We will be in touch soon to confirm.
Breed guide · Dogs
He brings me a toy every time I sit down. I throw it before I've taken my shoes off.
Last updated 12 October 2026
We will be in touch soon to confirm.
What they brought with them.
Tap a card to see what is going on.
At home
From room to room, usually with a toy.
What's going onThe Havanese was a family dog, not a working one, and many Havapoos want to be wherever the people are. If they are distressed when you leave, that is different, and a reason to contact your vet.
At home
A few strides on three legs, then off again as if nothing happened.
What's going onPatellar Luxation (a slipping kneecap) is the first risk on their record as a puppy and a young dog. Mention the skip to your vet the first time you see it.
At home
A new trick in an afternoon, and the treat cupboard open by the evening.
What's going onThe Poodle half learns fast. Teach them a trick a week, or they will teach themselves to open the treat cupboard.
At home
Hardly any hair on the sofa, and mats behind the ears within a few weeks.
What's going onThe silky coat keeps its loose hair until you brush it out. No dog is guaranteed to be allergy-free: a 2012 study found no less dog allergen in homes with Poodles and Labradoodles than in homes with other dogs.
At home
Head shaking, or scratching one ear with a back foot.
What's going onEar infections are on their record from puppyhood to seven years. Hair grows inside the ear and holds damp, so dry their ears after every bath.
At home
A cloudy look, or bumping into the furniture in the evening.
What's going onCataracts (clouding of the lens) can show up young, and Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA, gradual loss of sight) from four years. Both are worth an ophthalmic evaluation (eye exam).
The bit nobody tells you.
Their parents
Built for: One bred for the middle of a family, one to work beside a person.
In Dubai: Part of the day alone in a flat.
Their head
Built for: A clever one.
In Dubai: Not enough to do with it, most days.
Their knees
Built for: Small knees that can slip, first on their record as a puppy.
In Dubai: Marble floors and a sofa to leap off.
Most of the shadowing from room to room, and most of the boredom, come from that gap.
You can keep them in the middle of things, and the ten things below are how.
Your plan is built around their breed: the risks on a Havapoo's record at every age, and the care that goes with each one.
Join the founding families. AED 1,999 of essential care for AED 199.
Ten things that make their life better.
Patellar Luxation (a slipping kneecap) can come from either side.
Before they come home
Why
Patellar Luxation (a slipping kneecap) can come from either side.
What to do
Ask the breeder which Poodle was used, Toy or Miniature, and whether both parents had their knees and eyes tested. Keep the answers, and bring them to their first vet visit.
The silky coat holds its loose hair, and mats hide sore skin.
Every age, hardest from 6 months to 2 years
Why
The silky coat holds its loose hair, and mats hide sore skin.
What to do
Brush and then comb to the skin every day or two, starting behind the ears, under the harness and in the armpits. Book the groomer on a regular schedule.
Ear infections are on their record from puppy to prime adult.
Every age, most of all from 6 months to 4 years
Why
Ear infections are on their record from puppy to prime adult.
What to do
Look and smell inside their ears once a week, and clean them with your vet's ear cleaner. Dry inside the flaps after every bath. Do not pull hair out of their ears at home. If your vet recommends removing it, a professional groomer or our nurses can do it. For head shaking or a smell, contact your vet. An ear cleaning routine is in your plan from six months to four years.
Dental disease is on their record at every stage, and tops it from four years.
Every age
Why
Dental disease is on their record at every stage, and tops it from four years.
What to do
Every day, with dog toothpaste only. At six months, look for baby teeth that have not come out beside the adult ones. A dental cleaning is in your plan from six months old.
The Poodle half needs something to think about.
Every age, most of all from 6 months to 2 years
Why
The Poodle half needs something to think about.
What to do
Two five-minute sessions a day, paid from their dinner. Hide-and-seek with a toy is a good start.
The Havanese was bred to be with its family all day.
Every age, most of all from 6 months to 2 years
Why
The Havanese was bred to be with its family all day.
What to do
Put their bed in the room you use most. Build up time alone slowly from puppyhood, and arrange a visit or daycare on long days. If they are distressed when you leave, contact your vet.
They like to meet you with something in their mouth.
