Bichon maltes standard

INTERNATIONAL CYNOLOGIQUE FEDERATION (AISBL) GENERAL SECRETARIAT: 13, Place Albert 1er B – 6530 Thuin (Belgium)

18.01.2018/

ES Standard-

FCI N° 65 MALTESE

TRANSLATION: Ms. Brígida Nestler. Official language: EN. Technical Direction: Mr. Miguel Ángel Martínez.

ORIGIN: Central Mediterranean Basin.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES: Italy.

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE VALID OFFICIAL STANDARD: 11.13.2015. USE: Companion dog.

FCI CLASSIFICATION: Group 9 Companion Dogs Section 1 Bichons and dogs of similar breeds No working trial.

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY: The name Maltese does not mean that the breed originates from the island of Malta, since the adjective "Maltese" comes from the Semitic word "MALT" which means refuge or port. This Semitic root is found in a whole series of names of maritime places, for example in the name of the Adriatic island of Méléda, in that of the Sicilian city of Melita and precisely also in that of the island of Malta. The ancestors of this little dog lived in the ports of the maritime cities of the Central Mediterranean, where they fought the rats and mice that swarmed in port stores and in the holds of ships. In a list of existing dogs at the time of Aristotle (384-322 BC), a breed of small dogs is mentioned, to which the Latin name "canes melitenses" is attributed. This dog was known in ancient Rome as the preferred companion of matrons, and was praised by Strabo, a Latin poet of the first century. The Maltese Bichon appears in representations of numerous Renaissance painters where it is seen in the halls of the time accompanying the beautiful ladies of that time. FCI-St. No. 65 / 18.01.2018 3

GENERAL APPEARANCE: Small in size and elongated body. Covered with very long white hair, very elegant with a proud and distinguished head bearing.

IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS: The length of the body exceeds by approximately 1/3 its height at the withers. The length of the head is equal to 6/11 of the height at the withers. The circumference of the chest is 2/3 greater than the height at the withers. The length of the muzzle is equal to 4/11 of the length of the head; therefore, it is slightly less than its mean. The depth of the muzzle is 20% less than its length. The length of the tail corresponds to approximately 60% of the height at the withers.

BEHAVIOUR/TEMPERAMENT: Alert, affectionate, very calm and highly intelligent. HEAD: Rather broad, slightly more than half its length.

CRANIAL REGION: Skull: The skull is slightly longer than the muzzle; the bizygomatic width is equal to its length. In its sagittal direction, it is very slightly egg-shaped (ovoid), the top of the skull is flat with little accentuation of the occipital crest. The protuberance of the frontal bone and the supraorbital ridge are well developed, the frontal groove is poorly or not marked at all, the lateral aspects of the parietal bones are somewhat convex. Stop: very marked nasofrontal depression forming an angle of 90º.

FACIAL REGION: Nose: In prolongation with the bridge of the nose, seen in profile, the front part is vertical. Voluminous with open nostrils, rounded and totally black. FCI-St. N° 65 / 01.18.2018 4 Muzzle: The length of the muzzle is slightly less than half the length of the head. The suborbital region is well chiselled. Its depth is much less than its length. The sides of the snout are parallel, but seen from the front, they should not appear square, since the anterior part is joined to the lateral faces by curves. The nasal cane is rectilinear, with well-marked grooves in its central part. Lips: Seen from the front, the upper lips at their junction are in the shape of a very open arch. Slightly developed in its depth and the lip corner is not visible. The upper lips are perfectly adapted to the lower lips in such a way that the lower profile of the muzzle is defined by the lower jaw. The edges of the lips must be completely black. Jaws / Teeth: Normally developed and slim in appearance, perfectly adapted. The lower jaw, whose branches are rectilinear, is neither prominent nor receding in its anterior part. The dental arches are perfectly adapted and the incisors have a scissor joint. The teeth are white and the dentition is well developed and complete.

EYES: alert expression, larger in size than expected, shape tending to be rounded. The eyelids are in close contact with the eyeball, which is never sunken, but rather level with the head, only slightly protruding. The eyes are located in the same almost frontal plane. Seen from the front: the eyes must not show the sclera (whites of the eyes); they are of a dark ocher color; the edge of the eyelids and third eyelid are black.

