The Havanese, a bichon-type dog, is the national dog of Cuba, developed from the now extinct Blanquito de la Habana ("little white dog of Havana").^[3] The Blanquito descended from the also now-extinct Bichón Tenerife. It is believed that the Blanquito was eventually cross-bred with other bichon types, including the poodle, to create what is now known as the Havanese. They are sometimes referred to as "Havana Silk Dogs", but this is a separate breed, which has been bred to meet the original Cuban standards.^{[citation needed]}

Havanese suffer primarily from luxating patella, liver disease, heart disease, cataracts and retinal dysplasia.^[7]

The Havanese is predisposed to sebaceous adenitis.^[8]

A study of over 90,000 dogs attending the University of California-Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital found the Havanese to be predisposed to portosystemic shunt: 4.35% of Havanese had the condition compared to 0.35% for mixed-breed dogs^[9]

The Havanese is a member of the bichon family of dogs. The progenitors of the breed are believed to have come from Tenerife.^[1] Ship manifests from Tenerife bound for Cuba list dogs as passengers brought aboard, and these dogs were most probably the dog of Tenerife. Some believe the entire bichon family of dogs can be traced back to the Tenerife dog, while others theorize that the origins are in Malta, citing the writings of Aristotle, and other historical evidence of the early presence of such dogs in Malta. Whatever the actual origins of bichon dogs, these little dogs soon became devoted companions to the Spanish colonists in Cuba and were highly admired by the nobility.^[1][10]

As part of the Cuban Revolution, upper-class Cubans and others marked out for annihilation by the communists fled to the United States, but few were able to bring their dogs. When American breeders became interested in this rare and charming dog in the 1970s, the US gene pool was only 11 dogs.^[11] The American Kennel Club (AKC) only officially recognized the Havanese breed in 1996.^[1]

With dedicated breeding, and the acquisition of some new dogs internationally, the Havanese has made a huge comeback and is one of the fastest growing breeds of dogs in the AKC.^{[citation needed]} The 2013 AKC statistics rank the Havanese as the 25th most popular pure-breed in the United States, a rise in popularity from 28th place in 2012.^[12]

Because of the Havanese's friendly and readily trained nature, it is used for a variety of jobs involving the public, including therapy dogs, assistance dogs, such as signal dogs for the hearing impaired, performing dogs, mold and termite detection, and tracking.^{[citation needed]}

Havanese also compete in a variety of dog sports, such as dog agility, flyball, musical canine freestyle, and obedience training.^{[citation needed]}

The breed standard notes that except for slight trimming around the feet to allow for a tidy foot, they are to be shown untrimmed;^[1] any further trimming, back-combing, or other fussing is against type and will not be allowed to the point of precluding placement in dog shows. The breed standard specifies that the tail may not be docked. The American Kennel Club Standard allows head furnishings above each eye to be held in two small braids secured with plain elastic bands.^[4]

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