Best Dog Food for Havanese: Top Picks for Health, Energy and Coat Shine

Have a cutie Hav and looking for the best dog food for Havanese breed? You have come to right place, read on.

The Havanese is the canine pride and joy of Cuba. It is the only native dog breed of the region since the Blanquito went extinct.

The toy group pup is lively, energetic and full of love. Regal in stature and attitude, the Havanese will bring you years of joy, cuddles, and loyalty.

This article will look at the common health issues and recommended feedings of the silky-haired dog. We will recommend what should and shouldn’t be in your dog’s food as well as provide you with a starting point to selecting the best brands.

Why Quality Food Matters

The puppy life stage should have more fats than any other stage, but you cannot let it become a habit. Into adulthood, the Havanese will need more crude proteins and vitamins from natural sources.

By the time they are in the senior life stage, fewer proteins are okay as long as they are replaced by vitamins and minerals that protect teeth, bones, and muscles.

 

Best Dog Food for Havanese

Finding your specific and favorite brand will be a matter of choice and trial and error. Finding the perfect match is crucial, though. This list should help get you started.

1. Ollie Pet Food

If you are concerned about your dog’s health and wellness, you should make an effort to feed your dog the best diet you can afford and, if you want to go above and beyond, you should consider feeding your dog Ollie pet food.

Ollie is a pet food company that was founded in 2016 by Gabby Slome, Alex Douzet, and Randy Jimenez. This New York-based pet food company set out to turn the pet food industry on its head by offering fresh, custom meals for dogs similar to meal-prep services like Maple and Sprig for humans.

The recipe takes things to the next level by customizing their meals using specific information about your dog such as breed, activity level, and age.

Ollie’s fresh food is made and hand-packed in the USA. We partner with a veterinary nutritionist to formulate our nutritionally-balanced recipes in accordance with AAFCO standards. All of their foods are cooked in small batches in our USDA-regulated kitchen.

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2. Iams ProActive Health Adult Small Breed

This is a vet-recommended dry dog food specially formulated for small breed adult dogs weighing 20 pounds or less. Made of farm-raised chicken, this Iams recipe has high-quality protein to help your little Havanese build and maintain lean, strong muscles.

Chicken gives this dry dog food a rich and savory flavor, as well as highly digestible protein. Chicken by-product meal and dried egg product provide additional sources of protein. This Iams recipe for small breed pups is 27% protein. It is free from wheat, soy, and artificial preservatives.

Iams ProActive Health has digestible grains and vegetables that give your dog a strong immune system, healthy skin and coat, and strong bones. A special blend of antioxidants helps boost the immune system as well. This recipe also has 7 essential nutrients that nourishes the heart.

For a healthy digestive system, this Iams recipe is enriched with a tailored fiber blend, prebiotics, and beet pulp. Good gut health allows the body to absorb more nutrients. L-carnitine is also added to help burn fat and keep a healthy metabolism, which is very important in small breed dogs.

Based on product reviews, many small puppers are thriving well on Iams ProActive Health Adult Small Breed dry food. They love the delicious chicken flavor, and the small kibbles make it easier for the little dogs to chew and digest. Numerous dog parents attribute the good overall health of their dog to Iams ProActive Health.

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3. AvoDerm Advanced Sensitive Support Lamb Formula 

Specially designed to cater to the unique dietary needs of small-breed adult dogs with sensitive stomachs and skin. This premium dry dog food features lamb as the primary protein source, offering a rich, high-quality source of essential nutrients and a delicious flavor that even picky eaters love.

The grain-free formula eliminates potential allergens like corn, wheat, and soy, while providing balanced nutrition to promote overall health.

Enhanced with omega-rich avocados, the recipe supports healthy skin and a shiny coat, addressing common sensitivity issues with natural and nourishing ingredients.

This formula includes a precise blend of prebiotics, fiber, and easily digestible carbohydrates, which work together to support gentle digestion and maintain a healthy gut.

