Maltese Puppy.

Question.
I have a small Maltese puppy of five months. I'm looking for tips to keep her coat nice as
I'd like to show her. Is there a leave-in conditioner I should be using daily?

Answer.
A small pin brush and a wide-toothed metal comb are the first requirements for keeping your young maltese puppy coat in good condition. Use these daily; the pin brush will keep the outer layers straight but because the pins are soft may not reach the base of the coat, hence the need to follow your brushing with some combing. This will reach through to the skin and find any knots or tangled hair, which should be teased out gently with the comb.

As the coat of your maltese puppy gets longer it's even more important to ensure that you get to the base of the hair nearest the skin. There are conditioning sprays on the market which will help to condition the coat as you groom and reduce static electricity. One other daily task would be to keep the eye area clean and dry by wiping with a damp cotton pad and then patting dry.

Comb the hair on each side of the nose downwards so that it doesn't go into the eye. Once a week take a little longer with your grooming: check the nails aren't too long and the ears look healthy and don't smell.The ears on a young dog should be clean, pink and sweet-smelling. Every four to five weeks a bath would be a good idea. This should follow a good grooming to ensure that all knots and tangles are out of the coat.

Use a good shampoo suitable for silky white coats of maltese puppy, followed by an appropriate conditioner; combing the conditioner to the base of each strand of hair will enhance the conditioning process. You will find lots of special shampoos, conditioners and sprays on the market to help with grooming and bathing.

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