It's a Portuguese Water Dog

Bo is mighty cute. The kids are sure to love him.

What, they couldn't get an AMERICAN water dog??? The conservatives should be in a righteous lather over this one.

and it's BLACK! the nerve of those people.

black and white, actually --



and, as you can see, he recently got lei'd...

Such a sweet little face.

Love the puppy - how cute!

But I thought they were going to get a shelter doggie?

well, it seems that this puppy was a gift from senator (Kennedy? Do I remember that correctly?) who had this particular puppy trained for the Obamas -- I guess it was a combination of a gift and of a need of a trained dog....dunno any details though.

I saw somewhere that the puppy started out with someone else and then "wasn't a good fit," and then from there went to the Kennedys and then to the Obamas.

Here we go:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/12/AR2009041202872.html

So, while not a shelter doggie, certainly a doggie who needed a home. Plus I believe a donation went out for shelter pups.

I like how Bo is already properly dressed for state dinners. Leis optional.

certainly not a fit for everybody, as water dog, Bo will need lots of attention and exercise. Hopefully the White House has enough staff and lawn to keep the fuzzball happy.

Sounds to me to be a dog which fits best into a family used to dogs and with lots of time for them.
They also tend to prefer one alpha leader. Who is going to be the alpha leader? The kids can´t and Mom and Dad have no time.

While excellent companions to those who understand their needs, Portuguese Water Dogs are not for everyone. Their intelligence and working drive demand consistent attention in the form of regular vigorous exercise and mental challenges. Gentle and patient, they look (and are) soft, cuddly, and cute -- but they are not to be mistaken for "couch potatoes". When bored, PWDs will become destructive. A PWD can get into the garbage, silently snag food off the kitchen counters when your back is turned, and can even learn to open cabinet doors.

i imagine the dog will have a person designated to look after it.... it's a speculation of course, but i'd imagine they would have that in place.

The First Family does not sound like a dog-family in a serious sence.
I was annoyed this morning to see in our daily paper that the dog was more inportat news than the uproaring in Thailand.

Have to admit that the pooch is adorable, but so what????

that is annoying....but that is not that family's fault.

I was not annoyed with the family nor the cute dog, but a serious newspaper which puts the dog ahead of the riots in Thailand.
I did not even mind seeing the puppy -

yep, that is the state of news reporting today, sadly.