here are those who
would prefer to adopt a child from an orphanage than conceive one of their own.
There is something noble about getting an unwanted child to care for and raise.
Likewise with choosing a pet. Why not an unwanted dog from a
pound than putting in an order for a special breed? Picking one from a rescue
shelter reduces pet overpopulation.
President Obama promised his girls a pet dog after the
election. He announced during the campaign that they would likely get a mutt
from a rescued shelter, the dog pound.
Their search at rescue shelters was made difficult by
daughter Malia’s allergies, which would rule out mutts that shed hair.
Enter Bo, a 6-month-old puppy, a Portuguese Water Dog (PWD),
given to the Obama children as gifts by Senator and Mrs. Edward Kennedy. Just
right for Malia’s allergies. A PWD does not shed.
Bo had a previous owner who lives in Washington but was
returned to the breeder. Bo is now at the White House, where it is a perfect fit
for the Obama lifestyle, and for Malia’s health concern.
Is Bo a rescue shelter dog or not? Bo never spent time in a
shelter or with a rescue group which makes him a quasi-rescue dog. But he was
rescued from a situation that wasn’t working. Bo came as a gift before the
search was completed, so the Obamas made a gift to some of the places where they
were looking. The Obamas have also made a donation to the Washington Humane
Society.
Did President Obama keep or break a campaign promise by
accepting a bred dog rather than a shelter mutt as the family’s new pet? Who
cares? Let’s worry about the First Daughter’s allergy!
PWDs aren’t for everyone, They tend to be high-energy
in-your-face dogs that need attention, and their curly coats require a lot of
maintenance. They have a can-do and hopeful spirit. They are smart. They are
resilient. They are determined. They are optimistic. And they are tireless.
Sounds like a perfect fit for the Obama family and the Obama administration. Bo
seemed like a good fit because the Obamas are an active family and have the
resources to give him the training and other things he needs.
"...I will say that many animal advocates are disappointed;
so many activists are focused on trying to reduce the number of animals
euthanized at shelters, and there’s no better person to make the case to the
American public that you can get a great dog from a shelter than the president,"
said Cesar Millan, host of the National Geographic Channel’s "The Dog Whisperer"
and co-founder with his wife of a nonprofit foundation to help abused dogs. The
Humane Society acknowledged that the Obamas never flat-out promised to get a dog
from a pound or rescue group.
Abused dogs advocate Cesar Millan should come to the
Philippines and spend all his time spaying pets. Many owners put their animals
in the street at night mating. Hundreds of puppies and kittens are born to roam
the streets unfed. There’s no place to house them, and even animal pounds don’t
want them.
The twists and turns of Bo’s route to the White House make
for the kind of intrigue that political junkies and the highly opinionated dog
world delight in.