The kibble is crafted in a size and texture tailored for small breed dogs, making it easy for them to chew and enjoy every bite. AvoDerm Advanced Sensitive Support also includes antioxidants and essential vitamins to bolster your dog's immune system and keep them thriving.

Customers rave about the noticeable improvements in their dogs' coat health, with many highlighting how shiny and soft their furry friends look after switching to this formula.

Pet parents also appreciate how this food reduces symptoms of food sensitivities, such as itching, redness, and digestive upsets. Many reviewers love that their small breed dogs eagerly eat this food, even those known to be finicky eaters.

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4. The Honest Kitchen Grain-Free Chicken Recipe

Treat your dog to this dehydrated food—a meal that is both nutritious and delicious! This is a grain-free, human grade recipe produced in a human grade facility. Made without corn, wheat or soy, this grain-free formula is paw-sitively perfect for doggos with food sensitivities.

It is dehydrated rather than cooked at high temperature which preserves more of the nutritional integrity of the raw ingredients. Plus, you need to rehydrate it with water or broth before serving which makes it a moisture-rich diet for your dog.

This particular recipe features free-range chicken as the main ingredient with grain-free carbohydrates like flaxseed and sweet potatoes with dried fruits and veggies to provide a boost of premium-quality nutrition.

It is complete and balanced thanks to fortification with essential vitamins and chelated minerals, plus it provides the optimal balance of protein and healthy fats.

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5. Merrick Salmon & Sweet Potato Recipe

Merrick is well known for the attention to ingredients, only using what is essential to get the required proteins and fats. The new formula will net your dog a minimum of 34 percent crude proteins, 14 percent minimum fats and 4.5 percent fiber.

Most Havanese love the flavors and will devour the bowl as soon as it is placed in front of them. For those looking to avoid peas or white potatoes, though, you will need to look elsewhere.

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6. Caru Daily Dish Beef with Chicken Stew

This chicken stew from Caru is a grain-free wet dog food made with 100% human-grade ingredients. Gently prepared in small batches, this tasty stew is free from grains, gluten, GMOs, artificial enhancers, preservatives, carrageenan, xanthan, guar or locust bean gum.

According to the brand, all of their products are specially formulated for dogs with allergies, dogs in recovery, dogs with poor appetites, unhealthy and/or older dogs. Their food are designed to be highly palatable and nutrient-dense.

With USDA-inspected beef and chicken, you can rest assured that every serving of this recipe gives only high-quality protein to your tiny pooch. Chickpeas, apples, carrots, pumpkin, and other nutritious whole foods serve as sources of carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

This tasty beef and chicken stew is fortified with vitamins and mineral supplements for complete and balanced nutrition in every serving.

These ingredients are slow-cooked at low temperatures to ensure the retention of nutrients. For an extra tasty meal, Caru recommends gently heating before serving to your little pup.

According to consumers, this stew is a hit among dogs of all ages. They love the rich-tasting sauce and gobble up the meaty chunks as well as the veggies. Not one drop of sauce is wasted on the excited pups.

Dog parents buy it because of the high-quality human-grade ingredients. It gives them the confidence that they are feeding their pets only the best quality, nutritious food. However, some buyers find this product a bit too expensive for regular feedings.

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7. Halo Holistic Chicken & Chicken Liver Small Breed

This is a grain-inclusive dry dog food specially formulated for small breed adult dogs 25 pounds or less. Made with responsibly sourced whole meats and non-GMO vegetables, and never any meat meals – this recipe is free from animal by-products and added hormones.

With 27% protein, this dog food ensures a rich and flavor-packed meal in every serving. Chicken, especially chicken liver is probably loved by all dogs of any age.

With the addition of chicken fat, it not only provides an extra tasty meal, but also a highly nutritious one. Dried egg product, pea protein, and soy protein concentrate are included as additional sources of protein.

This product has oatmeal, pearled barley as the main sources of carbohydrates and fiber. Wholesome, non-GMO sweet potatoes, blueberries, carrots and cranberries give your dog’s meals essential antioxidants, fiber and vitamins for a complete and balanced nutrition.

