# Poodle Head



## Chalex (Feb 19, 2010)

I brought Preston back to the groomer to cut off his top knot. His hair grows towards his face and it was impossible to keep it out of his eyes. She started saying "oh my" and other strange comments as she was clipping his head. Eventually she told me she has never in all her years of grooming seen a maltese with such a round head. She said he has the head of a poodle, not a maltese. (I covered his ears). If I cup the top of his head with my hand it does feel like a knee cap. Is this normal? The ears start right at the base of the "knee cap."


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## nekkidfish (Aug 25, 2009)

Sorry, I tried feeling Poppy's head to maybe compare, but he won't stand still. :blush:

Hopefully someone who knows more about this will chime in.

HUGz! Jules


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

Can you take a photo of him after his haircut? It might be easier to see the structure of his head to help you determine if it's conforms to the Maltese standard or not. My guess is that it's normal and the groomer didn't know what she was talking about. I've found in my own experience that 99% of the things groomers say about dogs are completely innaccurate (although I know some really ARE knowledgeable).


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## Chalex (Feb 19, 2010)

I'll try to get some pictures today. It's bath day so I can take a picture of him wet as well as dry. After his haircut he looks like a shih tzu. I asked my daughter if she thought so and she admitted she was thinking the same thng but didn't want to say that about my baby. I think this has more to do with the direction his hair grows (in face) and it might be too long over his eyes. I don't know and I don't want to mess with it without clear instructions.


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## bellaratamaltese (May 24, 2006)

Where did you get Preston? If you got him from a show breeder, chances are he's fine and is just a variation of the standard. I have several different head styles here and I agree with Lisa that the groomer probably doesn't really know maltese


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## roxybaby22 (Feb 25, 2009)

bellaratamaltese said:


> Where did you get Preston? If you got him from a show breeder, chances are he's fine and is just a variation of the standard. I have several different head styles here and I agree with Lisa that the groomer probably doesn't really know maltese


Stacy, I think I remember her saying she got Preston from Diamond Maltese! :thumbsup:


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## theboyz (Jan 10, 2007)

If you have any concerns ask your Vet and never a groomer!!!
Can't wait to see a pic of your little one.


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## bellaratamaltese (May 24, 2006)

roxybaby22 said:


> Stacy, I think I remember her saying she got Preston from Diamond Maltese! :thumbsup:


Oh well, in that case, I wouldn't listen to the groomer, LOL.


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## Chalex (Feb 19, 2010)

Yes, he's from Diamond Maltese. I took some pictures of his head during his bath today, which I will attempt to post. I know he's from a great breeder but with his new short hair cut he's not looking very maltese. I'll post pictures. Hopefully I can get advice on a new hair cut, since I can't change the shape of his head!


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## momtoboo (Jan 30, 2006)

I'd guess it's just the groomer/haircut,not the Maltese. I've had groomers do such a bad job with a haircut,that my 2 looked like a different breed. That's why I learned to do it myself & no longer rely on groomers.


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

Chalex said:


> Yes, he's from Diamond Maltese. I took some pictures of his head during his bath today, which I will attempt to post. I know he's from a great breeder but with his new short hair cut he's not looking very maltese. I'll post pictures. Hopefully I can get advice on a new hair cut, since I can't change the shape of his head!


I can almost guarantee you he has a correct head that fits the Maltese standard based on his breeder. A photo will still be helpful, though, for extra-assurance.  Plus, I want to see how cute he is!! :wub: Sometimes groomers cut the hair in an odd style and in time you will figure out exactly what style you think looks best on him.


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## Chalex (Feb 19, 2010)

During and after his bath.


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## bellaratamaltese (May 24, 2006)

his head is fine and I think he looks darling with his haircut! Looks like a malt to me, not a poodle or shih tzu. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with his head shape so don't worry about it! Chances are, your groomer doesn't see many properly bred maltese


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## ilovemymaltese (Oct 9, 2008)

Gigi's head looks like his then...


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## pinkpixie1588 (Oct 12, 2009)

i guess leila has a 'kneecap head', too!


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## momtoboo (Jan 30, 2006)

Looks fine to me. Cute cut too,much better than some of the groomers I've used.lol He's a cutiepie.


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## Chalex (Feb 19, 2010)

I guess Gigi, Leila and Preston have kneecap heads to house their large brains. I notice Leila and Gigi have their hair pulled up. I just wish I could see Preston's eyes a little more. He was adorable with his hair up but little hairs kept poking his eyes and I didn't think he should go through puppyhood without seeing.


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## roxybaby22 (Feb 25, 2009)

He looks fine... actually, I really like his cut! :wub:


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## silverhaven (Sep 6, 2009)

Too funny :HistericalSmiley: Lola has a kneecap head also. We were kind of surprised when we got her how round it felt at the top. Don't worry he is a real cutie


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## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

Preston looks absolutely perfect to me :wub::wub:Tyler's hair was poking him in the eyes and causing his tear staining, so I've had his visor and hairs around his eyes cut more the last grooming. His eyes are now free of gunk, bright and sparkling and tear stains cut by 80%-90% so far. Everyone now really notices his eyes. I think we're all happier.:thumbsup:


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## iheartbisou (Feb 13, 2007)

bellaratamaltese said:


> his head is fine and I think he looks darling with his haircut! Looks like a malt to me, not a poodle or shih tzu. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with his head shape so don't worry about it! Chances are, your groomer doesn't see many properly bred maltese


I fully agree here. 

