A surprising issue that has arisen in the American political arena is not foreign policy, but rather which breed of dog the Obama's chose to join their family in the White House. Barack Obama has announced that his family narrowed their breed choices to a Labradoodle, a mix between a Labrador retriever and a Poodle, and a Portuguese water dog. Both breeds are large, with curly hair and a mild amount of shedding.
Obama stated in interviews that a limiting factor was his daughter Malia's allergies. They decided on a six month old Portuguese water dog they named Bo. The dog is a gift from Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, who owns several Portuguese water dogs.
There has been a long history of pets in the White House. Most Presidential pooches have been pure-breed dogs, including "Buddy" Clinton, a chocolate Labrador retriever and "Barney" and "Miss Beazley" Bush, both Scottish terriers. Bush Sr. had a Springer Spaniel named "Millie" that gave birth to puppies while at the White House. Ford's Golden Retriever "Liberty" also had a litter of puppies. Reagan owned a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel named "Rex" and a Bouvier des Flandres named "Lucky". James Garfield named his dog "Veto".
There have been some mix-breed dogs in the White House though: Abraham Lincoln's dog "Fido" and Lyndon B. Johnson's dog "Yuki" were both strays that found a home in the most prominent house in the world. Cats have also lived at the White House, most notably "Socks" Clinton. Eleven presidents have brought their cats to the White House, including Lincoln, McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, Kennedy, Ford, Carter, Clinton, and George W. Bush. Although the standard White House pets are dogs and cats, a few presidents have enjoyed the company of more rare animals. John Quincy Adams owned an alligator and silkworms. Martin Van Buren briefly owned two tiger cubs. Calvin Coolidge had pet raccoons and a pygmy hippopotamus named Billy, among many other exotic pets. James Buchanan had a Newfoundland named "Lara" and owned a herd of elephants, which were a gift from the King of Siam, and two bald eagles. John F. Kennedy had a collection of animals joining him at the White House, including dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, hamsters, ponies, and horses.
Teddy Roosevelt had the most elaborate menagerie at the White House, including a bear named Jonathan Edwards, a badger named Josiah, and a blue macaw named Eli. He also had a lion, a hyena, a wildcat, a coyote, bears, a zebra, and various dogs, cats, snakes, hamsters, and guinea pigs. Animals at the White House certainly provides opportunities for some embarrassing occurrences. Teddy Roosevelt's Bull Terrier named "Pete" chewed a hole in the French ambassador's pants at a White House reception. "Yuki", Lyndon B. Johnson's mix-breed dog would howl during Oval Office meetings. Jimmy Carter's dog "Grits" ruined a White House photo op for Heartworm Awareness Week by becoming aggressive, ripping off her muzzle, and growling while a technician tried to draw blood for a heartworm test. Obama and his family have a big choice to make. Animals living with their family at the White House are an American tradition, and whichever dog the Obama's choose, one thing is for sure, it will be one lucky dog.
Whether a pet's name comes from pop culture, their owner's profession, or is named after a loved one, there are many choices for pets names. The Presidential dog is named "Bo" in reference to singer Bo Diddley. Below are the most popular dog names:
When I called Mom earlier, she told me that Tipper's not doing so well lately, not eating or moving around much. She took her in to the vet and she's not sick, she's just...old. The vet gave her some medication to keep her comfortable, but he said it's probably only going to be a matter of days now.
Tipper's older than I am, and I've pretty much been expecting this for the past three or four years. It's really a miracle she's lived this long, and I'm really grateful that she's not in any pain and that we don't have to make a choice about putting her down. At the same time, I had this nagging fear that she'd finally give out as soon as I left, and it doesn't seem fair that that should come true. It doesn't seem fair that I can't be with her like I should be, and it doesn't seem fair that it's Mom carrying her up and down the stairs because she can't climb them anymore. She's my cat, and I feel like I'm letting her down by being so far away for the last time she needs me. I should be there, and I'm not.
Mom's a Hospice worker, so she knew what I needed--we talked about how she's had a good life and how I haven't been a bad owner, and she held the phone close so I could tell her goodbye without my even asking (which is good, because I would have felt stupid asking). She agreed to give her some ice cream off her fingers one last time, and we decided on a place to bury her.
So...now she's not even dead yet, and there's still the after-reception feeling, when nothing's really changed in how you feel, but you still have to clean up.
Probably everyone's seen this, but it really adequately explains my situation better than I ever could.