Maltese dog vs Maltese terrier

Maltese dog and Maltese terrier both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
Maltese dog	Yes	No	No	No
Maltese terrier	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, Maltese dog and Maltese terrier are synonyms defined as:

Maltese dog and Maltese terrier: breed of toy dogs having a long straight silky white coat

Other synonyms of Maltese dog include Maltese.

Maltese dog (noun)	Maltese terrier (noun)
breed of toy dogs having a long straight silky white coat	breed of toy dogs having a long straight silky white coat