Petfinder Blog

Okay, so President Obama didn't adopt a dog from a shelter -- but that doesn't mean we don't think Bo the Portuguese water dog isn't a cutie! Check out Bo Obama: The First 100 Days on our sister site, AnimalPlanet.com, where you can read Bo's daily address, take a quiz to find out how well you know Bo, check out a gallery of Bo sightings at the White House and with his new family, and more!

The Obama family has a new pooch! According to the Washington Post, Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts gave a six-month-old Portuguese water dog to the Obama family as a gift.

Malia and Sasha named the pup Bo because their cousins have a cat named Bo and Mrs. Obama's father was nicknamed Diddley. Get it? Bo Diddley.

Although the Obamas did not get their pup from a local shelter as they'd said they hoped to, they say they plan to make a donation to the Washington Humane Society.

According to the Chicago Tribune: "The puppy was purchased from a breeder and then given back to the kennel soon after the Obamas expressed interest in a Portuguese water dog, a source familiar with the adoption said."

Michelle Obama tells PEOPLE magazine the First Family has settled on a breed and date for their long-promised dog adoption.

The Associated Press reports:

The family wants a rescue Portuguese Water Dog who is the appropriate age and match.

"Temperamentally they're supposed to be pretty good," Mrs. Obama said. "From the size perspective, they're sort of middle of the road -- it's not small, but it's not a huge dog. And the folks that we know who own them have raved about them. So that's where we're leaning." (Read the full story.)

This breed is not common in shelters -- there are only two adoptable Portuguese water dog mixes listed on Petfinder right now (Wema, who'd had a major PR effort behind her, has already been adopted from the Martin County Humane Society in Fairmont, MN).

The Obamas' situation is common among adopters: They know what kind of dog they want and when they want it. But the reality is, their ideal dog may simply not be available in a shelter by their deadline -- and if the right dog IS there, the adoption process might not fit their timetable.

The Winnipeg Humane Society, a Petfinder member in Canada (yes, we do have rescue groups in Canada, as well as Mexico, posting their pets on Petfinder!) has some labradoodle puppies for the Obamas.

According to AFP:

The Winnipeg Humane Society helped police break up an illegal puppy mill in the city in December, and seized 55 Labradoodles, including 21 puppies and two pregnant females.

One of them, named "Lilly," has since given birth to a litter of 11 "bright and happy" puppies, the shelter's executive director Bill MacDonald told AFP.

"When I learned that President Obama's first official state visit would be to Canada, and that he was looking for a puppy for his daughters, I thought a shelter puppy would make a great gift from our government," he said.

Read the full story here.

The Obama family is making the transition to First Family, and we all know what's next: getting that new First Dog.

We're so happy for daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, and so pleased that the Obamas are going about their search for a new pet in a responsible way: They plan to reach out to shelters and wait patiently for the right pooch to become available for adoption.

The family is concerned about all the right things: finding a pet that will match their lifestyle and choosing a dog appropriate for Malia's allergies (how great that the Obamas believe a kid with allergies can know the joy of having a pooch -- they must have a good pet-loving pediatrician!).

I just want to shout out a special thanks to the First Family for providing us with such a great example of responsible pet selection. If folks follow their lead, I believe far fewer pets will end up in shelters.

We've been reporting for months on the Obamas' efforts to find a dog. Apparently, the family has gotten closer to selecting a breed. Here's an excerpt from the President-elect's interview on This Week with George Stephanopoulos:

STEPHANOPOULOS: What kind of a dog are we getting and when are we getting it?

OBAMA: The -- they seem to have narrowed it down to a labradoodle or a Portuguese water hound.

STEPHANOPOULOS: A medium sized.

OBAMA: Medium sized dog, and so, we're now going to start looking at shelters to see when
one of those dogs might come up.

STEPHANOPOULOS: So, you're closing in on it?

OBAMA: We're closing in on it. This has been tougher than finding a commerce secretary.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the Obamas adopt. And while I know I'll get piled on by commenters who think the decision is none of my business, I still think the family would set a great example by making a shelter pet First Dog, and could save the lives of countless homeless pets as a result. (Besides, the President-elect has talked about it publicly and in detail, so I don't think it's an invasion of their privacy to have an opinion.)

UPDATE: Cast your vote ... for the breed you think the Obamas should adopt! Check out AnimalPlanet.com's Presidential Puppy poll.

Learn more about hypoallergenic dogs and living with pet allergies ... and urge the Obamas to adopt.

Vice president-elect Joe Biden made news (and caused a lot of controversy) when he bought a German shepherd puppy from a breeder recently.

But this weekend he said on This Week With George Stephanopoulous that he plans to get another dog -- and this one will come from a shelter.

Biden told Stephanopoulos that he was partial to German shepherds, but that he had always had two "big dogs" as companions for each other.

"I've had German shepherds since I was a kid, and I've actually trained them and shown them in the past," Biden said in the interview. "So I wanted a German shepherd, and we're going to get a pound dog, which my wife wants, that is hopefully a golden" retriever (Philly.com).

