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About the Havanese

Origin: Cuba
Size
Small — from its typical weight
Weight
3-6 kg
Height
22-29 cm
FCI status
Reconocida por la FCI
FCI group
Companion and Toy Dogs
Origin
Cuba
Also called
Bichon Habanero

About

What is a Havanese?

Small, sturdy companion dog with long, silky double coat and cheerful temperament. Cuba's national dog, known for its intelligent disposition and making an ideal city companion.

Havanese history and origins

Developed from Bichon-type ancestors brought by Spanish settlers, became companions to Cuban aristocracy. Nearly extinct after Cuban Revolution but preserved by Cuban families who fled to the United States.

Havanese appearance and size

Typically 3-6 kg and 22-29 cm at the shoulder — published as one range rather than separately for males and females.

Lo que dice el estándar de la raza

Criado para
Companion and toy dog
Comportamiento y temperamento
Exceptionally bright he is easy to train as alarm dog. Affectionate, of a happy nature, he is amiable, a charmer, playful and even a bit of a clown. He loves children and plays endlessly with them

Quoted from FCI standard n°250. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.

Referencia de la raza de The Dog API.

Características

Tamaño
Small
Necesidad de ejercicio
2 of 5
Facilidad de adiestramiento
Caída de pelo
3 of 5
Cuidados del pelo
5 of 5
Convivencia con niños
Coste de mantenimiento
Tolera quedarse solo
Inteligencia
Salud de la raza
5 conditions documented

Pros & cons

Pros y contras de la raza Havanese

Lo que obtienes con la raza Havanese

  • Función declarada en el estándar: «Companion and toy dog»
  • El estándar describe la raza así: «Exceptionally bright he is easy to train as alarm dog»
  • Vive más que un perro mestizo — mediana de 14.5 años en 389 animales, frente a 12

Lo que asumes

  • Están documentadas 2 enfermedades hereditarias graves, sobre todo en huesos y articulaciones. La pestaña de la guía de salud tiene la prueba que hay que pedir en cada una.
  • Exige muchos cuidados del pelo — la descripción del propio estándar es «All grooming, the usage of scissors to even out the length of the coat and all trimming…»

Extraído de fuentes y no escrito como opinión — investigación de salud citada, el estándar del propio registro, y estudios de longevidad revisados por pares. Estándar de la raza, FCI; McMillan et al. 2024, median age at death; Havanese Club of America - Health & Testing Guide. Los animales de un criador pueden diferir de todo esto, y una columna vacía significa que no tenemos nada de ese lado, no que no haya nada que decir.

Characteristics

Estándar de la FCI · Havanese

Pelo y color

Tal como lo establece el estándar de la FCI. Cada línea de abajo está en las palabras del propio estándar, etiquetada con permissible.

Coat

Undercoat woolly and not very developed

it is often totally absent.

The topcoat is very long (12-18 cm in an adult dog), soft, flat or wavy and may form curly strands.

All grooming, the usage of scissors to even out the length of the coat and all trimming is forbidden.

Notes

  • Exception: tidying up the hair on the feet is permitted, the hair on the forehead may be slightly shortened so that it does not cover the eyes and the hair on the muzzle may be slightly tidied up, but it is preferable to leave it in natural length

Color

  • Preferred
  • Permissible
  • Undesirable
  • Disqualifying

«Preferred», «permissible», «undesirable» y «disqualifying» — preferido, admisible, indeseable y descalificante — son las palabras de la propia FCI sobre la raza, y quedan en inglés porque así constan en el estándar. Describen lo que el estándar pide — no son una valoración de ningún perro concreto, ni nuestra.

  • Rarely completely pure white, fawn in its different shades (slight blackened overlay admitted), black, havana-brown, tobacco colour, reddish-brown.
  • Permissible: Patches in mentioned colours
  • Permissible: Tan markings in all nuances

Resumido de FCI standard n°250 — cada etiqueta está en las palabras del propio estándar, con el veredicto pasado a la etiqueta de al lado. Lee la cláusula completa en la fuente.

Lo que dice el estándar de la raza

Tamaño
Height at the withers: From 23 to 27 cm. Tolerance: from 21 to 29 cm
La FCI indica una tolerancia en torno a la cifra.

Quoted from FCI standard n°250. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.

Lo que el estándar penaliza

Aquello por lo que un juez resta puntos a la raza Havanese, y lo que la deja fuera del ring, en las palabras del propio registro. Esto describe el estándar de la raza — no es una lista de comprobación para el animal que tienes delante, y un animal de compañía con un defecto descalificante es un perro que no puede ir a exposición, no un perro enfermo.

