Champ and Major Biden

Champ and Major Biden

 

It will be good to have a couple in the White House again who dotes on their dogs.

 

I’ve never trusted anyone who could get along fine without pets (unless they’re allergic). It just doesn’t seem human, and it certainly doesn’t make sense.

 

I’ve never been without pets in my entire life.

 

(I even have a blogsite dedicated to animals at krisandkritters.com. This post should probably be there, but it’s late and I’m too tired to look up the password for that site, so here I am!)

 

Do you remember when President Obama was running for POTUS the first time? He promised his girls Sasha and Malia (then youngsters) that if he won the election, he and Michelle would get them a dog.

 

Because Sasha has allergies, the Obamas had to be very careful choosing a breed that was hypoallergenic so, with the encouragement and help of the late Senator Ted Kennedy, they finally decided on Portuguese Water Dogs. They eventually got two of them, Bo and Sunny.

 

Well, during the same time, Jill Biden started campaigning for Joe to get their family a dog, too.  He agreed and they welcomed a purebred German Shepherd (bought from a breeder) who the Biden grandkids named Champ. Champ is a senior citizen now.

 

Because there was such a hue and cry from animal welfare groups about the Bidens buying from a breeder when there were (and always are) so many perfectly adoptable large breed dogs being put down by shelters for lack of homes, the Bidens — who are open-minded and kind-hearted enough to actually listen and learn from others — elected to foster a shelter pup (another German Shepherd) from the Delaware Humane Society when they decided to get a second dog, Major, a couple years ago.

 

The foster part didn’t last long. They fell in love and decided to adopt Major into the Biden family. I’m in love and I’ve never even met him

 

Dr. Jill Biden with Champ and Major via Twitter

 

Before I knew any of this about the Bidens, I was beginning to itch for a large breed dog again, most likely a German Shepherd or a Labrador or Golden Retriever mix.  I even went so far as to look at images of dogs up for adoption at Pet Finder and the Tacoma Humane Society a month or so ago.

 

Alas, all they had at that time in the large breed category were pit bull mixes. I have nothing against pit bulls, but they aren’t among the breeds I prefer.

 

I’ve shared my life with a couple of Labrador Retrievers and German Shepherd mixes, and I love the intelligence of German Shepherds. They are wonderful companion animals, enthusiastic helpmates, and darned good natural guardians, too…

 

I had a beautiful Shepherd/Afghan mix I adopted from a shelter. I named him Ivanhoe. He was the most intuitive and helpful canine I ever encountered. I even wrote a poem about him:

 

 

IVANHOE: A DOG

 

I rescued him from a dog pound

and he was born so perfect, so smart,

I didn’t want to teach him anything at all

lest he become content with those limits.

 

 

So, he taught me instead.

 

 

He taught me how to take a retrieved ball from his grasp,

How to be properly and completely

Escorted by a wagging tail.

 

He showed me his natural inclination

To be helpful in my pursuits.

He compassionately schooled me in the

Art of sharing my life with another being.

 

 

And he loved me.

 

Oh, we were a pair!

There is much more

than I dog I recall.

 

Where once he stood, there is teacher, friend, love—and a tear.

 

(From my book “Let No Day Dawn that the Animals Cannot Share“)

 

Ivanhoe always wanted to help me. Whenever I’d get pick up an armload of wood for my wood stove, I had to give him a stick of it to carry or he’d dance in front of me, saying, “Let me help!  I can do that!”

 

It probably isn’t a good idea for me to get a dog again, so I’m doing my best to resist the urge. I have enough pets, truly. Including four small breed goats, who are naturally fearful of dogs (and should be).  So they’d freak out if I brought a big dog (or even a small one) home. I know this.  It wouldn’t be fair to them…

 

So, I guess I’ll just have to live vicariously through the Biden dogs.