First Family to get a Portuguese water dog

[cheryl19]

I was just reading about how much work a portuguese water dog is and now everyone will want one I wish the 1st family would have gone to the shelter and got a mixed breed then maybe everyone would have too. Portuguese water dogs need to keep working to be happy and now the breeders are getting ready Yes the President will go to a shelter to get his, but how many are in shelters?and you know everyone else will go to a breeder, so coming soon their will be a lot of portuguese water dogs in rescues and shelters.

[Lindsay1973]

What is a Portugese water dog,I have never seen one.I also agree 100% they should have gotten a mixed breed

[chachi]

They couldnt get just any shelter dog because their daughter has allergies

[TyraandMrJ]

They wanted a large active dog for they're very active kids, my understanding Obama wanted a manly type dog to aslo jog with. They're going to a rescue which is awesume. Any dog they would have gotten a mill out there is going to exploit. They always do. Like when Jessica Simpson got Daisy her cockerpoo. Or Paris HIlton with her chihuahuas. They could have picked a old yeller mix and somewhere out there some mill is going to scream they got they're dog from them. and it's a blank. Ask people what type old yeller is. Some say Lab mix, some people say Lousiana cur. {the author posted it's a cur.} But someone will always be unhappy.

I'm on a homesteading baord, and anything O does gets smashed. It's not right and not fair. He's still the new guy sloggin through the old stuff left on the desk not done. Day One voted in not even a week had passed about how he and his wife lied to they're kids and country about how they were getting a dog, totally injoring the fact he had stated aftre they had settled. Now that they had choose it's about how they got the BIG BAILOUT and now that they blew our money. They're buying a purebred dog.

I say give them time. Hey just be happy. It's a rescue that needed a home. Maybe people will got to rescues to adopt insyead of breeders if they have allergies. It's my hope. ty

[MindieRose]

I don't dig the new pres. at all. However, I don't think anyone should HAVE to get a dog from a shelter as opposed to a breeder. When you want a specific breed that fits your needs and lifestyle, that is what you want. I would much rather a person get a dog that will fit their lifestyle and have it work out for them than have someone get one that doesn't and have it end up in a shelter. Honestly, this is one issue I DONT have a problem with him on, and probably one of the few. It's anyones choice what kind of dog they want and where they get it from. We just got a Golden Retriever pup from a breeder because we needed that breed for a reason, and needed a strong family line for what we need him for. I personally would never go to a shelter and bring home a dog that I know nothing about because I have children and you never know the history of a shelter dog. I really don't care if saying that isn't pc.

[ARCHIE]

I personally would never go to a shelter and bring home a dog that I know nothing about because I have children and you never know the history of a shelter dog. I really don't care if saying that isn't pc.



Sorry to see you feel that way! If every body did these poor dogs
would never have a home. I had two shelter dogs in the past. To be
honest they were easier to raise than the Yorkie I now have. I had
three small children then too and one was 86lbs. He was a love and
so was the smaller terrier. They seemed to be so thankful for the
life I gave them. I would encourage anyone to go to the shelter first if
looking for a dog. They all deserved to be loved and sleep on something
soft and eat good food and be hugged by humans. They didn't ask to be
there. Most were dropped off for some dumb reason or another.
Dog's are man's best friend and deserve all the love we can give them
weather they are prue breed or from shelter's.

[yorkiekist]

I doubt very much if he will find a PwD in a shelter, or at least a nice one. It is a breed that is not massed produced like Yorkies and Labs are. I hope he gets one from a reputable breeder. At least they will know all the health issues, temperment and grooming requirements of this breed.
But now that he has made his choice of breed, I just bet the PWD will be exploited because they will, all of a sudden, become "popular".

[cheryl19]

Originally Posted by yorkiekist

I doubt very much if he will find a PwD in a shelter, or at least a nice one. It is a breed that is not massed produced like Yorkies and Labs are. I hope he gets one from a reputable breeder. At least they will know all the health issues, temperment and grooming requirements of this breed.
But now that he has made his choice of breed, I just bet the PWD will be exploited because they will, all of a sudden, become "popular".