This chicken and chicken liver recipe has Halo’s unique DreamCoat blend. DreamCoat is a combination of botanicals and other ingredients that has essential fatty acids that help promote healthy skin and glossy coats.

According to reviews, the small kibble size makes it easy to chew even for senior small breed pups. This holistic recipe is also quite gentle even on sensitive stomachs. The dogs are able to keep this food down without getting upset tummies. However, few reviews state that this dry food has an odor that is too strong for their liking.

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8. Rachael Ray Nutrish Little Bites Natural Real Chicken & Veggies Recipe

The little Bites lines from Rachael Ray is crafted for small breeds. This chicken and vegetable dry dog food recipe is created simply, with natural ingredients that include chicken farm-raised in the U.S., peas, carrots, and brown rice to provide a flavor that will satisfy your pup.

This formula offers balanced nutrition without any fillers, artificial ingredients, or poultry by-product meal. The brown rice packs each meal with fiber and healthy carbohydrates and added beet pulp delivers prebiotics to support digestive health.

Plus, the small kibble shape is perfect for smaller teeth, and helps keep teeth and gums clean and healthy. So fill up his bowl and keep your tiny but mighty pup healthy with every bite.

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9. Taste of the Wild High Prairie Puppy

This brand brings flavors from across the country to your dog's bowl. They select various regions and pull their proteins, vitamins, and minerals from naturally occurring plants, animals and foods of that area. Considered a more exotic protein source, you will find foods like salmon, buffalo, and lamb.

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10. Nutro Ultra Senior Dry Dog

Nutro Senior formulas have all the nutrients your dog needs to continue his active and healthy lifestyle. With glucosamine and chondroitin added for proper bone health and teeth support.

The dry food also mixes well with wet food and water for easier eating and protection of older teeth. The first five ingredients are Chicken, Chicken Meal (source of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate), Whole Brown Rice, Brewers Rice, Rice Bran.

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Havanese Common Health Issues

Havaneses have several health concerns that you should have checked out. Most honest breeders will show you papers and records of both parents. However, even the purest of gene pools don’t always protect your pup from these conditions.

Entropion – Eyelids are important to keep the eyes lubricated, clear of dust and debris and to help the eye recover from injuries. The eyelid, when affected by entropion, folds inward. This causes the eyelashes to rest and scratch on the eye surface.

Over time this can cause injuries to the cornea and iris which will need to be treated medically. Left untreated your Havanese can experience keratitis or inner eye inflammation. It is a genetic disease, for the most part.

However, there are several other factors thought to be a secondary cause. Poor diet can cause fat loss and muscle loss in the eye socket that can lead to the condition. The base treatment is careful monitoring and looking for a root cause. If none is found (meaning it is genetic) surgery is the only answer.

Legg-Calve-Perthes – Legg-Calve-Perthes, also known as LCP, is a condition that affects small dogs like the Havanese. It is similar to hip dysplasia where the hip bone, or ball socket section, is deformed or miss-sized.

In LCP, it is the leg bone, or the ball section of the hip joint that is deformed or damaged. The most common reason for this is lack of proper blood supply to the area. This can be hereditary or caused by injury. It usually manifests as a lame leg, limping, rear leg pain and difficulty walking.

You will most likely find this in your Havanese in the puppy life stage between five and 12 months. The treatment is surgery, which usually requires the removal of the ball end of the femur and moving the muscle to act as the joint.

Surgery is accepted well and most recovery is near 90 percent. A simple X-ray will diagnose the condition if you fear your Havanese is suffering. Proper diet and nutrition for the puppy stage including vitamins and minerals for bone health and muscle growth can help to prevent the condition, though may not be 100 percent able to if the issue is genetic.

What to Look for in Quality Dog Food

High-quality dog food matters. The ingredients matter and where those ingredients are sourced matters. Let’s take a look at what you should be looking for on the ingredient list for your Havanese.

Meat Proteins – The most important aspect is the protein. Dogs are designed to eat and process meat proteins. This means that vegetables, fruits, and berries should be secondary in their diet. Most of the crude protein and fats need to come from real meat sources.

