The Obama Family Welcomes The New First Dog
The US has a new First Pet, a dog named Bo, and everyone is a-twitter about his arrival. Late Friday, TMZ scooped the DC media with all the deets about the new First Dog days ahead of a supposed exclusive that was to come from the Washington Post. Here is our first look at Bo Obama (named after Bo Diddly) and the First Family Barack, Michelle, Sasha and Malia Obama welcoming him into the fold:
Forget about hunting for Easter eggs. The president’s daughters have a much better treat in store this holiday weekend: a new dog! After months of anticipation, a 6-month-old Portuguese Water Dog named Bo is now calling the White House home. First, the name. According to the Washington Post, which published confirmation of the White House dog news Sunday, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, chose the name because their cousins have a cat named Bo and because Mrs. Obama’s father was nicknamed Diddley, as in Bo Diddley. The dog is a gift from Sen. Ted Kennedy, who owns three dogs of the same breed, known for high spirits and said to be a good fit for kids with allergies (such as Malia). Kennedy had been lobbying the Obamas to get a Portuguese Water Dog (or PWD) for months. The newspaper reports that the Obama girls are delighted – they’ve been waiting anxiously since their dad promised them a dog during his presidential campaign – and that the family, first-time dog owners, are still deciding where Bo will sleep and who will walk and feed him. Under a veil of secrecy, the Post reports, Bo actually made a trip to the White House earlier to meet the family. “The Meeting,” as it was called by staffers, was a success. But the highly-orchestrated canine delivery procedure didn’t go without a few hitches. First, news began to circulate that a Portuguese Water Dog by the name of Charlie had been selected for the First Family after a Web site called firstdogcharlie.com posted the information, and a photo, Saturday. The White House called the photo “bogus” and told news organizations (including PEOPLE) that the First Dog would make its debut Tuesday – although Bo, it is now apparent, was already at the White House over the weekend. Then there are the questions about the dog’s origins that are sure to bedevil the Administration. The Obamas originally discussed rescuing a dog from a shelter. But valuable and highly-bred PWDs rarely show up at shelters. Bo is said to have lived with a family that decided not to keep him, but that won’t likely satisfy animal rescue advocates who wanted the Obamas to take in a stray. To help ease disappointment, according to the Washington Post, the family will make a donation to the District of Columbia Humane Society.
So much drama over such a little guy. While I understand that the new Presidential pooch had to be allergen-free so that the Obama girls (who are allergic) could live with him, all of the hoopla about his pedigree and where he came from is a bit ridiculous. All of the “top secrecy” of his procurement is equally ridic. But, at last, Bo has joined the First Family and now, hopefully, we can move on. Welcome to the White House, Bo!
Tags: Barack Obama, Bo Obama, Malia Ann Obama, Michelle Obama, Natasha Obama
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April 12th, 2009 at 8:46 am
Really? All this over a dog? I worked for a non-profit, no-kill animal shelter for two years as their accountant, part-time dog washer, part-time vet tech, part time adoption counselor…you see where I am going with this. The Obamas raised awareness of shelter animals just by the sheer amount of time they spent TALKING about wanting a shelter dog. Face it, People, their family had restrictions, namely Malia’s allergies. Not everyone can find a suitable dog at a shelter, and that is okay. You can bet this dog didn’t come from a puppy mill, and at the end of the day, that is all I care about.
Think of all the families who are now considering shelter animals, or have adopted shelter animals just by all the discussions the Obamas started. Good for them, I’m glad the Obama Girls finally have their dog and can enjoy him without PETA showing up and throwing whatever it is they throw at people who don’t do exactly as they preach. Calm down. It’s a family dog for little girls. Let’s worry about the economy, rights for gays and all minorities, and terrorism.
Welcome, Bo! i hope your White House handlers or the Secret Service are more attentive than poor Buddy’s were. How about we all just advocate a leash for Bo?!
April 12th, 2009 at 9:05 am
First, Happy Easter! Secondly, it IS ridiculous, but I understand why they want to be hush-hush about it. I read a story the other day about Joe Biden picking a dog from a breeder. The breeder has been receiving death threats for 3 months because of PETA! They believe he should have gone to a shelter instead of a breeder. Which yeah, it would have been nice to rescue a dog (all of my dogs have come from a shelter), but not everyone wants a mutt & not everyone wants to wait for the breed they want to end up in a shelter.
April 12th, 2009 at 9:52 am
everyone knows you can’t name a dog “bo” …. how will it ever distinguish its name and the word no? duh….
April 12th, 2009 at 10:28 am
BO is cute because it is also their dad’s initials? :) good for them, what a cute puppy!
