After Columbus claimed Cuba for Spain in 1492, Spanish settlers began arriving on the island. With them came their small companion dogs--the ancestors of what's now the Bichon family of dogs.

These dogs interbred and--isolated from other dogs by island life, and later, by trade restrictions imposed on Cuba by Spain--they began to develop into the Havanese we know today. Their signature coat was thick and silky, which helped insulate the dog from the tropical sun (the coat is like raw silk floss, profuse, but extremely light and soft, and insulates against the tropical rays in much the same way that yards of silk sari protect the women of India).

By the early 1800s, Havanese were gracing the laps of many aristocratic families in Cuba. European travelers who became enamored with the breed brought dogs back to England, Spain, and France. The breed became trendy in Europe in the mid-1800s, and Queen Victoria and Charles Dickens were among his well-known fans at the time.

Like most breed trends, this one petered out. At one point the Havanese became almost extinct, even in his native Cuba. A few Cuban families still bred and kept the dogs, however, and with the Cuban Revolution in 1959, 11 Havanese were brought to the U.S. in the arms of their owners.

These canine refugees are the ancestors of most of the Havanese outside of Cuba today.

The renaissance of the breed began in the 1970s,when an American couple who bred dogs found a few descendents of the 11 dogs who were brought from Cuba. Charmed by their intelligence and affectionate nature, they began tracking down other Havanese and working to reestablish the breed.

Because most Havanese outside of Cuba today can trace their ancestry to just 11 dogs, breeders are working to widen the gene pools of the American-bred Havanese.

The American Kennel Club officially recognized the breed in 1995.

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