Of course, since Mrs. Biden wants a golden retriever, I happen to know of a great little Web site called Petfinder where she can search rescued pets by breed, location and more! There are currently 2,600 golden retrievers and golden mixes available for adoption on Petfinder.

The Bidens can also work with one of our 63 golden retriever breed rescues, such as Golden Retriever Rescue of Southern Maryland in Valley Lee, MD (if they want to look near their home in the capital), or Golden Retriever Adoption Placement and Education in Springfield, PA (if they want to stay closer to their home state of Delaware).

My suggestion? A female dog (since their shepherd puppy is a male) who is young enough to show the puppy the ropes when it comes to housetraining and "indoor behavior," but young enough to romp and play with him to his heart's content. Whatever dog the Bidens adopt, I wish them all the best with their growing family!

Vice president-elect Joe Biden bought a puppy from a Pennsylvania breeder of German shepherds yesterday. According to Biden spokeswoman Elizabeth Alexander:

[H]e's familiar with the breed and its personality. He's excited to bring it home when it gets a little older and has promised that his grandchildren can name it after the New Year. (DelawareOnline.com)

This is clearly disappointing news to all of us who've dedicated our lives to getting homeless pets out of shelters.

Now I'm not against buying dogs *in theory* -- everyone in animal welfare wishes we lived in a world where there were no animal shelters because every pet was in a loving home for its entire life. There would be no unwanted litters, no pets being abandoned because their owners wouldn't or couldn't care for them. In that world, you'd HAVE to buy a dog.

But that's just not the world we live in.

In the *real* world, there are at this moment more than 7,670 adoptable German shepherds and German shepherd mixes and more than 8,700 adoptable shepherd mixes waiting for their forever homes on Petfinder.

Biden loves purebred sheps, you say? And he for some reason needed to get a dog in Pennsylvania? Well he would have been in luck, had he checked Petfinder: We've got two Shepherd-specific rescue groups in the state: Save a Shepherd Rescue Alliance in Hatfield and German Shepherd Rescue of Southeastern PA in Philadelphia.

Biden wants a puppy, you argue? Well a quick search on Petfinder turns up plenty of adorable baby sheps, including Donder (right), at a rescue in Coatesville, PA, a mere 25 miles from Biden's breeder.

Let's hope that the famously gaffe-prone Biden realizes his mistake and adopts a shelter pooch to keep his new puppy company. And let's hope that Obama does a better job choosing his own family pet.

Since I last reported on Obama wanting to adopt a shelter dog, but having concerns about daughter Malia's allergies, two things have happened: (1) The story has only gained ground, and (2) I realized that the buzz is that Malia wants a goldendoodle (not a labradoodle).

I'm thrilled that so many people have urged the Obamas to find their next pet on Petfinder, including Best Friends Animal Society, The Oregonian and author and blogger Carole Raphaelle Davis. And after the jump, I've included links to some of the adoptable goldendoodles listed on Petfinder.

I also learned some interesting information from Petfinder staffer Kim Saunders that could be useful to anyone with pet allergies:

There are plenty of hypoallergenic breeds, but there are actually no non-allergenic dogs (or cats). However, dogs with soft, constantly-growing hair -- like the Poodle or the Bichon Frise -- may be less irritating to some people. This might even be because they are bathed or groomed more frequently.

If your or a family member's allergies are uncomfortable but not life-threatening, you can take these steps to reduce the symptoms:

1. Wash pet bedding regularly and change your air filters frequently. You should also use a high-efficiency HEPA air cleaner in the home.
2. Create an "allergy free" zone in the home -- preferably the bedroom -- and strictly prohibit the pet's access to it.
3. Brush your pet four to five times a week to reduce pet dander.
4. Choose the right pet brush -- one great option is the FURminator.
5. Consider getting allergy shots to improve symptoms. Steroidal and antihistamine nose sprays and antihistamine pills can also work to make you feel better.

If you have any other tips for living with pet allergies, let me know!

This whole Obama-dog story is really taking off like crazy. The president-elect told reporters today, according to the Associated Press:

We have two criteria that have to be reconciled. One is that Malia is allergic so it has to be hypoallergenic. ...

But obviously, a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me. So whether we're going to be able to balance those two things, I think, is a pressing issue on the Obama household.

Well we want the president elect to know that it's easy to balance those two things: More than 25% of shelter pets are purebred -- and it's easy to find the breed you want on Petfinder!

To contact Obama and urge him to adopt, you can write to him at his Chicago office at:

John C. Kluczynski Federal Office Building
230 South Dearborn St.
Suite 3900 (39th floor)
Chicago, Illinois 60604

Or e-mail him through the online form at http://www.change.gov/page/s/yourvision.

And for fun, cast your vote on AnimalPlanet.com's new poll: Should the Obamas adopt from a shelter?

After the jump, links to more adoptable, hypoallergenic labradoodles on Petfinder. Tell us which one is your favorite!