# What kind of hair does she have?



## a2z (Aug 23, 2004)

Zoey has silky hair on her ears, face, tail and stomach, but cottony/silky type hair on her back (a guess). Now that she's 17 months old and all grown up (?!) I decided to let it grow out and maybe the weight would help get the waves out and it would hang nicely. Well, it's been 2 months and her hair is around 2" long now and she just looks puffy and it is really hard to get a comb through. Will it ever hang like a Maltese picture? And how much work is involved? I know I had a hard time getting it dry after her last bath and I have a hand-held dryer, which made it impossible to brush and dry at the same time. I'm just confused over the cotton-silky thing. How can I tell which Zoey has? 
Ann


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## Chelsey (Dec 17, 2004)

> _Originally posted by a2z_@Feb 11 2005, 12:28 PM
> *Zoey has silky hair on her ears, face, tail and stomach, but cottony/silky type hair on her back (a guess). Now that she's 17 months old and all grown up (?!) I decided to let it grow out and maybe the weight would help get the waves out and it would hang nicely. Well, it's been 2 months and her hair is around 2" long now and she just looks puffy and it is really hard to get a comb through. Will it ever hang like a Maltese picture? And how much work is involved? I know I had a hard time getting it dry after her last bath and I have a hand-held dryer, which made it impossible to brush and dry at the same time. I'm just confused over the cotton-silky thing. How can I tell which Zoey has?
> Ann
> <div align="right">index.php?act=findpost&pid=34788*


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I'm not sure myself, but I think silky looks wirey,shiny . the individual hair is stong.
and the Cotton one looks all feathery very light. the individual her is self is thin but the coat is this and feathery.

I think chelsey has cotton hair ,but latly i have seen some hairs on her that are like the first discrition.

My first maltese had cotton hair for two years and then it changed to silky.

I'm sure someone else could provide a better discription


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

> _Originally posted by a2z_@Feb 11 2005, 11:28 AM
> *Zoey has silky hair on her ears, face, tail and stomach, but cottony/silky type hair on her back (a guess). Now that she's 17 months old and all grown up (?!) I decided to let it grow out and maybe the weight would help get the waves out and it would hang nicely. Well, it's been 2 months and her hair is around 2" long now and she just looks puffy and it is really hard to get a comb through. Will it ever hang like a Maltese picture? And how much work is involved? I know I had a hard time getting it dry after her last bath and I have a hand-held dryer, which made it impossible to brush and dry at the same time. I'm just confused over the cotton-silky thing. How can I tell which Zoey has?
> Ann
> <div align="right">index.php?act=findpost&pid=34788*


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It sounds like Zoey may have a combination coat like my Lady has. Lady's body, face and ears are pretty silky, but her legs and chest hair is much more cottony. She will never have the proper spun silk coat, but I have found out out to keep her in a pretty decent length coat during the winter months.

First, get a groomers 3rd arm to hold your hair dryer. It clamps onto a grooming (or any) table so you can brush and dry at the same time. That is the only way you'll get the wave out of it, plus it really shortens the drying time. I use Pet Silk's Liquid Silk after Lady's bath while her coat is still wet to give it shine and gloss. I also swear by a little coconut oil on more cottony coats. I put a little on my palms and run my fingers through her coat. It slicks her coat down, conditions it and really helps prevent matting.

As far as difficulty getting a comb through it, those products should help. You also need a really good pin brush like an A#1 All Systems or a Chris Christensen brush and brush faithfully everyday. After you finish brushing, go trough Zoey's coat with a greyhound comb, using the widest teeth first, then the finest.

I find 2 inches is that puffy length on Lady, too. Her coat is about 5 inches now and actually has a part and it lying down nicely on her back finally. 

It gets too hot here in NorthCarolina to keep her coat long year round so I just enjoy how pretty she looks during the fall and winter. Once it gets hot, she gets a puppy cut. I keep her face, ears and tail long and she still keeps her topknot. Then it's just a swipe with a slicker brush and a daily topknot!!


