Maltese Lifespan

A well-bred Maltese usually lives twelve to fifteen years, and a good many reach sixteen or seventeen. We have been breeding this one breed since 1992 and we hear from owners for the lives of their dogs, so the numbers on this page come from dogs we know rather than from a chart.

The usual range

Toy breeds live longer than large ones, and the Maltese is at the longer end even among toys. Twelve is ordinary. Fifteen is common in a dog from sound parents that was kept lean and had its teeth looked after. Our oldest have gone past seventeen. A Maltese that dies at eight or nine has usually died of something specific, and most often of something that could have been found earlier.

What shortens it

Breeding. The conditions that take years off a Maltese run in lines: liver shunt, heart valve disease, slipping kneecaps that lead to arthritis, and the collapsing windpipe that small dogs are prone to. A puppy from parents who were never tested is a puppy whose risk nobody measured. That is why we test both parents of every litter for patellar luxation, cardiac disease, eye disease and, with a bile acid test, liver shunt, and why we show the certificates. It is the single largest thing a buyer can do about lifespan before the dog is even born.

Teeth. The Maltese mouth is small and crowded, and untreated dental disease is the quiet killer of toy dogs: the infection does not stay in the mouth. Daily brushing and a professional cleaning when the vet advises it add years, and we mean years.

Weight. A five pound dog carrying an extra pound is a dog carrying twenty per cent more than it should, on knees and a heart built for five. Fat Maltese do not live as long as lean ones, and they are fat because they are small enough to be fed from a plate without anyone noticing.

Size. Deliberately tiny dogs, the ones sold as teacups, are more fragile at every stage: low blood sugar as puppies, bones that break, teeth that crowd, anaesthetics that are riskier. A Maltese inside the standard, four to seven pounds, lives longer than one bred to be smaller.

Accidents. Falls from furniture and arms, being stepped on, dogs, cars, and birds of prey account for a share of Maltese deaths that owners of bigger breeds never think about. The puppy proofing page is about this.

What lengthens it

Tested parents. A lean body, all its life. Teeth brushed. Vaccinations and heartworm prevention kept up, year round in the South. Spaying or neutering at the age your vet advises, which removes several cancers from the list. A yearly check from the age of eight or so, with bloodwork, because the kidney and liver problems that end a Maltese's life show up in blood long before they show up in the dog. And attention: a Maltese is small enough that it is easy to miss it going quiet, and the owner who notices the first bad day is the owner whose dog gets to sixteen.

The stages of an older Maltese

At eight to ten the coat may thin a little and the dog sleeps more, but a Maltese at this age is still a lively dog. From twelve or so, hearing and sight start to go, teeth are often fewer, and the knees stiffen; a ramp to the sofa and a softer bed are the answer, not the end. Many of ours have been bright and demanding past fifteen. Heart murmurs are common in old Maltese and are often managed for years with medication. The breed is not one that fades early; when it is cared for, it goes on.

What this means when you buy

You are choosing a companion for the next fifteen years, so the questions that matter are the ones about the parents, not the puppy. Were both tested, for what, and can you see the results? How old are the grandparents, and are any of them still alive? A breeder who has kept dogs to old age, and can tell you about them, is a breeder whose puppies tend to get there too. Ours is on the about page, and Cody and Callie, available now, come from parents who passed all four tests.