Consider the source, as they say. I had one groomer once tell me that Maltese with a long coat won't ever mat, so it's not necessary to brush them everyday! :blink:


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## pinkpixie1588 (Oct 12, 2009)

shanghaimomma said:


> I fully agree here.
> 
> Consider the source, as they say. I had one groomer once tell me that *Maltese with a long coat won't ever mat, so it's not necessary to brush them everyday! *:blink:


:HistericalSmiley::HistericalSmiley::HistericalSmiley:I wish!!!


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## nekkidfish (Aug 25, 2009)

Chalex said:


> I guess Gigi, Leila and Preston have kneecap heads to house their large brains. I notice Leila and Gigi have their hair pulled up. I just wish I could see Preston's eyes a little more. He was adorable with his hair up but little hairs kept poking his eyes and I didn't think he should go through puppyhood without seeing.


You might find that you like trimming his visor a little more. I know I had the groomer trim Poppy's more than she had, because I wanted to be able to see his beautiful eyes.

I think your baby is beautiful!! Love his nose!! :wub:

HUGz! Jules


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## myfairlacy (Dec 28, 2007)

His head looks fine to me LOL I guess poodles typically have a narrower head than maltese don't they? Or maybe poodle heads just have a round appearance because of the way the head gets clipped on pet poodles typically? but anyway, your dog doesn't looks like a shih tzu or a poodle to me at all...he just has a shorter muzzle but nowhere near shih tzu short


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## mi_ku_5 (Jun 2, 2008)

I'd have to reread the standard but I don't think Poodles are supposed to have "round heads" anyway. Some toys do have rounder heads, big round eyes and short muzzles but that goes against the standard. Toy Poodles are supposed to look like scaled down versions of Standard Poodles. (The STP is the original size and the standard is the same for all three varieties.) Unless a groomer *or a vet*, has experience w/ nicely bred animals of a particular breed, they aren't qualified to critique your dog. Does this groomer do a lot of well bred dogs, does she show Poodles or Maltese herself? If not, ignore her comments about his "Poodle head." The majority of dogs that groomers see come from breeders who don't even know what a written standard is.










I don't show either breed myself but I am getting a Spoo sometime this year and have been doing tons of research on the breed. The dog above comes from the single most ethical breeder I know of and is very well bred. He is completely shaved down and his head doesn't look round to me.


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## Orla (Jul 5, 2009)

He looks perfect to me - very very cute malt you have!


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## Delilahs Mommy (Nov 22, 2009)

I guess Delilah has a knee cap head too. Cause that is exactly what her little head looks like. Tell the groomer then, there are a lot of poodle heads on SM! :HistericalSmiley:She's hasn't clue to watch she is saying Maybe she been grooming to many poodles, or to many poorly bred malteses with flat heads.:thumbsup:


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## Chalex (Feb 19, 2010)

I have a toy poodle and I had a standard for 10 years. They do have pretty flat heads under all that fluff so the whole "poodle head" thing doesn't make much sense. I'm not that familiar with the quality of dogs my groomer sees, but I did meet a maltese there recently and although he was a sweetheart he was huge and probably byb. 

Mi_Ku, enjoy your standard and make sure there is no Addison's Disease in the line. I got mine from a top breeder and she used a stud she wasn't familiar with. It's a horrible disease and way too prevalent in standards.


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## uniquelovdolce (Mar 10, 2010)

i think he looks perfect , love his cut , and dolce has the same type of head so the groomer didnt know what he was tlkng about .


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## almitra (Apr 24, 2009)

I couldn't agree more with these nice and knowledgeable ladies!


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## Katkoota (Feb 18, 2006)

Doesn't look like a poodle head to me. He sure is a cute malt 

Kat


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## EmmasMommy (Jun 2, 2008)

In my experience "groomers" see mostly dogs bred from BYB and PuppyMills and they are the last to be able to spout off a breeed standard. To really hear how your pup measures up take him to a maltese handler with lots of years of experience or a judge with years of maltese judging under his/her belt. No dog is perfection.

Your Preston is an awesome looking Maltese probably one of the best bred ones that that groomer has ever seen/handled.

Actually Mr Tran ( Diamond Maltese) should be able to tell you what he percieved as Preston's weakness.
If he sold him as a pet quality he must have (in his opinion) decided not to keep him to breed him or show him. Sometimes its 1 mal-aligned tooth!

I know my Mimi's weakness is she could have a bigger eyes and more haloing. Of course she has lots of other great things that are right on the standard and enough to hold her own in the ring ( at least so far).

My Twinkle, although she really has many highly desired traits , will never be big enough to safely be bred and she had a history of hypoglycemia ( which he didn't want to keep breeding in his breeding program)

Visit a dog show and talk to the Maltese people ( after they are in the ring) There are many variations on even Maltese Champions each with their very own ingredients that got them to 15 points. The more I see the more my eyes and mind are openned.

Parts of every Breed standard are objective ( height, weight, colors, etc) and some parts are subjective ( "sweet expression", "jaunty gait", etc) so each judge sees what he or she sees.

Relax and enjoy your gorgeous boy and know that most likely he will be a healthy happy boy with a long life and a delightful disposition.


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## Chalex (Feb 19, 2010)

Thanks Cat. I am enjoying my gorgeous boy soooo much! It's been so long since I had a puppy and he's just so cute I could sit around and stare at him all day. (I pretty much do). On the papers he sent Mr. Tran said undescended testicle and slight overbite. It's funny you said that about Mimi's eyes because that's the only "weakness" that I notice with Preston too. His eyes aren't that round or big and no halos. That said I swear his eyes are looking bigger and rounder as he's getting a tiny bit older, if that makes any sense. I'll stick to the groomer for a good haircut and ignore her poodle head comments in the future.

Cathy


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