Shih Tzu Maltese Mix - Buhba Bear

by PAMELA STIEREN
(STERLING, NEBRASKA)

We picked our Shih Tzu Maltese mix out at 4 weeks. When we took him home at 12 weeks he looked like a "real" black and white stuffed toy. He was the only boy in a litter of 6 and weighs in at a whopping 2 lb. I held almost all of the puppies. He was the only one who licked my hand.

When we first got him home he was extremely calm and quiet, not like a normal puppy. We worried there might be something wrong with him; but that quickly changed.

My Maltese Shih Tzu mix has a period of playfulness (playing with his toys and of course our shoes.) I put my shoes on the couch last night so he wouldn't chew on them. When he noticed them he started barking at them as if they were a stranger. When I put them on the floor he stopped barking; then started again when I put them back on the couch. (really funny).

He especially likes my granddaughter's balls and chases them all over the house. After he has played for several minutes he crashes and sleeps for awhile, then the cycle starts over again.

He is doing fair on housebreaking. Still has some accidents, but at least now they are usually by the door and almost always because I missed his hourly time outside.

At first, he hated being kenneled which I do a couple hours a day, but now he doesn't seem to mind. It was so funny yesterday to see him try to get into his kennel with his favorite toy (froggy). He tried repeatedly but froggy and he wouldn't fit through the door at the same time.

He loves to jump and I caught him climbing my step ladder the other day. I'm sure it won't be long before he is jumping up on everything.

My Shih Tzu Maltese is really alot of fun and keeps me real busy. He fills a place in my heart I didn't even realize was empty.