Breaking news updates - Obama's New Dog Bo - Its moving day for Bo

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama and his family have welcomed their new dog Bo to the White House, and they're showing him off around the grounds.

The 6-month-old Portuguese water dog made his debut Tuesday afternoon in front of reporters and photographers. And the Obamas even walked him over near the fence on the White House South Lawn.

Said the president: "He's got star quality."

First lady Michelle Obama did most of the walking, with Bo on a leash. But daughter Malia took a turn, too, as Bo took off running.

Obama had promised his two daughters a puppy during the presidential campaign.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information.

Bo the Portuguese water dog makes his official move into the White House on Tuesday, and how President Barack Obama and his family introduce him to his new home — and the world — will say much about their skills as novice dog owners.

The White House will be the puppy's fourth home in his six months of life. He was born in Texas, then moved to his first owner's home in Washington, D.C., then spent nearly a month with Sen. Edward Kennedy's dog trainer in Virginia, and now is moving to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

A dog can become disoriented when moving to a new home, said Cesar Millan, host of the National Geographic Channel's "The Dog Whisperer" and co-founder with his wife of a nonprofit foundation to help abused and abandoned dogs.

"Being disoriented can lead an animal to become anxious, to become nervous, to become fearful," Millan said. "In some situations they get really excited. So, regardless which state of mind the dog might go into, that's not going to be good for the dog."

Among Millan's top tips: "Day one or day two or day three, there should be a lot of walking involved. And before the dog eats, he should be very hungry, because that helps him to understand that the humans are helping him to work for food and water." Focus on establishing a routine to help the dog calm down, rather than comforting him and using his name a lot when he's upset, Millan said.

Bo was given up by his first owner because things weren't working out with the family's other dog. Kennedy and his wife Victoria, who had two Portuguese water dogs from Bo's breeder and acquired a third from Bo's litter, thought Bo would be perfect for the Obamas, and gave the dog to the Obama daughters, Malia and Sasha, as a gift, the dog's breeder and a spokeswoman for Michelle Obama said.

At 6 months, Bo is still very much a "goofy puppy" and like many Portuguese water dogs, may still be that way up to age 2 or even 4, said Stu Freeman, president of the Portuguese Water Dog Club of America. "A puppy is a puppy and these are very active puppies," he said.

"The dogs are intelligent, they need to work and be kept busy," Freeman said. "If you can't keep them active and amused, they will find something to do."

Bo's official American Kennel Club-registered name is Amigo's New Hope, and his first owner called him Charlie. His new name could present some special training challenges, AKC spokeswoman Daisy Okas said.

"Since `Bo' sounds like `no' we would recommend that they work with a trainer to consult on the best commands to give the dog. So the trainer may recommend either hand signals for `no' or perhaps saying `stop' instead," Okas said. "The dog could become very confused if it thinks its name is being called when it's actually being told to stop a certain behavior."

Also, at least in the early days, the Obamas should set and carry out the dog's routine themselves, "Dog Whisperer" Millan said.

"It's all about gaining trust and respect, day one," Millan said. "It's very important that everybody — the girls, Michelle, the president — to play, all of them together, the pack leader role."

Obama's Dog Bo - What about adoption?

Just looking at him makes you want to break out in baby talk. He’s so cuuuuuuute. Little happy puppy wuppy schluppy duppy.

In case you missed the news because of other priorities on Sunday (like Easter or the Masters), the Obama family has a new member. The new First Dog, Bo.

Leak

Word of the newest family member leaked on Saturday with a mysterious new web site called FirstDogCharlie breaking the news. TMZ spotted it and linked to it, causing the rest of the Internet to play catch-up.

Now that the dust has settled, we know that Bo is a 6-month-old Portuguese water dog, a gift from Senator Ted Kennedy.

The dog should be thrilled. He’ll have the run of the White House, not to mention the North Lawn, the South Lawn, a swimming pool, plenty of trees, and perhaps his own website (like Barney used to have.).

