The Obamas finally have their new pet, Bo, a purebred Portuguese water dog. Though Mr. Obama would have preferred a mutt (because it would be like him), they needed to get a purebred because of Malia Obama's allergies. Throughout the campaign, the first family said that the wanted to adopt a shelter dog, which pleased many animal activists.
However, there is somewhat of a dispute over whether or not Bo is really a "rescued" dog. We do know that he came from a breeder. He was put into a home that did not work for him, and was given back to the breeder. Then he was adopted by the Obamas. The dispute lies in that Bo never spent time in a shelter or with a rescue group. He was still taken out of a poorly-fit home and given a new lease on life.
Bo's breeders also bred the Portuguese water dogs of Massachusetts Senator Kennedy. The Kennedys actually gave Bo to the Obamas as a present, knowing that they needed an allergen-free purebred dog, and that there was a dog in need of a good home.
So what do you think? Did the Obamas do the right thing or did they skimp on their campaign promise?
Personally, I 100% support what the Obamas did. It is hard to find an allergy-safe purebred in a shelter, especially one with good temperament (for living in the White House. If the presidential shelter dog ever bit someone, what would that do for the reputation rescued dog adoptions?) Second, Bo was a gift from the Kennedys. If someone gives you a gift, it's kind of rude to refuse it, especially when it (or he) is something that you are looking for. Third, the dog wasn't just bought from a breeder, it had been in a home that was not a good fit. They did not go to a puppy mill or high-end breeder specifically to get a brand spankin' new puppy.
Though they did not end up adopting a shelter dog, they still donated money to the places that they were looking at. My only concern is that Portuguese water dog puppy mills will increase "production" in hopes of fans wanting to purchase the same breed as the First Family. However, we no longer live in the era of idolization, such as 50 years ago when our society was enthralled with the DiMaggios, Monroes, Ruths, and FDRS, etc of the time.
I'd like to say congratulations to the Obama's on their new family member, and that I am very pleased that they took in a "quasi-rescued" dog, considering they had to make sure it would be okay for Malia.
13 comments:
actually... I don't understand all the fuss about the Obama's dog. their are more important political promises, right?
Honestly, I am a little disappointed in the Obamas. I do feel that he didn't really stick to his word about adopting a rescue dog. I know that a lot of people don't think that this is a big deal, but for all of us who are concerned about animals, I think that this might make portuguese water dogs more popular and puppy mills might jump on this bandwagon and that won't be a good thing!
I was too distracted by your reference to Obama as a mutt to really care about your post. It makes you sound ignorant and uneducated to compare a person's ancestry to that of a dog's. Certainly you are not 100% anything.
To the person above me.
You are clearly the ignorant one. Did you watch any of Obama's speeches during his campaign? He referred to himself as a mutt(as a joke), I was only quoting his own choice of words. I would never use those words to describe anyone. If you watched any of the news surrounding the picking of their dog, they also repeated that quote and played that sound bite over and over again. You really need to get your facts straight before you go around insulting others.
Sincerely,
Allie
i cant believe you wasted time talking about this...OBAMAS DOG? why don't you comment on OBAMAS foreign policies, or human rights abuses occurring not only all around the world, but in our own country? what is this, PEOPLE MAGAZINE? sorry, but you seem like a smart person...however this post is a little stupid.
I don't believe this is an important issue at all. In fact, I think it's quite silly that people are making a fuss over it.
Did you even read the title of my blog? It's called "My Life As A Vegan". Vegans usually are animal-oriented people, and this issue is about animals.
That is why I posted about this here and animal rescue is a topic many vegans are interested in. It would be OFF TOPIC for me to post on his foreign policy or anything involving just humans, unless it had something to do with animals.
Feel free to blog about all your important and relevant issues, but my blog is about animals and I made a post about animals. My blog is not always about the most pressing issues of our era There is no need to criticize a person for providing information on anything, especially when it is one of their interest.If you are not concerned with this, go elsewhere and read what you deem fit to read.
I did not "waste my time" as you put it, I spent it researching a topic I am interested in (I am a fan of the first family) and it had to do with animals. I am much more concerned with the economy, the job market, global warming, and foreign and domestic policy, but Obama said it himself that they way we treat our animals is a reflection of our own selves.
You have an excellent blog about the issue you have chosen to write about. Thank you for even taking time out of your hectic life to attempt to keep updating. I applaud your integrity and patience in your responses to those who are not as astute as you. This is good practice for you, as you will continue to encounter this kind of twisted logic from others throughout your life. Bravo to you!
Hey there! Well first off I have to say some of these commenters need to get a life :-D I always think it's funny that people will comment to tell you that your topic is unimportant or boring. If it's boring or not important to them - then why did they waste time commenting?
Anyway, well I do think it's nice the dog is somewhat rescued, I agree with the person above and fear this will have other people (copy-cats) wanting the same exact type of dog and therefore more of these dogs will be breed like crazy while so many others in the pound are put to sleep.
We got all of our pets from the humane society and so do most of my friends - that is what I consider "rescued" and since people tend to copy the president, they might have copied him if he DID go to the humane society and they might have rescued loads of dogs.
Well anyway, interesting blog :) I think I'll blogmark it!
yeah we can all see its about ANIMALS but jesus....this is pretty toasted post. Obama's dog? come on, a vegan could sure talk about more prevalent issues in the pet society than a "semi-rescued" presidential dog.
Also, nice to see you have "comment moderation on", lovely to know you support censorship; I mean, it's a public blog, you should expect to get comments and it's kinda odd that you must approve the comments. People should say what they want, and you should post it regardless. Show people you don't give a crap about what they say and that you're comfortable with their opinion so as you have yours too.
The comment moderation is on mostly because my comment walls get spammed with advertising for non-related products. I usually post most comments that I receive. The exceptions are for blatant advertising and promotion of illegal things. I've had completely unrelated comments such as Jew-hating and racist rants posted on my blog, and since I am not always available to check my comments every day, moderation allows me to prevent these things from happening.
And on another note, yes, there are plenty of other things I could have posted about. But blogging is very much a supply-demand game. When people are googling an issue, it is in the author's best interest to meet that need with information. It's good for my site, my readers/searchers thirst for "knowledge", and lastly, for my ads, which from the proceeds I use to help animals.
I love the dogs and I think that this kind of clothes o pets is so nice to many people because the animals are not simple pets they are part of our families.
Excellent beautiful animal he got, I think he bought it because ha needed a bit of de-stress, that's perfect all of us need it.
Thank you for the article, very useful piece of writing.
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