I think i agree with the Amish thing. Like Pat, I'm originally from MD and have seen their animals for sale at the market since childhood. Never rated too highly with me the way they were treated or crated there. I was told by my son who worked in construction with a couple of the young amish guys that their homes were not clean, as well as the folks themselves. Therefore I don't think I would put alot of faith in the care of their animals. Of course, it's just my opinion. I think you should thoroughly check things out as you are and give it much thought before deciding.

Best wishes to you.

Maltese full blood AKC pups start at $250.00 here and go to about $500.00. Those I checked here had the parents on site for you to see.:thumbup:

I would be careful of the ones that have tear stain all over the face. Mine sometimes have a little in the corner of the eye but never on the face or feet.

I'm no expert on finding breeders.....but imho shaving the dogs? Hmmmm.....Sounds to me like someone who who has way too many dogs they are breeding to take time to take care of them. a/k/a/ puppy mill. Also, no references? Now that sticks out like a sore thumb.

I have a maltese and I would run from all of these breeders.

You want a breeder who shows, and is breeding maltese to standard to better the breed. There are a ton of brokers/ puppymills that breed/sell maltese and they end up being really large (for the standard) and there faces aren't as cute as a well bred maltese.

As far as tear staining it is more noticable on a maltese then other breeds and there are different ways to treat it. A puppy can have it but once the puppy finishes teething it should really calm down if not disappear. There are also home remedies that help, only bottled water, lemon juice and baking soda to wipe the area, or even a round of antibiotics to clear it up etc. Also food and allergies can affect it. My maltese had it as a puppy, and now at 11 months it is significantly clearer, he still tears esp. under stress, but it doesn't stain. blocked tear ducts or hairs that grow into the eyes can causes teaar staining.

Grooming is intense, and he is in a 3-4" coat. I have heard it is alot more then a yorkie. But I have no yorkie experience to compare. Bad breeding can also contribute to more grooming as the coat is more cotony and easier to mat. Sometims a bichon gets mixed in and the coat is curly as well as cotony.

I don't know if I am allowed to post other websites (this is my first post) but there is a really helpful maltese website that can help you with a good breeder.

I wouldn't buy from a breeder that isn't AKC registered puppies, show you the lineage of parents, photos of parents (brokers can't show parent pics), and weights of parents, I also wouldn't buy a maltese if the breeder didn't show and if they weren't breeding there own champion sired parents (ie. they bred the parents and finished them) otherwise they could have just spent alot for a champion parent to mix in with there stock and charge more $$.

Also, genetic problems such as luxating patella and liver shunts are something you should ask about also there is a white dog shaking syndrome, seizures and neurological diseases (GME) that are in some maltese. The luxating patella seems to be very common.

Also it seems that maltese are priced on par with some yorkies. Males being 1000-2000 and females being 1500+

I read on another thread that you should find parents faces/composition/lines that you like and then find that puppy.

I also agree to a pp that the puppy pictured looks v. large for 7 weeks old.

sorry if this is long and if it seems intense. I joined to learn more about yorkies and I know how much effort I spent for a maltese and I thought I would pass along my experience/knowledge. I don't mean to offend anyone. They are def. worth to effort.