If you have fallen in love with the little sprite that is the Havanese, you’re probably wondering what's the Havanese price tag and how much you need to budget for her.
The good news is that the Havanese dog price when dealing with a breeder, is not unaffordable. The Havanese price range falls between $1,000 and $1,500.
This is, of course, the purebred Havanese price. If you want to adopt a mixed breed, then you can expect to pay much less.
However, let’s learn a little more about this breed’s temperament and other factors that can help you come to the conclusion of whether this is the right dog for you.
The Havanese, Up Close
The Havanese belongs to the Bichon group of dogs, whose ancestor is none other than the Poodle.
Other breeds that belong to the Bichon group include the Maltese and Bichon Frise.
Experts believe the Havanese came to the U.S. from Tenerife, Spain.
Their imports began during the Cuban Revolution when Cubans brought their dogs with them to the U.S.
However, they couldn’t bring too many dogs with them and, as a result, the Havanese breed was in jeopardy.
When Americans fell in love with the breed, there were only 11 Havanese in the whole country!
However, breeders dedicated themselves to reviving the breed, and now, the Havanese is one of the most popular breeds in the U.S.!
Havanese Temperament and Personality
The Havanese temperament will tell you everything you need to know about this breed – and whether you should get one.
She’s Affectionate
The Havanese loves her people, and she never misses an opportunity to show it.
She’s also quite responsive to your commands because she doesn’t want to let you down.
She’s great with other pets and kids, too. And while you do need to supervise her and your child playing together, she’s actually sturdier than other small breeds for the rougher play that children sometimes enjoy.
She’s Playful
The Havanese loves playing with you.
She especially loves clowning around, like hiding her toys and then trying to figure out where she put them.
She loves being the center of attention – especially if it makes you laugh.
And she loves doing tricks, so it’s easy to train her.
What’s nice with the Havanese is that while she is smart, she doesn’t let it go to her head.
Most intelligent dogs become a problem because they are stubborn. The Havanese, thankfully, is not.
She’s Gentle
You may think smaller dogs have a tendency to act grumpy, but the Havanese is actually rather peaceful and gentle.
This demeanor of hers makes her a fantastic therapy dog, particularly for the elderly.
She Can Be Yappy
The Havanese can become a barker if you don’t train her on the proper times to use her bark.
If you don’t, she’ll bark at every little thing and annoy you and everyone around you.
A good way to get her to stop is to let her know everything is okay and thank her for letting you know.
You can mold her from a yappy dog to a perfect little watch dog.
She Can Become Anxious
The Havanese is one of those breeds that you can’t leave alone for too long, or she’ll develop separation anxiety.
If you don’t socialize her properly while she’s young, she’ll grow up to become nervous and shy.
Take her out often for socializing to break her of her nerves. And make sure someone can always be around for her to prevent her from feeling alone.
Havanese Size
Sometimes, a breed’s size can make or break the decision to buy.
For instance, perhaps you’re looking for a small dog, but the Havanese is slightly too small – or not small enough.
An adult Havanese grows to a maximum height of 9 to 11 inches tall, and a maximum weight of 9 to 16 lbs.
This is a pretty manageable weight and height for a small dog – and she won’t eat you out of house and home.
Plus, if she needs medication later in life, her smaller frame dictates that she’ll need a smaller dosage, saving you money.
Havanese Price – How Much Does a Havanese Cost?
The Havanese average price is a rather affordable one when compared to the other purebreds out there.
As mentioned earlier, the Havanese puppy price falls somewhere in the range of $1,000 to $1,500.
You may be able to save a few dollars, though, if you decide to adopt or rescue a Havanese.
Demand
The Havanese is the 25th most popular dog breed in the U.S.
This is a pretty good place to be. She’s not so rare that she’ll drive up her price, but she’s not so common that buyers will create a high demand.
And considering the 25th most popular breed in the U.S. is only around a thousand bucks isn’t too shabby!
