Amy (my sister’s dog, but with me during the day) is a two- year-old maltese-poodle-mix. Three quarters maltese.
The good:
* Extremely trainable. She listens to every word. When we play fetch, she will be running on full speed, and can be stopped with a quiet word- instantly. She sits, lies down, leaves the toy when told, then goes to fetch it. She can twirl on command, heel, change sides, wave, come when called, and she is a star when doing Agility. All this may sound like boasting, but she just grasps new things in seconds. Very high attention level – think working sheepdog.
* She loves to play. In fact, that’s the only way training her has been successful. Treats are fine, but rarely get her excited. She wants and needs long walks or exercise with a flirt pole.
* She hardly sheds.
The bad:
* She’s timid. She has growled at a couple of people she considered to be threats. At the moment, she’s in training to get over this.
* She was ridiculously hard to housebreak and still has occasional accidents.
* To look good, she would need a weekly bath and daily combing.