So true, now everyone will want one. And yes I know that they couldnt get just any shelter dog because their daughter has allergies. This post has nothing to do with our President or his policies, it is just now everyone is watching the 1st family and a person that breeds them was saying they need a job to do as they have a lot of energy. I'm not worried about the dog the 1st family gets that dog will have a great life, It's all the poor others that people will get because the dog is now popular. People will go out and get one because our president now has one, not because they read about the breed and now see that this is the dog for them.

[cheryl19]

Originally Posted by ARCHIE

I personally would never go to a shelter and bring home a dog that I know nothing about because I have children and you never know the history of a shelter dog. I really don't care if saying that isn't pc.



Sorry to see you feel that way! If every body did these poor dogs
would never have a home. I had two shelter dogs in the past. To be
honest they were easier to raise than the Yorkie I now have. I had
three small children then too and one was 86lbs. He was a love and
so was the smaller terrier. They seemed to be so thankful for the
life I gave them. I would encourage anyone to go to the shelter first if
looking for a dog. They all deserved to be loved and sleep on something
soft and eat good food and be hugged by humans. They didn't ask to be
there. Most were dropped off for some dumb reason or another.
Dog's are man's best friend and deserve all the love we can give them
weather they are prue breed or from shelter's.

I love my prue breed yorkie and I loved my muts!!!! All deserve our love.

[cheryl19]

Originally Posted by Lindsay1973

What is a Portugese water dog,I have never seen one.I also agree 100% they should have gotten a mixed breed

This is from the LA Times:

President Obama told ABC News' George Stephanopolous last month that the family had narrowed their search for a new pet to either a Portuguese water dog or a Labradoodle (a Labrador retriever-poodle cross thought of by many dog fanciers as a "designer dog"). From the Tribune's politics blog, The Swamp:

If the Obamas do decide on a Portuguese water dog, that might be difficult, says Mary Harkins, coordinator of rescue and relocation for the Portuguese Water Dog Club of America. A very active breed, some Portuguese water dogs "are without an off-switch - they just go all day," Harkins explains. "It might be a little bit too much for a family who has never owned a dog before, especially this family."

The No. 1 reason that Portuguese water dogs are rescued, Harkins says, is because owners who bought them as puppies didn't realize their prodigious activity levels.

Very few "Porties," as the breed is often called for short, turn up in rescue groups, according to Harkins. (Several offers have been made, including one from a shelter in Canada, to provide the Obamas with a rescued Labradoodle. The Canadian shelter acquired 55 Labradoodles following a puppy mill bust in December.)

[yorkiekist]

I think that the names that the Obama girls are thinking about are kinda cute: Frank or Moose.

[MIZBROWN]

Goodness... seems like they're damned if they do and damned if they dont Members are always encouraging other members to check out rescue's/shelters to help save dogs... and now many of you seem to be against the fact that they are trying to get this particular dog from a shelter. Didnt really matter what breed they chose, of course there will be many trying to follow in their footsteps. As is the case with a lot of celebs too... i.e: Brittney or Miley Cirus w/ their yorkies, or Paris w/ her Chi. This is what society does and the first fam shouldnt be faulted for that.

I read that they have associates that own this same breed...and Im sure they've done their research. If its the best fit for their family, congrats to them on their choice

[tumismom]

i think everyone should give him a break..gee..he is rescuing for godsake!!! we can't be unhappy because he didn't get a yorkie....I love yorkies and I don't think I can handle PWD but I am not gonna be negative about it because its not a YORKIE...

[PennysMum]

Given that the family had restrictions as to what kind of dog would be appropriate because of their daughter's allergies, I think they're doing the best that they can. And getting a Portie is probably a lot better than getting a Labradoodle-- not all labradoodles end up being hypoallergenic, and it would be terrible if the family brought a dog home only to end up having to return it!

Porties are nice dogs, and the swarms of people in the White House, two kids and an athletic dad will probably keep the dog pretty engaged. I think it sounds like a pretty good fit to be honest. It isn't the fault of the President if a bunch of people imitate him and decide to get a dog without doing their research first and knowing what they are getting into. I mean, George Bush Sr. went skydiving-- would anybody claim it was the president's fault if somebody jumped out of a plane without knowing how to open their parachute? Sadly the president can't be expected to prevent idiocy!