Introduction

The Havana Silk Dog is a small, very social, drop coated companion dog. It enjoys the distinction of being the only purebred dog born of an effort to eliminate a genetic problem from within a breed. The efforts of a dedicated group of Havanese breeders resulted in the reemergence of the Havana Silk Dog, a breed of Cuban origin long thought to be extinct.

The Name: Havana Silk Dog

The old name Havana Silk Dog was chosen for this newly restored breed because the traits displayed so consistently in these dogs (but not described in the current Havanese standard) were precisely those pictured and described in the dogs of Cuba prior to the establishment and subsequent popularity of the Havanese in the US.

Registration Requirements

Because the restoration of the Havana Silk Dog was in truth a happy accident resulting from the founding breeders’ recognition of the importance of soundness and health in a breeding program, full registration of intact animals by the Havana Silk Dog Association of America, the breed’s national Parent Club, requires an OFA/CHIC number, a DNA profile, and a physical evaluation to exclude from the gene pool dogs displaying short or bowed forelegs and other deviations from soundness and traditional Cuban breed type.

Havana Silk Dog at a Glance