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

Oh, and when you brush be sure and follow JMM's description in another thread about how to properly brush... brush the hair in the opposite direction and then start at the bottom row and start brushing it down... this probably makes no sense at all... Jackie did a much better job of explaining it. Before that info, I was brushing like brushing my hair... across the the body.... this new way gets out the mats better and is bound to be much less painful.....


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

There is excellent information about proper grooming technique, supplies, etc. on the Bhe Jei website.

http://www.bhejei.com/groom-basic.htm


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## doctorcathy (May 17, 2004)

ellie has silky and sprite has cottony. its soo hard to shave sprite when she has longer hair. it so fluffy and soft though. icant wait till i get sprites hair made into a scarf.


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## miko's mommy (Feb 8, 2005)

Ann,

Miko has almost exact problems with his hair. I haven't figured out any solutions to it yet, but I too was hoping growing it out would help. Miko also looks a lot like Zoey!!! ..I just don't have better pictures to post on this computer to show you. I was wondering which breeder did you get her from?


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

A silky coat is straight and cool to the touch. 

A cottony coat holds water well and is fluffier. 

Some dogs do have a combination or a silky but soft coat...there are a variety of textures from correct silk (which can be a thick or thin coat, really strong or fragile) through to a Bichon-like cotton. If you purchased your dog from a reputable show breeder, they should be able to give you advice with what product work best on the coats that their lines have. 

The coat has to be a few inches long (4-5) for it to lay nicely with a part.

Maintaining full coat on an incorrectly textured coat is usually a tough battle. The coat is of a texture that mats easily and does not lay nicely. You can do it, but it requires a lot of products to "fake" a good coat, frequent bathing, and excellent brushing technique. Once you start breaking hair, the dog tends to turn into a giant mat. 

Mikey has a silky but soft coat (fairly correct). His coat is rather thick. He requires brushing on a daily basis and weekly bathing. Using the appropriate products for his coat make all the difference. If I use a regular dog shampoo, his coat is a mess. So, some of it is trial and error, but a poor coat texture is going to make it much more challenging to maintain the coat.


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

Catcher's coat is extremely thick... really, too thick. The little guy has a ton of hair... it is less cottony than when he was very young (he's 9 months now).. it is turning in to fairly nice hair. About 3 weeks ago my groomer used the Bless the Beasts anti-tangle shampoo on them, the Bless the Beasts conditioner and Ice on Ice. I brush Catcher every night and use Ice on Ice and Liquid Silk and brush Kallie about once a week. Today they were groomed and the groomer said she didn't find one mat on either of them!!!


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

Lady's coat really doesn't mat if I brush it regularly and bathe her weekly so maybe it's not that bad of a coat afterall! The brush goes through it like butter on her body. Her chest is the worst - weird - almost like a Pom's coat. Or maybe it's just because I start with her back end when I'm drying her?

She is longer than she has ever been before and not only do I love the way it looks, I swear it is much easier to take care of than having to clip her every month! That takes hours!

I wish I could keep it longer year round since we've worked so hard on it since September, but she just gets too hot in the summer. I don't know if it's because of her metabolism/diabetes or because her coat is thick, but she pants and lies on the tile floor in the air conditoning!

She loves her puppy cut in the summer. Last year I even did her ears shorter than normal and she was adorable. It's the first cut of the season that's so upsetting!


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## Lilly521 (May 29, 2004)

Suuny has patches of silky and teh rest is cottony but he is only 8 months old and the patches of silky hair are spreading i think he is always gonna have afew cottony spots but his hair seems to be growing in into most places silky


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## lani (Sep 14, 2004)

Princess has a super silky hair.