EARS: Almost triangular in shape, the width is approximately 1/3 of its length. They are inserted above the zygomatic arch, hanging close to the sides of the skull, with little erection. NECK : Although covered with abundant hair, the demarcation of the nape is evident. Its upper profile is arched. The length of the neck is about half the height at the withers. The neck is held upright and does not show any loose skin. FCI-St. N° 65 / 18.01.2018 5 BODY: The length from the point of the shoulder to the point of the ischium is 1/3 greater than the height at the withers. Upper line: Straight towards the insertion of the tail. Withers: Slightly above the top line. Back: The length is greater than half the height at the withers. Croup: In prolongation of the back-lumbar line. The croup is very broad and long, the obliquity is 10° below the horizontal. Chest : Broad, deep, well developed, falling below the elbows with the ribs not too sprung. The sternal region is very long. TAIL: Set at the level of the croup, thick at the root and thin at the tip. It forms a single large curve whose tip falls between the haunches touching the rump. A tail curled to one side of the body is tolerated.

LIMBS FOREQUARTERS: General appearance: Taken as a whole, they are well applied to the body and are well plumbed and parallel. Shoulders: The length represents 1/3 of the height at the withers, with the tops of the shoulders set wide apart and well sloping. Arm: Longer than the scapula, with good angulation. Elbows: Turning neither in nor out. Forearm: Slender, with some visible muscles, but with a rather robust bone structure in relation to the size of the breed. Carpus: In the vertical line of the forearm, mobile. It should not be knotty. Covered with thin skin. Pastern: It has the same characteristics as the carpus and due to its short length it is vertical. Forefeet: Round, toes well together and arched; the pads must be black, the nails must also be black or at least a dark color. FCI-St. No. 65 / 18.01.2018 6

HINDQUARTERS: General appearance: strong bone structure. Parallel limbs seen from behind, vertical from the tip of the ischium to the ground.

Thigh: Strong musculature, convex rear edge. Its downward and forward direction is somewhat oblique relative to the vertical.

Knee: The joint is free, without turning in or out.

Leg: With a barely perceptible groove between tendon and bone.

The obliquity below the horizontal is 55°. It is slightly longer than the thigh.

Hock joint: The anterior angle of the hock is 140°.

Metatarsus: The distance from the ground to the point of the hock is a little more than 1/3 of the height at the withers. Pasterns set quite low and perfectly vertical.

Hind feet: Round, toes well together and arched; the pads must be black, the nails must also be black or at least a dark color.

MOVEMENT: Uniform, touching the ground, free, with short and very fast steps in the trot.

SKIN : Well attached on all parts of the body, pigmented with dark spots and wine-red spots, especially on the back.

COAT HAIR: Dense, shiny, falling heavily, of a silky texture, very long all over the body, and straight throughout its length with no trace of waves or curls. On the trunk it should be longer than the height at the withers and fall heavily to the ground as a layer without splitting or tufting or matting. Tufts are acceptable on the forequarters from the elbow to the feet, and on the hindquarters from the knee to the foot. There is no undercoat. On the head the hair is very long, both on the muzzle, where it blends with that of the beard, and on the skull, where it falls FCI-St. N° 65 / 18.01.2018 7 until it mixes with that of the ears.

The hair on the tail falls on only one side of the body, that is, on the flank and on the thigh, and is so long that it reaches the hock.

Colour: Pure white. Pale ivory is allowed. Pale orange tones are allowed but not desirable and constitute a blemish.

SIZE AND WEIGHT: Height at the withers: From 21 to 25 cm in males. From 20 to 23 cm in females. Weight: From 3 to 4 kg.

FAULTS: Any deviation from the aforementioned criteria is considered a fault and its seriousness is considered to the extent of the deviation from the standard and its consequences on the health and well-being of the dog.

• Bilateral strabismus

• Body too long.

SERIOUS MISCONDUCT:

• Roman nose.

• Accentuated prognathism.

• Size in males more than 26 cm or less than 19 cm.

• Size in females more than 25 cm or less than 18 cm.

DISQUALIFYING FOULS:

• Aggressiveness or extreme shyness. Any dog showing clear signs of physical or behavioral abnormalities.

• Accentuated divergence or convergence of the head planes.

• Total depigmentation of the nose or nose of a color other than black.

• Prognathism.

• Gazing eyes.

• Total depigmentation of the eyelids.

• No tail, shortened tail, either congeve paragraph