Recently in Presidential pets Category
Well, sort of.
Slow news day at the White House apparently, but Bo the Dog got some extra attention from the Washington press corps earlier this week.
Photos courtesy of ABC News..
Our friends at the Baltimore Sun's Unleashed blog inform us that First Dog Bo Obama now has a very special "non-drool" bowl.
The non-spill water bowl comes from Road Refresher and claims to be especially handy when pets must travel.
Designer Natalie Ellis created the bowl, a replica of the White House with Bo's name in rhinestones.
OK, so I've been wondering what's happened to Bo the First Dog?
After a flashy unveiling earlier this month, the Portuguese water dog seemed to vanish from view.
Where's Bo? Is someone walking and playing with him? Has he destroyed the drapes yet?
Well now Rachel L. Swarns of the New York Time's Caucus Blog gets to the bottom of the mystery.
Meet Mr. Haney.
Dale Haney, it just so happens, is a White House horticulturalist who has tended every presidential dog since King Timahoe, Richard M. Nixon's Irish setter.
Wow. Some gig, huh?
I must say that Mr. Haney looks a bit distracted in the photo caught above, however. And there's not a lot of walking going on, though Bo is trying his best, straining for freedom.
The news might come as something of a surprise to those who remember President Obama's dog declaration earlier this month. He announced, as he introduced Bo to the American public, that he and his wife and two daugthers would be walking the dog. "We all have to take turns walking the dog," the president said. "We're trying to be responsible dog owners.
Ah, and so the truth comes out. First Lady Michelle Obama admitted to a group of school children recently that Bo woke up the entire Obama houshold with his barking one night last week.
"Oh, he is a crazy dog," she said. "He -- you know, he loves to chew on people's feet."
So for now, it's Bo and Mr. Haney.
The Times said Mr. Haney was unavailable for comment.
Photo: Doug Mills
Well that sure didn't take long.
Bo, the new First Dog, already has a children's book written in his honor. Titled Bo, America's Commander in Leash, the book by Naren Aryal (published by Mascot) is expected to be in book stores by the end of this week.
We posted before about the dad of Bo, the new First Dog. Now, just as we predicted, another relative has surfaced, this one a half sister named Ruby in Minnesota. Reporter Laurie Swenson of the Bemidji Pioneer reported on the find below.
A Bemidji (MN) family has a White House canine connection. Ruby, a 2-year-old Portuguese water dog owned by Julie Quanrud and her husband, Ric Meixell, is the half-sister of President Barack Obama's new family dog, Bo.
"I was suspicious because the muzzle is the same," Quanrud said, adding that she became even more suspicious when she saw the Obama family's dog had the exact same white markings as Julius, a full sibling of ruby's. After discovering the Ruby and Bo have the same father -- Valkyrie's Dr. Watson Is Here -- Quanrud received about 20 e-mails Tuesday afternoon from fellow members of the Portuguese Water Dog Club of America (Twin Cities) who saw reports of the presidential pooch and knew Ruby's lineage.
"To think that this dog is lying on the carpet in the White House right now, and we're sitting her with his sister, is pretty wild," Quanrud said.
Photo: Laurie Swenson/Pioneer
We're not sure if Bo is getting to use his special Summa Canum dog house, a gift from Sustainable Pet Design of Los Angeles.
We posted earlier about the special gift of the White House dog house.
The dog house is very nice.
But we sort of hope Bo is getting to snuggle up with his kids in their beds at night.
At the urging of my colleague Sandy Mazza -- who has (nicely) demanded that more Bo photos be published on this blog -- here is a Baltimore Sun link to numerous photos of the new First Dog, a few of which we've posted below. Sandy is specifically hoping to see a shot of Bo wearing a little jacket, but I am not sure he has that much of a wardrobe yet. Give it time.
And there's more on Bo's debut today at CNN.
Enjoy.
Photo: Mandel Ngan, AFP/Getty Images
Bo: Ready for his closeup.
AP Photo
Below: Learning to hang on (AP Photo)
Wouldn't you know it, now everyone's trying to get into the act.
Bo's kin are now seeking the public spotlight. Given time, this could reveal a mongrel or two (every family has one, you know), trying to cash in on the clan's new White House fame.
Turns out Bo's dad, however, is a respectable pedigree named Watson, according to this article from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Craig Rader of Ambridge shows off his Portuguese water dog, Watson, the father to President Obama's new puppy Bo.
On a day when our nation's first puppy got acquainted with his White House surroundings, his father, Watson, lounged inside a strip mall in Ambridge.
Seemingly unaware of his progeny's sudden star status, Watson carried on as usual: napping, monitoring sidewalk traffic and nestling his head into customers walking through the door of 21st Century Media, his owner Craig Rader's home electronics business along Ohio River Boulevard.
The Raders got a phone call Sunday night during Easter dinner informing them that the Obamas had chosen 6-month-old Bo, a Texas-born Portuguese water dog and son of Watson, as their family pet.
"We're very shocked and surprised that we're now related to the Obamas -- through dog relations," said Susan Rader, at home in Ambridge yesterday with her sons, 4-year-old Garrett and 2-year-old Kyle.
April 13, 2009
Letter to the Editor:
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles (spcaLA) is dismayed by the decision of the White House to obtain a purebred dog. They cite "the hypo allergenic" quality of the Portuguese Water Dog to break their promise of adopting a shelter dog i.e. "a mutt like me" (President Obama).
There is no such thing as a hypo allergenic dog. There are numerous dogs, poodles, terriers etc. that are as less aggravating to allergies as the water dog. There are millions of such dogs in shelters throughout the country! There was no need to go to a purebred.
Choosing a shelter dog would have saved lives. Americans tend to follow the examples of their leaders whether in fashion, music or planting a vegetable garden. Adopting a shelter dog would have inspired millions of people to do the same which would have provided homes and saved the lives of dogs already in existence rather than encouraging breeders to make more.
This choice will also mark the end of the Portuguese Water Dog for generations to come as unscrupulous breeders and profiteers will indiscriminately breed the dog for a quick, tax free dollar. One need only to look at Collies, Dalmatians, Sheep Dogs showcased in movies and television shows to see the effects of this "copy cat syndrome." Hoards of genetically deranged and sick puppies flooded the market until the breeds were stigmatized.
Humans are not shocked and can speak out when a politician breaks a promise. Shelter animals across the country will continue to wait for hope and weep in silence.
About the Bloggers
Daily Breeze reporter Donna Littlejohn has shared her homes with a succession of wonderful, funny, and occasionally difficult canines -- Muffin, Fritz, Ellie, Mercy, Pilgrim and now Cowboy, an Australian shepherd-border collie, and Tess, a border collie. From strong-willed terriers to weirdly obsessed Australian shepherds, they've invaded her world with boundless energy, wet noses, muddy paws and soggy tennis balls. But they've really brought so much more than that -- like laughter and joy, some unexpected life lessons, and more than a few tears along the way.
E-mail Donna at donna.littlejohn@dailybreeze.com.
Josh Grossberg grew up with the usual array of animals: goldfish, dogs, hamsters, parakeets and turtles. He now owns the loudest dog in the South Bay(Video: Rocket the Dog) and is the least popular person on his block. He spends his free time in dog parks, pet shops and always has an extra plastic bag in his pocket just in case. He also has a cat.
E-mail Josh at josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com.