Obama to Deliver on Puppy Promise
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When you make a promise to one of your children, you had better deliver. During the lengthy 2008 Presidential campaign, President-elect Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama promised their two daughters, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, that win or lose they would get a new puppy.
Last week, after the election, one of the first press stories about the new First Family focused on the puppy promise and when the new addition to the family would be residing in the White House. One of the side stories that came out of the reporting was that one of the Obama children is allergic to dogs.
In a widely reported quotation, President-elect Obama summed up the family’s choice in this way. “We have two criteria that have to be reconciled. One is that Malia is allergic, so it has to be hypoallergenic,” said Obama. “On the other hand, our preference would be to get a shelter dog, but a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me.”
The problem for the Obamas is that these two criteria can be very contrary to each other. Most puppies found in shelters are often mixed breeds. These mutts are not hypoallergenic and will aggravate allergies. Pet dander is the primary trigger for children and adults allergic to pets. The other issue is that most pure bred dogs up for adoption are not puppies. Finding a pure bred, hypoallergenic shelter puppy is very difficult for the average citizen.
The Obama family does have a wide variety of choices for these dogs. According to an article in Newsday, the American Kennel Club created a web site to allow people to vote on which dog the Obamas should select for the White House. The winner of that puppy election was the hypoallergenic Poodle over the soft-coated Wheaten Terrier, the miniature Schnauzer, a Bichon Frise, and the Chinese Crested.
Our advice is that when adopting or purchasing a new pet, people with allergies need to take extra care in their pet selection. Try to selct a hypoallergenic breed. Also, regular bathing and brushing in conjunction with the use of an air purifier can help lessen the amount of pet allergen in the house. In a moment of prescience, one of our staff blogged about their experiences with a hypoallergenic dog in August. To check out that blog post, click on this link.
Last week, after the election, one of the first press stories about the new First Family focused on the puppy promise and when the new addition to the family would be residing in the White House. One of the side stories that came out of the reporting was that one of the Obama children is allergic to dogs.
In a widely reported quotation, President-elect Obama summed up the family’s choice in this way. “We have two criteria that have to be reconciled. One is that Malia is allergic, so it has to be hypoallergenic,” said Obama. “On the other hand, our preference would be to get a shelter dog, but a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me.”
The problem for the Obamas is that these two criteria can be very contrary to each other. Most puppies found in shelters are often mixed breeds. These mutts are not hypoallergenic and will aggravate allergies. Pet dander is the primary trigger for children and adults allergic to pets. The other issue is that most pure bred dogs up for adoption are not puppies. Finding a pure bred, hypoallergenic shelter puppy is very difficult for the average citizen.
The Obama family does have a wide variety of choices for these dogs. According to an article in Newsday, the American Kennel Club created a web site to allow people to vote on which dog the Obamas should select for the White House. The winner of that puppy election was the hypoallergenic Poodle over the soft-coated Wheaten Terrier, the miniature Schnauzer, a Bichon Frise, and the Chinese Crested.
Our advice is that when adopting or purchasing a new pet, people with allergies need to take extra care in their pet selection. Try to selct a hypoallergenic breed. Also, regular bathing and brushing in conjunction with the use of an air purifier can help lessen the amount of pet allergen in the house. In a moment of prescience, one of our staff blogged about their experiences with a hypoallergenic dog in August. To check out that blog post, click on this link.
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