Maltese Dog Breed Purpose

The maltese temperament still reflects this role today.

Maltese dog breed purpose. Early writers attribute its origin to melita however there were two islands named melita at that time with one being in the mediterranean and the other being in the adriatic sea near dalmatia which. The american kennel club is the largest. The maltese has remained a dog breed of distinction highly esteemed and quite sought after. Toy or companion dogs size.

Maltese was kept as a family companion and as a symbol of a fashion statement in its city malta. The maltese is known as the oldest of all dog breeds and the oldest of european toy breeds. This breed became popular among upper class ladies in england in the 1300s. They were crossbred with other small dogs to revive the breed and this.

Charles darwin dated their breed origin to some 6000 years ago and certainly there are pictures of them on vases and references to them in literature dating from the greek and roman eras over 2000 years ago. Although no one can be 100 percent sure where it came from originally most believe the maltese come from the island of malta in the mediterranean sea hence its name. Companion comforter classification akc according to function. In fact charles darwin placed this breed as far back as 6000 b c.

They have always been primarily bred as lap dogs and companions rather than as working dogs. Maltese dog breed history health characteristics history of maltese dog. The maltese is a toy dog covered from head to foot with a mantle of long silky white hair. Maltese is an ancient dog breed whose exact origin is not confirmed but it is believed that they are from malta a tiny island south of sicily italy.

History and original purpose of the maltese this is an ancient breed whose history is thought to go back thousands of years. References to the dog can also be found in ancient greek and roman literature. Attempts to breed even smaller maltese in the 17th and 18th centuries resulted in tiny dogs the size of squirrels but this effort almost wiped them out. Aristotle mentions the dog around 370 bc.

The maltese dog was a lapdog favoured by both the ancient greeks and romans especially their children and appears on amphorae with the word μελιταιε melitaie. They were on the verge of extinction but chinese breeder kept on protecting them after that. They were possibly brought by phoenicians and was spread around by them.