Defectos graves

Cuentan mucho en contra de un ejemplar en el ring.

  • General appearance lacking in type.
  • Truncated or snipey muzzle, length not identical to that of the skull.
  • Bird of prey eyes; eyes too deep set or prominent; rims of eyelids partially depigmented.
  • Body too long or too short.
  • Straight tail, not carried high.
  • « French » front (pasterns too close, feet turned outwards).
  • Deformed hind feet.
  • Coat harsh, not abundant; hair short except on puppies; groomed coat

Defectos descalificantes

Dejan al animal fuera del ring por completo.

  • Depigmented nose.
  • Upper or lower prognathism.
  • Ectropion, entropion; rim of eyelids of one or both eyes depigmented.
  • Size over or under the indicated norms of the standard

FCI standard n°250

Información a nivel de raza, de The Dog API. Describe la raza Havanese en general; cualquier animal concreto puede ser distinto.

Health guide

Health & screening guide for the Havanese

Riesgos hereditarios conocidos en la raza Havanese, y la documentación concreta que hay que pedir a cualquier criador antes de pagar una señal. Un criador responsable tiene esta documentación a mano; esquivar la pregunta es mala señal.

5 enfermedades documentadas

Health checklist (PDF)

Bones & joints

Hip dysplasia

Monitor

Malformed hip joints leading to degenerative joint disease/arthritis. The only way to diagnose it is by X-ray, and it is one of the three tests the parent club requires for a CHIC number.

Qué pedir

OFA hip evaluation X-ray on both parents after two years of age (ratings of excellent, good or fair are considered normal for the breed).

1 source

Patellar luxation

Monitor

The kneecap slips out of its groove. Medial luxation (as opposed to trauma-related lateral luxation) is generally thought to be inherited, and it is one of the three CHIC-required tests.

Qué pedir

OFA patellar luxation exam on both parents after one year of age.

1 source

Legg-Calve-Perthes disease

Serious

Loss of blood flow to the head of the femur, usually striking young dogs between four months and one year old, before other health testing would normally happen. It ranges from mild to severe and can need surgery. The parent club states it is believed to be inherited, though the mode of inheritance is not known.

Qué pedir

No DNA test exists. A hip/pelvis radiograph in a young dog showing lameness will show it; it is also incidentally visible on the OFA hip X-ray taken at two years, though by then an affected dog would usually already have shown signs.

1 source

Chondrodystrophy (CDDY) and associated intervertebral disc disease risk

Serious

An FGF4 retrogene variant shortens and can bow the legs and changes disc structure. The Havanese breed standard calls for straight legs, and the parent club states dogs showing this dwarfism should not be bred; the same underlying variant is linked to a raised risk of intervertebral disc herniation, and Havanese is one of the breeds OFA names for this DNA test.

Qué pedir

OFA/DNA CDDY (FGF4 retrogene) test on both parents, and confirm straight legs and normal body proportions against the breed standard.

2 sources

Immune system

Sebaceous adenitis

Monitor

The body attacks its own sebaceous (oil) glands, causing hair thinning and scratching over the back, sides or neck; it can also be largely symptomless. The parent club's own health survey found it in roughly 0.8% of Havanese, and it is believed to have a genetic component in the breed, though the exact mode of inheritance has not been established here.

Qué pedir

No DNA test exists for Havanese. Diagnosis is by skin biopsy sent to a histology lab if a dog is symptomatic; ask whether either parent or their close relatives has been diagnosed.

1 source

Cuánto vive la raza Havanese, en los registros

Supervivencia mediana de 14,5 años

Intervalo de confianza al 95% desde 14,1 años, límite superior no estimable, a partir de 56 muertes registradas entre 389 perros

Riesgo de mortalidad de 0.72 (0.56, 0.94) respecto a perros mestizos, cuya mediana es de 12,0 años.

Hay pocas muertes registradas en esta raza, así que la cifra es imprecisa.

Medido en el Reino Unido a partir de 584.734 perros. La supervivencia mediana no es una predicción para un perro concreto.

McMillan, K.M., Bielby, J., Williams, C.L., Upjohn, M.M., Casey, R.A. & Christley, R.M. (2024) Longevity of companion dog breeds: those at risk from early death. Scientific Reports 14, 531.

Puppies

No puppies listed right now

No Havanese breeder has a record on this platform yet, so there is nothing to list. That is a gap in our coverage, not a fact about the breed.

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