how long does it take?

[whaleyf]

On the average how long does it take for one of these sweet babies to grow out to a full coat? And when does the puppy coat shed?

[Morkie4]

I would think that it would depend on how long of a coat you are starting out with. Also how tall they are. Buffy is short to the ground so it won't take nearly as long to get floor length as it does Brandy because she is a tall gal (way over standard). Buffy's hair to the floor is 11-12 inches; Kallie's coat to the floor is about 14 inches. But to guessamate, I figure at leasta 8-12 months to grow out the coat. The puppy coat??? Well, I've not had a puppy for a very long time and NEVER had a maltese puppy so I can't answer that question. Perhaps one of the other puppy owners will be able to tell you the naswer. :)

[whaleyf]

From her picture it looks like she has a good start. I don't have her yet. I get her on Wednesday and have only seen a picture of her (my avatar). I see she has a little touch of blond? in places but even though she has papers I doubt if I'm going to show her. I don't know anything about that part of the dog world except for what I see on TV.

[Morkie4]

From her picture it looks like she has a good start. I don't have her yet. I get her on Wednesday and have only seen a picture of her (my avatar). I see she has a little touch of blond? in places but even though she has papers I doubt if I'm going to show her. I don't know anything about that part of the dog world except for what I see on TV.

I only have one that has the touch of blond and it is on her back and very noticeable because she is in full coat and so the blond goes all the way to the floor but I love her just the same. I love the maltese breed but doubt very seriously that I would ever go into the show world. I just love having them as part of my family...... FOR EVER!!! :)

[whaleyf]

I enjoy dog shows but never really felt the need to show a dog. My Boston was show quality but we wanted her to just be family and not in show busness. However... that doesn't mean I won't enter my dogs into contest at the local dog shows in the park where all dogs and mutts can come. Those are so much fun. The costume contest are the most fun seeing the owners and dogs dressed up as a set. LOL I have very white hair so there ya go. LOL

[Nikki's Mom]

The puppy coat starts to change around 8 or 9 months. The lemon color is very common in Maltese puppies and it can fade or completely disappear by the time they are a year or two old. :)

My two boys have always been kept in puppy cuts so I can't offer any info on how long it took us for a full coat!! :awink:

[JiJi's Mom]

I agree with Lori about the blonde spots. My girl had a few and they went away.

[angeleyes]

My Sammy is 9 months and still has a little tan on his ears but it is fading. His coat is getting quite long and is almost to the floor. It is still his puppy coat. He will be losing that coat little by little between now and a year old. I have been debating about doing a puppy cut but I really want to see his adult coat first. It is a lot of work combing all the time but I enjoy it. He just lays on my lap and I brush and comb. Always use something on their coat before you comb. I use Cowboy magic to help detangle and keep static away. The other thing about the long coat is if you want to dress them up, you're going to deal with mats. Especially little girls are fun to put in dresses and bows.
Lots of good books available at Petco or maybe Pet Smart with puppy tips.

[whaleyf]

Cowboy Magic is now on my list. I plan on combing her every day while on my lap so she gets use to it. It should be a special bonding time. I'm leaning towards the name Abbie. Providing it fits her personality.

[3maltese4me]

Like Carol said it really depends on how tall they are and also what type of coat they have on when the coat may hit the floor and sometimes it may never hit the floor because of breakage. It took Riley less then a year to get his coat to the floor he was a rescue and completely shaved down so we literally started from scratch. My little girl Noelle has very long legs and a cottony coat so her's never made it down to the floor because of her coat. When the pup hits about 8 or 9 months old is when the coat starts to change, you'll notice more matting no matter how much you comb her out (when combing make sure you comb to the skin and not just the top layer of the coat) also more frequent baths will also help maybe every 3 days until the coat is done transitioning, a clean coat equals less matting a dirty coat equals more matts.

The lemon color is ok, my Chloe had lemon on her ears and my Noelle has a lemon mark on her back. It may or may not grow out.

[whaleyf]

It looks like she has lemon on one ear and on her chin. Okay by me. I have a schnoodle. I'll never forget trying to grow out his coat and then his puppy fur decided to shed. I would brush him getting every single matt out and he'd get off my lap, shake and have matts all over himself again. That fast. I finally gave up and took him to the groomer for a good bath and comb out. Of course with a schnoodle you don't have to worry about hair brakage. They did such a good job and I don't know what type of cream rinse they used but he didn't get another matt for a month. Right now he's down to his summer cut. But the poodle part is growing out. Looks like a schnozer with a perm. I'm starting to lean towards keeping her in a puppy cut, at least until the puppy fur falls out. She looks so cute that way anyway. And then she can just get use to being combed without all the hassle. But I do love the look of a full coat. Decisions decisions.

[angeleyes]

You are just about where I am with the decisions. Sammy's coat is long and I brush him all out so nice and put his top knot in, then he heads for the couch and a blanket to rub in and roll over in and in less than a minute all my work is undone. Of course his sister, my morkie Belle does'nt help, they both think top knot are handles to drag each other around with:mad: Many days that puppy cut looks better all the time.