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## puppylucy (Jan 8, 2005)

Forgive me for asking.. but how can you tell if a puppy has cottony or silky hair? =\


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## a2z (Aug 23, 2004)

> _Originally posted by okw_@Feb 11 2005, 11:46 AM
> *Ann,
> 
> Miko has almost exact problems with his hair.  I haven't figured out any solutions to it yet, but I too was hoping growing it out would help.  Miko also looks a lot like Zoey!!!  ..I just don't have better pictures to post on this computer to show you.  I was wondering which breeder did you get her from?
> <div align="right">index.php?act=findpost&pid=34845*


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I got her from Kelly's Maltese in northern california. They are on the internet so you can read about them: http://www.kellyco.com/maltese

Let me know if you find a solution to our problem!
Ann


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

> _Originally posted by a2z_@Feb 12 2005, 11:02 AM
> *I got her from Kelly's Maltese in northern california. They are on the internet so you can read about them:  http://www.kellyco.com/maltese
> 
> Let me know if you find a solution to our problem!
> Ann*


I went to the web site and WOW... what fabulous puppy pictures and videos!! If anyone loves looking at photos of Maltese (and who doesn't!!) you've gotta go to the site and look at the videos and the pages and pages of photos.... some shots of one-day-old babies all cuddled up together... sooooo cute!!!









Thanks, Ann, for the link. It is amazing how many wonderful breeders there are that are not well known or flashy but are excellent. I saw that Tonia from Rhapsody is the handler for several of their dogs.... a big WOW to Kelly's Maltese!


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

> _Originally posted by puppylucy_@Feb 12 2005, 10:20 AM
> *Forgive me for asking.. but how can you tell if a puppy has cottony or silky hair? =\
> <div align="right">index.php?act=findpost&pid=35008*


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I think of silky hair as being shiny and with some weight and strength to it. Kallie has silky hair on her ears and the hairs separate in to individual pieces easily and it has movement to it. Whereas Catcher's hair is more cottony; i.e, lightweight and doesn't separate or move... I hope this makes sense!! I wish I could think of a better example.... You might be able to even see it in my Avatar... I believe you can you see the difference between Kallie's and Catcher's hair in the small photo that switches out with their photos ??

On a puppy, silky hair will lay closer to the body whereas cottony hair will result in a fluffier look.


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## puppylucy (Jan 8, 2005)

> _Originally posted by Kallie/Catcher's Mom+Feb 13 2005, 07:10 PM-->
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I think of silky hair as being shiny and with some weight and strength to it. Kallie has silky hair on her ears and the hairs separate in to individual pieces easily and it has movement to it. Whereas Catcher's hair is more cottony; i.e, lightweight and doesn't separate or move... I hope this makes sense!! I wish I could think of a better example.... You might be able to even see it in my Avatar... I believe you can you see the difference between Kallie's and Catcher's hair in the small photo that switches out with their photos ??

On a puppy, silky hair will lay closer to the body whereas cottony hair will result in a fluffier look.
<div align="right">index.php?act=findpost&pid=35161
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hmm, thanks. I guess right now little Lucy's in between silky/cottony. I guess we'll see once she gets her adult color. 

And yes, I see the difference between Kallie and Catcher's hair.

Thanks so much, you're a godsend


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## charmypoo (Sep 11, 2004)

I have always been told that the worse hair is usually around the bum area. There are many Maltese with a nice silky coat but cottony at the bum area. This is how Cookie is. She has a great coat until around the bum. On the other hand, Sparkle has a perfect silk coat which my mentor was impressed with. However, her coat is thin and fragile which isn't great since it breaks easily as JMM mentioned. Nibbler has a thick silk coat.

I have seen photos and people with a cottony coat. I am glad I don't have one since they seem to be very hard to maintain and keep long.


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## FannyMay (Nov 18, 2004)

Fantasia has both too. She is 3 now so I know it's not her just growing from puppy hair to adult hair. Anyway her face, head, neck and upper body has soft silky hair and her middle back down to her but has cottony hair and it's a little crimpy too. Then her tail is silky again. It's strange but I don't care because I keep her in a short cut anyway.


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## a2z (Aug 23, 2004)

Thanks to all of you for your help. I have decided to let her hair grow, taking your advice about grooming, and try to keep the mats away, and see what happens. If she gets matted or funny looking later (hair still sticking up) I will just know that she is meant to be a short-haired doggy.
And still the most beautiful most loved best friend I have ever had!
Ann


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