Havanese Colours: Every Colour Is Correct

One of the first things people notice about the Havanese is how many colours they come in. Black, white, cream, gold, red, chocolate, silver, sable, brindle and every combination in between: in the Havanese, all colours and patterns are accepted.

Every colour is correct

Many breeds have a short list of approved colours. The Havanese doesn’t. The breed standard accepts every coat colour and pattern, and no colour is preferred over another. That’s why a litter of Havanese puppies can look like a box of assorted chocolates, even when both parents are similar colours.

Some of the colours and patterns you’ll see:

Solid colours such as black, white, cream, gold, red and chocolate
Sable: darker tips on a lighter base coat, often fading as the dog matures
Parti-colour: white with patches of another colour
Brindle: darker stripes through a lighter base
Markings such as tan points, Irish pied (white chest, legs and collar) and silvering

Puppy colour isn’t the final colour

This is the part that surprises most families. A Havanese puppy’s coat often changes a lot as the dog grows up. Gold and sable puppies commonly lighten, sometimes to cream or almost white. Some dogs lighten and then darken again. Others develop colour banding, where a single hair shaft has more than one shade from root to tip.

Puppies that start out very light or white tend to stay that way. For almost every other colour, the eight-week-old puppy in the photo is only a hint of the adult dog.

Why we don’t match puppies by colour

Because the coat changes so much, we encourage families not to choose a puppy on colour alone. We match each puppy to a family based on temperament, the family’s routine and activity level. A puppy whose personality suits your home will make you and the puppy far happier than one whose coat matched your first wish, especially when that coat may look quite different a year from now.