Vitamin and mineral supplements are not necessary unless they are recommended by your veterinarian for the management of certain conditions. Improper nutrition is only one of the many things that cause poor skin and coat. After your veterinarian rules out disease as a possible cause, a diet high in energy and fatty acids such as a lamb and rice formula will usually improve your Maltese's hair, coat and skin. Feeding your Maltese a dry food will help to reduce tartar build-up. Tartar starts with a soft deposit called plaque.
Hard food helps to scrape away the plaque before it turns to tartar.
If you feed canned foods, biscuits or hard chew toys will help to reduce plaque. Your Maltese should have its teeth checked by a veterinarian at least once a year. The desire for a variety of foods is learned. Scientific studies show that pet's offered a choice of foods, tend to eat the same food day after day. Your Maltese will be happy and consistently eat the correct diet if you don't introduce bad eating habits.