CuppaT

Well, it turns out she was already out there - the most beautiful little black & tan Havanese girl will be joining us in a few weeks! We are very excited, and busy getting everything ready for her arrival ... I will post again (with a pic) once she is here! Thanks again for all your advice - I considered all the breeds you suggested, and am very happy that we have made a good choice.

Thank you so much everyone for your valuable suggestions. I have done so much research and got myself a bit fixed on a Maltese as the best temperament for our family needs, but it is great to hear that I could be looking a bit more broadly. I have written to one Maltese breeder but had no response, so I will definitely broaden my search. The right pup for us is out there somewhere! Thank you again, and I am sure I will be back ...

Hello everyone, this is my first post, but I have already learnt so much from this site. I would really appreciate your wisdom about whether I have got it right in concluding that a Maltese is the dog for us. I have been researching this for the last couple of months, and in summary, these are my thoughts: We have not had a Maltese before, and our only experience with dogs has been with much larger dogs and many years ago - effectively we would be like first time owners. We think a Maltese might be right for us because: we have a relatively small house and garden, we are a multi-generation household, so we need a dog small enough to be happy playing in a play pen for periods of time, eg like mealtimes or when mum is through in the kitchen getting a sandwich etc - this would be for the safety of both elderly mum and young pup I have read that Maltese can make good therapy dogs - our teenage daughter has some anxiety and social issues, including mild agoraphobia, so it would be wonderful for her to have a pet who would provide her with company and comfort (and a good reason to get out of the house!) I understand that Maltese are intelligent and playful - our 12 yo son would love a playmate. He is a gentle boy, and very interested in training a dog, so we need a pup that loves to learn and who would continue to enjoy playing as it gets older We need a low shedder. We can offer a dog: a small, but completely enclosed garden with no poisonous plants or other dangers where pup could play (although would generally be in the house with us) There is nearly always someone home (I work from home) so pup would rarely need to be left alone (we do understand that we would need to work on pup being comfortable with spending short amounts of time alone, as otherwise we understand there could be separation anxiety issues) we can do twice daily walks we have good local options for puppy classes and for ongoing training help (ie for us, so that we are doing the right thing!) we are taking this decision very seriously, so we have done loads of research and understand eg that we would be making a pretty serious commitment to grooming, socialising, training etc We are committed to a purebreed. Any advice would be much appreciated - eg have we missed anything, are there other breeds we should consider, are there downsides we might not have thought of etc? Thank you!