Maltese

Gentle and playful, bold for its size and ready to bark.
A Maltese
Photo: Kevin Poh
Adult weight
3–4 kg
6.6–8.8 lb
Lifespan
13.1 yrs
Handler demand
Suits a first-time owner
Class · Lap dog
also Companion

What it's like

In temperament the Maltese is gentle and affectionate, lively and playful, and quick to respond to its people. It is alert and bold for its size, often ready to bark at strangers, and tends to stay close to its household.

Owners in a large survey found Maltese dogs tend to be more independent-minded than dogs in general. On friendliness with people, calmness and friendliness with other dogs, they were about average. Breed is only a small part of any one dog's personality, so meet the dog before you decide.
Day to day
Activity
Happy with modest walks
Intelligence
Learns readily, likes games
Handler demand
Suits a first-time owner
With people
Affection
A lap or leaning dog
Loyalty
Sticks close to its people
Independence
Cooperative, with its own ideas
Around the home
Sensitivity
Needs a calm, predictable home
Voice
Barks to alert, then settles
Prey drive
Usually fine with small pets
Breed explains only about 9% of how individual dogs differ in behaviour1. Meet the dog. A good breeder breeds for temperament as well as health, and matches each puppy's personality to the right home2,3.
Is a Maltese right for you?
Take the breed matcher

Living with one

It has a long coat. It sheds through the year rather than in big seasonal moults. Plan on daily brushing. It needs a modest amount of exercise compared with other breeds.

Size and growth

A Maltese is a toy dog, heavier than a Chihuahua and lighter than a Yorkshire Terrier.

It is a small, compact dog covered by a long, straight, silky white coat. The coat is parted down the spine and, when presented for show, falls to the ground. There is no undercoat. Dark eyes, a black nose and dark eye rims stand out against the white, and the plumed tail curves over the back.

Two types

The growth curve, the weight table and the size class on this page use the UK / FCI type's weights.

UK / FCI type

FCI 65
Adult weight
Males
3–4 kg
Females
3–4 kg4
Its weights are the ones used on this page.

American type

AKC standard
Adult weight
Males
1.8–2.7 kg
Females
1.8–2.7 kg5
Its weights are not the ones this page uses.

Puppy growth

Reference curve · community data appears as owners log
By about 5 months, a male Maltese puppy is already as heavy as a grown Chihuahua. They grow fastest between 3 and 4 months old.
Fully grown
10 mo
Both sexes, at 99% of adult weight7
Male
Female
Shaded: expected range
012342m4m6m9m12m18m
012342m3m4m6m9m12m18m
Age
Male
Female
2 months
1.0–1.3 kg 2.2–2.9 lb
1.1–1.4 kg 2.4–3.1 lb
3 months
1.2–1.6 kg 2.6–3.5 lb
1.3–1.7 kg 2.9–3.7 lb
4 months
1.6–2.1 kg 3.5–4.6 lb
1.7–2.2 kg 3.7–4.9 lb
5 months
1.9–2.5 kg 4.2–5.5 lb
1.9–2.5 kg 4.2–5.5 lb
6 months
2.1–2.8 kg 4.6–6.2 lb
2.1–2.8 kg 4.6–6.2 lb
7 months
2.3–3.1 kg 5.1–6.8 lb
2.3–3.0 kg 5.1–6.6 lb
8 months
2.4–3.2 kg 5.3–7.1 lb
2.4–3.2 kg 5.3–7.1 lb
9 months
2.5–3.4 kg 5.5–7.5 lb
2.5–3.3 kg 5.5–7.3 lb
10 months
2.6–3.5 kg 5.7–7.7 lb
2.6–3.4 kg 5.7–7.5 lb
11 months
2.7–3.6 kg 6.0–7.9 lb
2.6–3.5 kg 5.7–7.7 lb
12 months
2.7–3.6 kg 6.0–7.9 lb
2.7–3.6 kg 6.0–7.9 lb
15 months
2.9–3.8 kg 6.4–8.4 lb
2.8–3.8 kg 6.2–8.4 lb
18 months
3–4 kg 6.6–8.8 lb
2.9–3.9 kg 6.4–8.6 lb

Health and lifespan

In UK vet records, sudden-onset diarrhoea turns up more often in Maltese dogs than in crossbreeds: it is more likely. It is not rated serious. These are figures for the breed as a whole, not a prediction for your dog.
Listed by likelihood level, highest first, then by how serious it is, then by name.
  • Sudden-onset diarrhoea
    More likely
    Impact: minor

Lifespan

In UK vet records, the typical Maltese lived to about 13 years, about average for a toy breed.

Where it comes from

The Maltese descends from small ratters that worked the docks and ships' holds of central Mediterranean ports, and Roman matrons later kept it as a companion. Despite its name, its FCI standard holds that it does not come from Malta, deriving the word instead from a Semitic root meaning harbour or refuge4.

The Maltese kept its place as a lap dog long after Roman times. Small white dogs often linked to its type appear in the art and writing of ancient Greece and Rome, though how directly they relate to the modern breed is debated. By the Renaissance it was favoured in noble households across Italy and wider Europe. It is said to have reached England in the Tudor period. In the nineteenth century it was known by names such as the Maltese lion dog and Maltese terrier. The FCI lists Italy as the breed's country of patronage. The Maltese was bred for centuries mainly as a companion.

Breed standard

The American standard asks for a lighter dog than the UK and international ones.

Questions people ask

General guidance for dogs rather than a measured Maltese figure: most females have a first season somewhere between six and fifteen months, and cycles then settle to roughly every 180 days. Smaller breeds tend to start earlier and larger ones later, so a toy breed is most likely at the early end.

Compare with related

Bichon Frise
Companion & toy · Small
West Highland White Terrier
Terriers · Small
Shih Tzu
Companion & toy · Small
Havanese
Companion & toy · Toy
Or compare the Maltese with any breed you choose
Track your own Maltese
Log a minute a day and watch them sit on these curves. Free.

Sources

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Parts of this page were written by AI ·