Big Fat Story
Tuxedo-ready and Kennedy-approved.
Obama’s election night promise to his daughters—“You have earned the puppy that is coming with us to the White House”—set off a tidal wave of media speculation on the presidential pooch’s breed, background, and arrival date, with the president’s obvious glee in dog discourse feeding the frenzy. Though the Obamas contemplated a rescue dog—a “mutt like me,” according to the president—Bo bears breeding of near-regal proportions. A pedigreed Portuguese water dog from a kennel favored by the Kennedys, rumor has it that Ted Kennedy picked Bo out himself. With tuxedo-black fur and a white bib and spats, Bo is black-tie ready. His hypoallergenic fur will keep Malia healthy, which should be good for both of them: The Los Angeles Times reports that, when the first daughters met the first dog, “Sasha was excited; Malia focused on all the ‘responsibility issues’—how Bo will be trained, cared for, etc.”
Photo: Pete Souza, The White House / AP Photo
A New Jersey native, George W. Bush’s dog Barney had only been in the White House two years before finding himself near the center of a major news story, as witness to the president’s fainting spell when he choked on a pretzel while watching a football game in 2002. "I hit the deck and woke up and there were Barney and Spot [one of the other presidential dogs, a springer spaniel] showing a lot of concern," Bush said later, a large bruise under his left eye. Barney anecdotes could frequently be found woven into the president’s public statements—last month, at his first speech since leaving office, Bush told his audience that when Russian president Vladimir Putin met his dog, “he kind of looked at Barney like, ‘Oh, man, he looks like a Monopoly piece.’” One of the feisty Scottish terrier’s final official acts came two days after Barack Obama won the presidency, when he bit Reuters reporter Jonathan Decker, drawing blood and more than a few quips about the "liberal media" getting exactly what it deserved.
Photo: J. Scott Applewhite / AP Photo
His term was short but the list of pets was long. John F. Kennedy’s family and children hosted a dream-like menagerie, many of them gifts from dignitaries around the world. Caroline’s pony, Macaroni, roamed the White House lawn with impunity, a fairy-tale mascot of Camelot. Fearing young Caroline would go soft in Washington, Vice President Lyndon Johnson announced he’d give the girl a taste of Texas with a second equine companion, a roguish male pony named Tex. Two years later, the Kennedy children inspired yet another living gift: Nikita Khrushchev gave her a dog named Pushinka, the offspring of two dogs from Russia’s cosmonaut program—one of which had flown in space. Ireland gave John Jr. a pony named Leprechaun as well as a wolfhound named Wolf, and a spaniel named Shannon. The president of Pakistan gave Mrs. Kennedy an Arabian horse named Sardar. But not all of the Kennedy pets lived in the White House: Several of Pushinka’s puppies moved to the Kennedys’ summer home in Squaw Island before being given as gifts, again, to other friends. JFK’s most famous dog fed the island-vacation fantasy with a sporty sailor’s name: Clipper.
Photo: AP Photo
Great Presidential Pets
“If you want a friend in Washington,” Harry Truman famously quipped, “get a dog.” Presidential pets have long been thought of as symbols of their owners, every slobbery greeting and crooked whisker treated to near-exegetical analysis of the wiles, whims, and demeanors of world leaders and politicians. George W. Bush’s feisty Scottie was moved to violence at the end of Dubya’s second term, while Caroline Kennedy’s pet pony, Macaroni, was the dream toy from Camelot. The Daily Beast explores how Bo fits into the pantheon of first pets.
Before all the commotion about Bo, the Obamas' dog, Millie was the No. 1 White House canine. In fact, her owners, Barbara and George H.W. Bush adored her so much that she got her own publishing deal. In Millie's Book, the first lady played the role of Boswell and transcribed what the springer spaniel dictated to her. Though the book was marketed to children, it was a hit with many dog lovers, who enjoyed seeing the White House through canine eyes. Millie also sired six puppies, one of which ended up in the White House himself when George W. Bush took office. So how will Bo be able to top Millie? Will he have his own documentary?
Photo: Doug Mills / AP Photo
Socks, a former stray cat, lived the American dream, making it from the streets to the peak of power as the Clintons' pet. Once reaching the Oval Office, the cat became an instant hit, and was one of the tour guides for children visiting the primitive White House Web site. In 1993, Socks was the subject of his own children's book, Socks Goes to Washington: The Diary of America's First Cat and Dear Socks, Dear Buddy: Kids’ Letters to the First Pets (it remains unclear if a rivalry developed between Socks and his chief literary competitor, the George H.W. Bush’s springer spaniel, Millie). In 1997, rumors abounded that the cat had fallen out of favor with the Clintons when they adopted a Labrador retriever named Buddy. However, Socks was not to be outdone, and is now the pet most closely identified with the Clinton era. Only two months ago, Socks went to that big litter box in the sky after a bout with cancer.
Photo: Marcy Nighswander / AP Photo
Dubya had Laura to soften him. Barney had Miss B.
Just as Laura Bush was the yin to Dubya’s yang (her first lady approval ratings broke records, while his ratings dropped catastrophically low), so too was the couple’s second Scottish terrier, Miss Beazley, who entered the presidential fold in 2004 as Barney’s female companion. Though Barney was always the star of the show, meeting dignitaries and wrestling reporters on the White House lawn, the young ingénue of the Bush menagerie made her quiet presence known in Barney’s official videos and photo galleries, eventually hijacking the “Barney Cam” feature roles in such First Pet films as Where in the White House Is Miss Beazley? and Barney and Miss Beazley’s Spring Garden Tour.
Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP Photo
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I liked the Ford dog, Liberty. We were adopted by a stray dog the day the Iranian hostages were freed and named him Liberty. He was a great dog.
so the headline is "Great Presidential Pets" & you have pictures of two dogs, a cat, &.... the Obama girls??
I loved watching the Barney-cam on the White house web site.
Winston Churchill once ordered an aide to return 2 horses he had been given as a gift. "But they're a gift" the aide said, Churchill: "Nothing that eats is a gift"!
Thank you.
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