Maltichon

 The Maltichon is a popular designer dog, a deliberate cross between two extremely old companion breeds developed in the Mediterranean, the Bichon Frise and the Maltese Terrier. In fact, both dogs have a great deal of their ancestry in common, with their oldest known progenitor being a water dog from the area that was also the ancestor of several bright and friendly breeds including the Poodle, Havanese, and Bolognese breeds among others. Many of these breeds are predominantly white and all of them have coats that are made up of silky hair. The Bichon Frise, like many of these dogs, is a small white dog with a pleasant disposition. Originally employed as vermin hunters on ships, their lively and entertaining nature along with their pleasing appearance made them a favorite of royal families of one sort or another from the 1300s all the way until the 1800s. When they fell out of favor in the 1800s their spunky nature and easy trainability earned them success as circus dogs, trick dogs for organ grinders, and fair dogs. The first Bichon Frise dogs were brought into the United States by French immigrants in 1956 and the Bichon Frise was recognized as a breed in the non-sporting group by the American Kennel Club in 1972. The history of the Maltese goes back much farther than that of the Bichon Frise, tracible as far back as 3500 B.C. to a small island off of the coast of Italy known as Malta. Favored by the wealthy and privileged throughout the world since at least the time of the ancient Greeks, and although their popularity waned for a time around the 1600s, interest was rekindled in the 1800s and 1900s and they became widespread once again, and were recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1888.