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Havanese dog

Coat and color
The coat is long, soft, lightweight, and silky. The Havanese coat is slightly wavy, profuse, and undulating. Unlike other double-coated breeds, the Havanese outer coat is neither coarse nor overly dense, but rather soft and light. The undercoat is sometimes completely absent. The Havanese coat should be very soft, almost cool to the touch, like unrefined silk (compared to the Maltese coat, which feels like refined silk). However, in some dogs the coat can become too silky, looking oily. On the other end of the spectrum, Havanese coats can be too harsh or cottony, giving a frizzy appearance. Because of the tropical nature of the Havanese, the fine and lightweight coat is designed to act as a sunshade and cooling agent on hot days. This means that, though the coat is abundant and may appear warm, the Havanese must be protected from the cold. These dogs become cold very easily so keeping their coat longer in winter time is essential, especially since these dogs originate from hot weather.

The coat is shown naturally brushed out, or in some countries it may be corded, a technique which turns the long coat into cords of hair, similar to dreadlocks in humans. This corded look may be difficult to achieve for the first timer, so it is always recommended that someone interested in cording their Havanese consults someone who has done it before. Brushing out their fur is essential. This breed's fur grows very fast and without brushing it, the fur can become tangled easily. Also, even though this breed is hypoallergenic, Havanese have hair that doesn't fall off (shed) but it still needs to be groomed.

Although there are a few arguments on whether the original Havanese were all white or of different colors, modern Havanese are acceptable in all coat colors and patterns. All colored dogs should have a black nose and black pigment around the eyes, with the exception of chocolate (brown) dogs, which may have dark brown pigment on their nose instead. Examples of coat colors are white, cream, fawn, red, chocolate brown, beige, gold, silver, blue, and black. The coat may be one solid color or have markings in one or more other colors. For example, sable, brindle, black & tan, Tri-color, Irish pied, parti colored, belton, or piebald, black and white, beige black, and white.

Size
Though it is a toy dog,[1] Havanese are sturdy and not overly delicate. Most are 10 to 16 pounds (4.5 to 7.3 kg) and 8 1⁄2 to 11 1⁄2 inches (22 to 29 cm), with the ideal being 9 to 10 1⁄2 inches (23 to 27 cm) at the withers. The body, measured from point of shoulder to point of buttocks, is slightly longer than the height at the withers, giving the dog the appearance of being slightly longer than tall. The length of the body results from the long ribcage, not the loins.

Activities
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.

Havanese also compete in a variety of dog sports, such as Dog agility, Flyball, Musical canine freestyle, and Obedience training.

Grooming
The profuse coat needs to be thoroughly combed at least twice per week. A Havanese with a dense or curly coat will be more prone to tangling and matting, thus requiring more frequent combing, than one with a silky, slightly wavy coat. If not showing the dog, it can be trimmed shorter to require less brushing. Many pet owners clip their dogs into a 1–2 inch long "puppy cut" for ease of maintenance. When owners give them a bath, they must make sure to dry them. Some in shorter clips can blot and air dry, but most will need to be blown dry. Owners can also comb their hair out after bathing so as not to dry in mats. Use high air but low heat to protect their sensitive skin. Hot air can damage the skin. Hair that grows on the bottom of their feet between the paw-pads needs trimming to allow traction on smooth floors.

Some develop tear staining. A veterinarian might suggest treating red yeast issues to help diminish or eliminate staining; sometimes diet allergens are to blame and switching to a food without common allergens can be helpful. Excess tearing is sometimes a result of hair getting into the eyes; it is recommended that hair below eyes be allowed to grow out instead of shaved out. Havanese can wear a topknot or small braids to keep the hair out of their eyes during everyday activities.

As with any dog with dropped ears, the ears must be kept clean to help prevent ear infections. A cottonball can be placed just inside each ear before bathing to prevent excess water from entering in. After bathing, since it may be moist, pluck a few hairs inside the dog's ears to let air circulate through, preventing fungus from building.

Training
The Havanese is a toy dog. It is smart and can be easily trained. It is best to train this dog at a young age, because some habits will stick as they become older. However, training these dogs while they are older is still possible. Like many toy breeds, the Havanese can be difficult to housebreak. However, Havanese can be trained to use a litter box, which can greatly reduce issues with housebreaking. This breed is very smart and can be house trained faster than most toy dogs.

Tattoo artist

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