Havanese Rescue and Adoption
A rescue organization may be the way to go if you can’t see yourself supporting a breeder when there are so many other dogs out there who need homes.
Havanese Rescue is a good place to start, as they specialize in re-homing Havanese dogs that they rescue and foster.
For this reason, rescue organizations will always cost more than your local shelter because they put more effort into the dog.
Foster dogs often live with children, cats, and other dogs in an effort to make them more appealing to those who might be interested in rescuing them.
It is much easier to adopt a dog when you know she’s good with cats/kids/other dogs than a dog who isn’t as friendly.
Shelter dogs, on the other hand, are much cheaper at around $150 for the adoption fee. However, it is usually very much a “what you see is what you get” type of situation.
Either way, it is a noble thing to adopt, and you should certainly look into it if you think you can make it work.
Checkout our Complete Guide to Breeders:
We wrote the definitive guide on finding, selecting, and dealing with dog breeders. This will give you the smarts and confidence to save you money, time and heartache. Read On…
Havanese Cost of Ownership
With a small dog like the Havanese, the cost of ownership isn’t as much of a big deal as it is for the larger breeds out there.
You don’t need to feed her as much, and while she does require regular grooming, she has a smaller body, so it’s easier.
Here are some of the things to factor into whether you could afford to home a Havanese for the better part of the next 13 years or so.
Cost of Food
The price of a Havanese’s diet isn’t going to break your bank.
You should expect to spend $35 every two months or so for one of those big bags of food.
Or, in the event she can’t eat it all in time before it goes stale, you should still do okay buying the smaller bags as you need them.
Check with your vet, though, on which brands and how much food to give your Havanese to keep her at a healthy weight.
Health Care Expenses
Health care expenses are important to consider because you just never know when an emergency is going to pop up.
It’s also good to know which issues affect a particular breed so you can keep an eye out for them and plan accordingly.
In the Havanese’s case, you need to be aware of the following:
- Deafness
- Eye issues
- Hypothyroidism
- Heart problems
- Legg-Calve-Perthes disease
- Luxating patellas
Some of these issues may require long-term care, including supplements and medications. As such, you will need to plan accordingly.
At least you won’t have to spend as much as often on medicine and supplements, though, since they should last you a while with the tiny Havanese.
Helpful Dog Health Resource:
Training Programs
As mentioned earlier, the Havanese lives to please you, so training should not become an issue.
Of course, every dog is an individual, just like people, so she may give you trouble in one area over all the others.
For instance, she may not take well to housebreaking, or she may struggle to learn when is the right time to bark.
If this is the case, you may want to look into dog training programs that can help her meet her goals.
You can sometimes reap the rewards of discounts on packaged lessons but do a little research before you settle on one particular package.
Sometimes you can sign up for a class for just the one behavioral issue, rather than a program of different classes you don’t need.
Helpful Dog Training Resource:
For help with training your dog, you should take a look at The Online Dog Trainer by Doggy Dan. Doggy Dan is an expert Dog Trainer based in New Zealand. His online resource contains Hundreds of Excellent Dog Training Videos that will take you step-by-step through the process of developing a healthy, happy well-behaved dog.
Grooming Costs
You may want to consider paying for grooming if you don’t think you’ll be able to keep up with the Havanese’s requirement for regular brushing.
You’ll need to brush her every day to keep her looking her best.
You may also opt to give her a haircut to cut down on the amount of hair she can shed.
If so, you’ll definitely want to pay a professional to do this. Cut her hair the wrong way, and it cut grow back incorrectly for life.
As an alternative, there are also short-haired Havanese out there. They give you all the joy of owning a Havanese with less of the grooming requirements.
Kailyn has worked as a professional freelance writer since 2012, and during that time she has written about nearly every dog breed imaginable. Her mother loved Collies, and so Kailyn grew up with three of them throughout her childhood – including a blonde one who was half-blind! Now her home belongs to her first official dog, Macho, a Dogo Argentino rescue.
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