Havana and the Chinese court
The Havashu puts together two breeds from opposite ends of the world that were developed for exactly the same purpose.
The Havanese is Cuba’s only native breed and its national dog. Its ancestors arrived from Spain with settlers in the sixteenth century — small white bichon-type dogs from the western Mediterranean — and on the island they became something of their own, kept by the merchant families of Havana and known there as the Blanquito de la Habana, the little white dog of Havana. Later crossings with poodle stock brought in colour and coat variety, and the modern Havanese followed from that. The breed reached the United States with Cuban families in the middle of the twentieth century, and the American Kennel Club recognized it in 1996.
The Shih Tzu came the other way around the globe and out of a far older tradition. Its foundation is Tibetan and its refinement Chinese, and for centuries it lived inside the imperial court, where the palace household kept the breeding lines and the dogs were given as gifts rather than sold. The name means lion dog, after the lion of Buddhist art rather than the animal itself. A small number of dogs left China in the 1930s and every Shih Tzu in the West traces back to them; the American Kennel Club recognized the breed in 1969.
Two continents, two histories, one job description. Neither parent was ever asked to herd, retrieve, guard or hunt. Both were bred to be somebody’s company, and that is what turns up in a Havashu.
Size, coat and colour
A Havashu is small without being tiny. Havanese generally run somewhere around seven to thirteen pounds and Shih Tzu around nine to sixteen, so most Havashus finish between those two bands and stand roughly nine to eleven inches at the shoulder. They are solidly built for the size — sturdy through the body and heavier in the hand than they look on a screen — which is one of the pleasant surprises of the cross.
The coat is long and it grows rather than turning over, which means it comes out in the comb instead of onto your clothes. Texture depends on which parent a puppy takes after: the Havanese side runs to a light, silky, slightly wavy coat that lifts when the dog moves, and the Shih Tzu side to something denser and straighter that hangs. Most puppies land somewhere between the two, and littermates often differ from one another.
Colour is where this cross is at its most generous, because both parents come in very nearly everything. White, cream, gold, apricot, silver, chocolate, black, black-and-white and brindle all turn up, and parti-colours — a white ground with coloured patches — are common. Markings shift as a puppy grows, and a Havashu that goes home dark quite often finishes several shades lighter than it started.
The temperament both parents were bred for
Havashus are outgoing and affectionate without being frantic, which is a rarer combination in a small dog than you might expect. They take to visitors readily, settle into a household routine inside a week or two, and stay playful well into adulthood.
The Havanese side brings the trait owners talk about most: this is a velcro dog. A Havashu picks whichever room you are in and moves when you move, and if you sit down it will be on the sofa before you have finished sitting. The Shih Tzu side adds a certain dignity to that — a dog that decides which cushion is now its cushion and holds the position for the rest of the evening — along with a streak of independence that shows up in training as a puppy who hears you perfectly clearly and then thinks it over before answering. A good treat and a cheerful voice settle the question every time.
They are easy about other animals. Neither parent carries a prey drive worth mentioning, so cats and other dogs are usually a non-event, and children who will get down on the floor and let a puppy come to them tend to make a friend for life. They are just as easy about square footage. Apartments work, houses work, and what matters far more than the floor plan is whether the dog is in the middle of the day.
Grooming as a routine
The coat is the part of Havashu ownership with a schedule attached, and it is a companionable ten minutes rather than a chore.
Work through it every day or every other day, first with a pin brush to lift the coat and then with a metal comb down to the skin, because the comb is what tells you where the brush skated over the top. The places that want the attention are behind the ears, under the front legs and on the rear, and most dogs roll onto their side and doze once the rhythm starts.
A groomer every four to six weeks keeps the ends tidy and the feet and face in order. Plenty of owners in a Florida or Tennessee summer keep the coat in a short trim through the warm months and grow it out again for the winter, which cuts the home routine down to a couple of minutes a day. Keep the hair around the eyes trimmed short so it sits clear of them, wipe the face while you are already brushing, and keep the ears clean and dry.
Nails every few weeks — you will hear them on a hard floor when they are ready. Teeth brushed from the first week, early enough that a puppy decides the toothbrush is a game. None of it takes long. It simply wants to be regular.
Training and what a day looks like
Short, cheerful sessions with food do the work. Both parent breeds are bright and both are sensitive, so a light hand and a good rate of pay get you further than repetition ever will. Five minutes before dinner, three more while the kettle boils, and stop while the dog still wants another go.
House training is the part worth being systematic about, as it is with any small dog. Run a schedule rather than waiting for signals: take the puppy out often and always to the same spot, pay it immediately when it gets things right, and keep every adult in the house on the same routine. Teach settling on a mat in that same first week, along with short spells of quiet on its own with something good to chew, so that being by itself is simply an ordinary part of the day rather than an event.
Exercise is modest and easy to fit around a working life. A walk in the cool part of the morning, a second in the evening, and a fair amount of the rest happening indoors — a hallway, a small ball, a food puzzle, five minutes of tricks. The middle of the day is for sleeping, usually in whichever patch of sun is nearest to wherever you are sitting. A Havashu that has had its walk, its training game and a lap to sit in is about as contented a dog as you can live with.
Coming to meet the Havashu puppies
Photographs flatten this whole group. Small plush puppies look much the same on a screen, and the things that actually decide which one goes home with you — the texture of the coat under your hand, how solid one feels when you pick it up, whether a puppy folds into your lap or wants back down to keep exploring — are things you learn in ten minutes on the floor with a litter.
Our Havashu puppies come from our network of licensed breeders, and our staff can tell you what a particular puppy’s parents were like and how it has been in the store. We have a store in Orlando and one in Nashville, and you are welcome to sit with a few puppies for as long as you like before deciding anything. Find directions and hours, and ask about financing while you are here. Every puppy here goes home with its vet records, its vaccination history and a health warranty, and our team will walk you through what those cover.