Not to forget that maltese is white in color, u need to do a lot extra work to maintain their shiny white fur compare to poodle. Oh ya, and the common tear stain problem too..

Not everyone able to wipe their mouth, wipe feet, clean this clean that everyday.. and u hav to do it for a lot years...

Poodle u can get @ 800+ because without MKA, usually all maltese comes with MKA, that's y the price slightly higher. If u got a poodle with mka, i believe it cost u over thousand too...

I think the 'official cut' meant by ronzo is the poodle standard cut.. shave off the hair surround nose wan... I don think got people will think bear cut is ugly lo...poodle look so cute in that~

You need to get a MKA registered dog if u plan to go for dog show/competition.

Otherwise, for companion dog only, the dog temperament and characteristic are much more important than the piece of paper.