April 12th, 2009 at 11:14 am
I myself would not want a dog(or a cat) to live at my house, but I like to visit other peoples dogs for a few minutes. Glad they found a dog.
April 12th, 2009 at 11:22 am
I have a Portie and he is awesome. I was excited to see that the Obama’s picked a Portie. They are very high energy and dont shed. He wont be little for long. They are very big dogs and VERY loving. My dog’s name is Romeo for a reason.
April 12th, 2009 at 3:27 pm
my dog’s boyfriend is a PWD- the most gorgeous, but devilishly misbehaving dog EVER.
haha… BO…
(i need to grow up!)
April 12th, 2009 at 4:00 pm
Chrissy, I also have two PWDs. However, mine topped out at 40 and 50 lbs respectively. They are very big mushes, I must say. I am happy that they chose a fabulous breed, but I’m also worried how this will affect the breed. Does anyone remember 101 Dalmatians? After that film, people began buying Dalmatians like crazy…and a couple of years later, shelters were filled with them! I hope that the attention brought to this breed is not negative!
And Danna, yeah, that was my first thought when I heard the name Bo. Bo, no…even I would get confused!
April 12th, 2009 at 6:46 pm
P. S. There are no such things as an allergen free dog. Trust me…I’ve tried.
April 12th, 2009 at 7:05 pm
I didn’t understand why Obama made such a big deal to say they would get a pet from a shelter when it was pretty obvious because of the allergy issue that they would not follow through… I guess I see Christine’s point but I think ksae’s is more likely to become true.
So it is a gift from Ted Kennedy via a family who couldn’t keep the dog?? Huh.
April 12th, 2009 at 10:27 pm
One thing that drives me crazy is all this talk of “hypoallergenic” dogs. THERE IS NO SUCH THING. Anything with skin, fur, saliva (all the things that cause the allergic reaction in the first place) can cause allergic outbreaks in people. While certain breeds tend to shed less and have dander/saliva that have a lower incidence of reactions, they are not hypoallergenic. *sigh*
Not sure why it bothers me so much, but I’m off of my soapbox now. All that being said, I hope Bo brings the Obama family lots of smile and love. Congratulations to them! :)
April 13th, 2009 at 5:52 am
according to tmz:
reports that Ted Kennedy gave the puppy to the First Family as a gift — untrue. It was re-homed by the kennel and the Kennedy family only facilitated the transfer.
– the pup was coming from a Texas kennel
– the kennel had sold Senator Ted Kennedy 3 Portuguese Water Dogs in the past, all from the same lineage
– the dog the Obama’s were getting is also from the same lineage as the Kennedy dogs
– the Obama dog was originally sold to a private owner, who returned it
– the dog was named Charlie, but the Obamas planned to rename it
– the dog was going to be “re-homed” to the Obamas from the kennel, and presented to the Obamas by the Kennedy family
– the reason it’s important that the dog was “re-homed” is because the Obamas could not accept the dog as a gift, and re-homing averts the problem.
– the dog will be officially presented to the Obamas by the Kennedys on Tuesday
April 13th, 2009 at 7:35 am
Okay, I have not laughed this hard in a long time. Bo “will be officially presented to the Obamas by the Kennedys on Tuesday”???? Really? That is HILARIOUS! I love that the Kennedys managed to squeeze their way into this one. Wow, that family REALLY knows how to work the press. Will they trot out Ted Kennedy (isn’t he really, really sick and weak?), or will one of the lesser Kennedys get the call. Are they all waiting by their phones, or texting back and forth fighting over who will get to present the dog? The picture in my head is very amusing.
I completely agree that there does need to be some damage control immediately to avoid a situation like what occurred with “101 Dalmations”. I worked at the shelter during this time, and it was heartbreaking how many dalmations were surrendered because they are such an active breed and many people were not prepared for it. The AKC or some other expert body needs to release a statement with the VERY SPECIFIC breed characteristics of the PWD to stop this from happening.
Secondly, just do your own homework! There is a dog for every family, but you have to actually research them, because they are all so different. I personally rescue Australian Shepherds, but they are not for everyone as they are extremely high energy and intelligent (as in one of mine locked me out of the house once, surely accidental…).
Thirdly, every breed is prone to its very specific health problems. Look them up! Don’t be surprised when your pure breed dog gets one of the health problems that the breed is known for. I have a mutt who is 13 years old and never had a single health problem. Not so for my Aussies.
April 13th, 2009 at 3:48 pm
I’d never name a dog anything that sounds that close to the word “No.”
Dog looks like he’d make an excellent mop.
April 14th, 2009 at 4:53 am
omg i wouldnt ever get a dog as ugly as that!!! lol :P