size. From what she said I am not convinced that the office manager knows as much about Maltese as she wants you to think she does, but that is JMHO.
> 
> Edited to add: As others have said talk to your Vet and see what he or she says. The Vet is the one to give you the best advice on your little ones weight etc. You can also give the Vet a call and talk about your concerns. I really think your Vet would have told you if there were any problems during your visit. From what I understand from your post , the visit with the Vet was done and on your way out the office manager talked to you about your little ones size. I would not let what she said bother me if the Vet did not say anything was wrong
> 
> ...


My daughter's Sir Micro is 9 x 9 also and weights 4.10 sometimes and 4.5 sometimes. And Sara (my daughter) calls him "my little man". hehehe

enJOY!
Melanie


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## Littlemans Mom (Apr 6, 2005)

> > index.php?act=findpost&pid=168863
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AAAaawwwww, that is so cute







They seem to act like they don't know they are little







That is part of what makes them so darn cute


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## MissMelanie (Feb 13, 2006)

> My daughter's Sir Micro is 9 x 9 also and weights 4.10 sometimes and 4.5 sometimes. And Sara (my daughter) calls him "my little man". hehehe
> 
> enJOY!
> Melanie




AAAaawwwww, that is so cute







They seem to act like they don't know they are little







That is part of what makes them so darn cute







[/QUOTE] 

You are so correct! Both Sir Micro AKA Little Man and Bella Mia have NO idea they are little. Bella has the BIGGEST bark possible and Sir Micro fears no other dog.









Hope your Little Man is doing great!

enJOY,
Melanie


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## barb (Apr 3, 2006)

Maybe her dogs are overweight, or they are more muscular. Maybe their fur is more dense. Or a combination of all.


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## Cosy (Feb 9, 2006)

If your maltese is slight of bone that would account for her weighing less than another maltese
of the same size.


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