Top Ten Maltese Terrier Rescue Mistakes
Before you move forward with your Maltese Terrier Rescue/Adoption, review the following top ten Maltese terrier rescue mistakes to avoid making a mistake of your own! View this as a checklist for your decision to rescue/adopt a Maltese terrier.
- Your children want a dog. Rescuing a Maltese terrier because your children want a pet is not the only reason you should move forward with doing so. When you bring a pet into your home it needs to be for the entire family. Otherwise neither you, nor your adopted Maltese terrier, will be happy.
- You expect your dog to be trained. Just because you’re not brining a puppy into your home does not mean that the dog has been adequately trained. You won’t know the exact conditions of the dog’s last home, so be prepared for a learning period, and approach training like the dog is a new puppy. You will need to teach the dog how to communicate with you, which is a brand new concept for you both.
- You think a rescued or adopted Maltese terrier requires less grooming. Sure, you’ve seen pictures of Maltese terriers with hair sweeping down to the floor, but you didn’t want a show dog. Keep in mind that your Maltese terrier is not covered in fur, it’s covered in hair. You will still need to practice daily grooming with your pet, and frequent bathing. Your Maltese terrier’s hair requires some extra attention, regardless of whether or not he/she is a show dog.
- You assume that an adult dog requires less supervision. Regardless of a dog’s age, when you bring a new Maltese terrier into your home you are introducing it to a brand new environment. In some ways this can be more traumatic for the dog than if it were a puppy, because it is having to relearn its way of life. Give an older Maltese terrier the same level of supervision, attention, and patience you would a new puppy.
- You anticipate the dog to make fewer mistakes. Again, the dog is not newly born, but it is new to you and your environment. For all intensive purposes, it has mentally become a puppy again.
- You expect a show quality dog. When you rescue a Maltese terrier, you can not be guaranteed a pure quality, show dog, or a dog worthy of breeding. If you have your heard set on this quality of dog, you would be better off to purchase a Maltese terrier from a breeder.
- You expect your rescued Maltese terrier to respond warmly to you right away. Earning the trust of an adult dog, especially one that has been in questionable circumstances can take some extra time and patience. Be prepared, and be consistent with your love towards the dog.
- You view your rescue/adoption as a trial period. Rescuing or adopting a Maltese terrier has to be something you are willing to commit to absolutely. It is not fair to the animal to bring it into your home if you are not offering it a permanent place no matter what.
- You have small children. Keep in mind that Maltese terriers are small dogs, and may require extra supervision if you have small children. Children may inadvertently rough house with your new dog, causing injury to the dog.
- You’re not home for long periods of time. It is important that you physically be with your new dog, especially in the beginning, as much as possible. Don’t leave a new dog home alone and expect it to understand what you want it to do.
Read more on what to expect from a Maltese terrier rescue dog.
