A lesson on dreading from my puppy

Elmo my 2 year old forever-puppy Maltese gets dreads like you wouldn't believe! And it is well known that if you don't brush out a Maltese's fur before bathing them, the mats/dreads will lock up tighter. I have found this to be true when I have tried it, having encountered so many mats that I threw up my hands and hoped they would just go away in the bath. Not a good idea.When people keep maltese's to show, they actually have to wrap their hair in sections to keep it from moving and dreading. Then weekly they must unwrap it, brush it to make sure there are no knots before the bath, bathe the dog, dry and brush and rewrap.So it seems to me that I could take a lesson in dreading from my Maltese: 1. Let your hair fly free. Run and play and roll in the grass. 2. Bathe as much as you want, it won't wash out the mats, they will only get tighter.