They got this guy:
(image from people.com)
Who looks totally adorable and seems to be quite a handful, too. :)
(photo from Huffington Post)
Which you know that I love.
I also love this picture. My favorite pictures of families are always these moments with all the unconscious, gentle mingling of limbs and sightlines.
(pic from people.com)
Okay, and as long as we're on it. THIS is amazing.
(pic by Pete Souza) And there is a great essay about the meanings conveyed here on the Huffington Post It reads, in part, "There are all kinds of interesting elements here. Bo running free, though leashed. Obama and the dog clearly relating to one another, Obama looking back -- already creating a bond with the puppy. And especially, the new President at full sprint -- completely off the ground."
I'm glad that Bo a "second chance" dog and not some gooey little two-monther. But here's the thing: he's from a good breeder, which means that he was never in danger of being homeless or dead. "We don’t want any of our dogs to end up homeless," the breeder told People Magazine. "And the Portuguese Water Dog Club of America, that we belong to, requires that their breeders take back their dogs if for any reason, any reason at all, the people can’t care for the dog. That’s what responsible breeders do, always."
Over 1.5 million dogs are killed each year in the U.S. just because there aren't homes for them. That number is just the adoptable, healthy dogs. And that number, while HUGE, is also not so very big. If just 35-to-40 percent of dog-owners got their next dog from a shelter or rescue, that would save all of those dogs.
All. of. them.
So, here's my beef with the Obamas:
The allergy thing. I do not have allergies, but people I know that have allergies keep them under control by (a)keeping their house clean, which includes vacuuming daily and buying quality filters for their furnaces. And (b) keeping the animal off of the furniture and out of the bedroom.
I'm guessing that if you live in the White House, you have high quality air filters and your house is vacuumed daily.
And if you do have to clean your own home and that much vacuuming sounds like too much work, you need to consider the amount of work it takes to keep a Portuguese Water Dog groomed (a lot!).
The Obamas just needed a low shed dog. And at a shelter, it is pretty easy to figure out who, among the grown dogs, is low shed. Just pet them. Got a hand full of fur? Move along to the next dog whose life is in danger. Look for dogs with single coats as it is the undercoats that usually cause allergic reactions. It's not a catalog people, you get to actually see and touch the dogs. You can figure out what kind of fur they have.
The whole thing wherein the Obamas said that their shortlist of dog breeds were Portuguese Water Dogs or "Labradoodles" also hit me funny. Because a "Labradoodle" is just a mutt with an advertising campaign and there's no way to ensure that a mixed dog is going to have the traits of one parent over the other (i.e., be hypoallergenic). Anyone with "Labradoodle" on their shortlist of dog "breeds" needs to do more research. They can be nice dogs, but people should save their funny names and $1800 for strippers; don't give them to the backyard breeders making mutts from poodles and labs!
Alright, alright, I'll get down from my horse now.
One question, though, does it seem smart to give a dog a name that rhymes with "no"?