Obama’s daughters Sasha and Malia are reportedly very happy too.

Grumble

Not everyone’s elated though — because although Ted Kennedy is a Washington institution, he’s not an animal shelter. And the president promised to adopt the First Dog.

He originally made this promise to Dr. Jana Kohl, the author of “A Rare Breed of Love” — a book about a three-legged rescue dog and puppy mill survivor named Baby.

So touched was he by Baby’s story that then-Senator Obama agreed to appear in Kohl’s book holding the dog. This photo then became the cover for American Dog magazine in January.

Big deal

And the promise is not an asterisk to those who really care about animal welfare. With an estimated three million dogs and cats euthanized every year, every dog purchased by a breeder is a death sentence for those in rescue centers, they say.

That’s why Vice President Joe Biden got in hot water when he chose a breeder to get his dog. Animal rights activists were furious. This led Biden to announce that he was getting a second dog from a shelter. So far this hasn’t happened.

Shade of gray

Now like anything in politics, there’s a technicality. One of those “definitions of what the word ‘is’ is” type things.

The White House isn’t Bo’s first home. He originally lived with another family but didn’t get along with the other dogs. So he was given back to the Kennedy clan.

“They were looking at shelters, but in the end the Kennedys learned of this litter mate of their dog who needed a home and they wanted to give the girls a gift — and here we are!” an Obama spokeswoman told the Chicago Sun Times.

So, technically, he’s a second-chance dog. This could be why the Humane Society didn’t tear into the president as it did with the veep.

Reaction

“Clearly our best hope was that he (the president) would go to a shelter or a breed-rescue group,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States. “He didn’t do that, but he also didn’t go to a pet store or puppy mill either. It’s a gray area.”

Abbie Moore of Adopt-a-Pet.com isn’t as forgiving. “This is truly a missed opportunity to set a pet-adoption trend among Americans. “If Obama had adopted a pet from a shelter, it could have been the turning point for the pet-overpopulation problem in this country. With pet relinquishment up 20 to 30 percent due to the poor economy, pets in shelters can use all the help they can get.”

While Dog magazine’s Ryan O’Meara says this is just more of the same. “When he was resoundingly elected to office we were promised change. But, it seems, true to type the new American president is a politician at heart so should we really have expected anything different?”

To make up for it, the president will donate to the D.C. humane society.

The First Dog will be formally introduced to the public on Tuesday.

Junior President - Bo Obama

The Washington Post broke Puppygate over the holiday weekend.

According to breaking news, the D.C.-based paper managed to get (hey, they broke Watergate too) their paws on the first photos of the Obamas' new dog.

The Obamas have reportedly named the little guy Bo. As in Bo Obama. Or Bo Diddly?

A top secret meet-and greet session with the puppy and the family at the White House happened a few weeks ago.

According to the Post, it was a surprise for the girls. Bo demonstrated skills learned in training. He sat when the girls sat, stood when the girls stood. He made no toilet errors and did not gnaw on the furniture. Bo has been learning good behavior from the Kennedys' dog trainers at a secret, undisclosed location outside Washington.

Word is that when the president walked, Bo followed obediently.

Wish Congress could be this well trained. Maybe we should send those folks to the Kennedys' training camp.

This is quite a big event for the Obama girls. Sasha and Malia have never had pets. And neither the first lady nor the president had dogs when they were young.

Keep reading to find out about that rescue-dog-versus-reputable-breeder scandal!

The Kennedys have released a statement: "We couldn't be happier to see the joy that Bo is bringing to Malia and Sasha. We love our Portuguese water dogs and know that the girls -- and their parents -- will love theirs, too."

Now about the shelter dog. The Obamas have long said they were considering a rescue dog. But there was never a pledge or promise.

And it was essential to get a dog that would not make the girls' allergies worse.

Bo had been living with another family, but for whatever reason, it didn't work out. So the Kennedys re-homed him and then gave him to the Obamas.

And the Obamas are going to make a sizable donation to the D.C. Humane Society.

Enjoy your new puppy, girls.