Every age
Why
They like to meet you with something in their mouth.
What to do
Keep their toy where they can reach it when you come home. When they take something else, swap it for a treat, and never chase.
A full, silky coat, and 45°C summers.
Every age, most of all puppies and from 7 years
Why
A full, silky coat, and 45°C summers.
What to do
From May to September, walk before sunrise and after dark. Put the back of your hand on the pavement for five seconds first. Ask your groomer about a shorter summer clip.
Patellar Luxation (a slipping kneecap) is their first health risk as a puppy.
Every age, most of all up to 7 years
Why
Patellar Luxation (a slipping kneecap) is their first health risk as a puppy.
What to do
Rugs where they turn on marble, a ramp to the sofa, and lift them down rather than letting them jump. Keep them lean, because every extra gram lands on their knees. Patellar Luxation screening (a check for a slipping kneecap) is in your plan at their puppy visits, and an orthopaedic evaluation from six months to four years.
A silky coat hides weight gain, and cataracts can start young.
Every age
Why
A silky coat hides weight gain, and cataracts can start young.
What to do
Feel their ribs through the coat, look at the skin, and look at their eyes in good light. Weigh them once a month.
Four of these are in your plan. The rest you can do at home.
Join the founding families. AED 1,999 of essential care for AED 199.
Their health, at every age.
How old are they?
Their age
the first six months
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
6 months to 2 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
2 to 4 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
4 to 7 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
7 to 10 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
10 years and over
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Breed predispositions indicate an increased risk rather than certainty of disease. What is right for them always comes from their own history and an evaluation.
Before they come home.
Toy or mini Havapoo
A Havapoo has a Havanese parent and either a Toy or a Miniature Poodle, and the Poodle's size sets the puppy's. Some are first crosses, and some are bred back to a Poodle for a second generation. Ask the breeder which Poodle was used, and which kind of cross you are meeting.
Colours
A Havapoo can wear any of the Havanese's many colours and markings, or one of the Poodle's solid shades, from cream and apricot to silver and brown.
The first six months
Their full vaccination course, microchip and Dubai Municipality registration come first, with screening for a slipping kneecap. Start brushing their teeth and handling their ears now, while they sit happily on your lap for it.
Puppy health, 0 to 6 months
Getting the home ready
Put rugs on marble and a ramp up to the sofa for young knees. Give them a bed in the room you use most, and a safe spot with a chew for short spells alone.
Ten things that make their life better
Before you commit
Ask the breeder for both parents' knee and eye test results. A slipping kneecap can come from either parent, and eye problems from the Havanese side.
Before the clinics open
AED 1,999 of essential care for AED 199. No payment now.
For a new puppy: First 30 days with a new puppy · Puppy vaccinations in the UAE · Heatstroke in dogs
When it is not behaviour.
He'll keep bringing the toy. If he skips on one back leg chasing it, call your vet.
Before they were yours.
Before 1900
The Poodle brought ducks back out of the water for hunters, and its name comes from the German "pudeln", to splash in water. The smaller Poodles were later kept as companions and performers.
What they still carryA quick mind, a love of tricks, and a coat that keeps growing.
Cuba to 1996
Small Bichon-family dogs became the lap dogs of Cuban families. After the 1959 revolution a few were taken to the United States, the breed was rebuilt there, and the American Kennel Club recognised it in 1996.
What they still carryA family dog, happiest in the middle of things.
The cross begins
Breeders in the United States crossed the Havanese with Toy and Miniature Poodles, for a small, sociable dog with a coat that sheds less.
What they still carryA family dog with a Poodle's brain.
Today
In the UAE a Havapoo is a family dog, in a flat or a villa. They want to be in the room with you, and to have something to do while they are there.
What they still carryA dog who wants to be where the people are.
The ones you type at midnight.
If the Havapoo suits you, so might these.
CockapooThe same kind of dog: a small Poodle cross, with a Cocker Spaniel for the other parent.
MaltipooAnother small Poodle cross, calmer, with a Maltese parent and a coat that sheds even less.
Miniature PoodleThe same bright, sociable temperament, from the purebred Poodle side of the family.
WestiepooA Poodle cross with a Westie parent: a similar size, and the same low-shedding coat to keep trimmed.