These sources can be chicken, beef, pork, game or fowl, but should be listed as which specific protein on the label. It should also be the first ingredient with most of the total crude proteins coming from this source.

Vegetables – Aside from meat proteins, carefully selected vegetables should be used to provide natural sources of vitamins and minerals. While there is nothing wrong with extra, or added, vitamins and minerals, the bulk should come from things like sweet potatoes, white potatoes, carrots, and kale.

Fatty acids, Omega-3s, and other vitamins may come from other sources. However, most of the essential nutrients (aside from protein) should be sourced from fruits, veggies, and berries.

Ingredients to Avoid

Just as there are things to look for to include in your dog’s diet, there are a few things you should look to avoid completely.

Meat Byproduct – Anytime you see “meat byproduct” on the label you should walk away. If the meat source isn’t listed (for example “chicken byproduct”), you should run away.

Byproduct is a food source that is essentially the waste portions of the animals at slaughter, animals that have died or become diseased and had to be put down, and expired meats added to the mixer that produces the byproduct (including the packaging it comes in).

The FDA has mandated that byproduct is non-consumable for humans. However, it is allowed for canines. There is zero to no nutritional value of byproduct, no proteins and can actually make your dog sick.

Artificial Colors and Dyes – Another thing to look for are artificial colors and dyes. You recognize these on the label as things like Blue 40, or Yellow 5 & 6. Not only can these additives stain your dog's fur, feet and face, they can also cause allergic reactions.

While most Havanese are not highly susceptible to allergens, it is still best to avoid the chance. And since almost every Havanese pup has a white or light-colored muzzle, the staining will be prevalent.

Our Bad Dog Food Brands

There are several brands you should avoid. Some on the list may surprise you. However, marketing being what it is, the scary truth is that you don’t want to have these foods anywhere near your dog.

Each of the following brands is known to contain one or more of the ingredients you should avoid. This includes meat byproducts, artificial ingredients and may be lacking in any meat protein at all.

• Purina Beneful
• Ol’ Roy by Walmart
• Pedigree
• Kal Kan

Always ensure you double check the ingredient list before making a final purchase. You should also recheck the ingredients of your favorite brand regularly as recipes and manufacturing processes are known to change.

Feeding Chart

Individual dogs will vary on when and how much they eat. Even the nibbling Havaneses are known to be picky eaters. The following information is just a guide. If you think your dog may be eating too much or not enough, seek out the advice of your veterinarian.

Puppies should have between ¼ and 1/3 cup of food per meal. Puppies grow fast and for the first six to 12 months will need this amount three times per day.

After the 12th month, you can increase the amount to ½ cups per meal and feed twice a day. Some Havanese will need less, while others have been known to eat up to 2 cups per day.

Seniors will also need two daily feedings of about a ½ cup each. The amounts and frequencies of feedings will, of course, depend on the health, age and activity level of your specific pup.

How much should I feed my Havanese?

Puppies should be fed 3 times a day. I feed approximately 1/8 cup dry food per feeding for an 8 week old pup. Pick up the food bowl after 15-20 minutes. It is also a good idea to turn the food dish or to offer your puppy bits from your hand now and then.

Are Havanese picky eaters?

A Havanese who does not empty the bowl is not necessarily a picky eater. New owners can become quite distraught about their pet not getting enough and may decide to supplement the diet with tasty hand fed morsels.

How often should you bathe your Havanese?

Not many Havanese enjoy their bath but it is a good plan to bathe them once a week. Sometimes every two weeks is adequate. It does not hurt a dog's skin or coat to bathe weekly. As a matter of fact, when professional handlers take a dog to a show, and want a better coat, they bathe the dog twice a week.

Do Havanese like to cuddle?

Havanese are very people-oriented dogs, love snuggling in laps, and can be overly dependent -- they don't do well at all when left for long periods of time without companionship. Though peaceful and gentle with everyone (humans and other pets), the Havanese can be conservative with strangers.