Sunny (born June 11, 2012) is a pet dog of the

Obama family The family of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States, is a prominent American family active in law, education, activism and politics. Obama's immediate family circle was the First Family of the United States, first family of the ...

, the 44th presidential family of the United States. Sunny is a female

Portuguese Water Dog The Portuguese Water Dog originated from the Algarve region of Portugal. From there the breed expanded to all around Portugal's coast, where they were taught to herd fish into fishermen's nets, retrieve lost tackle or broken nets, and act as ...

who was a

First Dog of the United States Most United States presidents have kept pets while in office, or pets have been part of their families. Only James K. Polk, Andrew Johnson, and Donald Trump did not have any presidential pets while in office. However, Johnson did take car ...

along with Bo. Sunny was introduced via First Lady

Michelle Obama Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama (born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017. She was the first African-American woman to serve in this position. She is married t ...

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account on August 19, 2013.

Breed background

The Portuguese Water Dog is originally from the

Algarve The Algarve (, , ; from ) is the southernmost NUTS II region of continental Portugal. It has an area of with 467,495 permanent inhabitants and incorporates 16 municipalities ( ''concelhos'' or ''municípios'' in Portuguese). The region has it ...

region of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

. Only 48 Portuguese Water Dogs were entered for Britain's

Crufts Crufts is an international dog show held annually in the United Kingdom, first held in 1891. Organised and hosted by The Kennel Club, it is the largest show of its kind in the world. Crufts is centred on a championship conformation show for do ...

competition in 2009 and the author of ''The New Complete Portuguese Water Dog,'' Kitty Braund, believes there are about 50,000 in North America. Due to its fleecy coat of non-shedding hair (instead of fur), the Portuguese Water Dog is considered a

hypoallergenic dog breed A hypoallergenic dog breed is a dog breed (or crossbreed) that is purportedly more compatible with allergic people than are other breeds. However, prominent allergen researchers have determined that there is no basis to the claims that certain br ...

. Portuguese water dogs are super swimmers, or superior seafarers, because they have webbed toes. The breed was important to fishers along the coast of Portugal as a companion and guard dog. Lisa Peterson, spokesperson for the

American Kennel Club The American Kennel Club (AKC) is a registry of purebred dog pedigrees in the United States. In addition to maintaining its pedigree registry, this kennel club also promotes and sanctions events for purebred dogs, including the Westminster Kenn ...

(AKC), stated, "The Portuguese water dog is historically a working dog, a fisherman's accompaniment. When you think of their history with fishermen, they were a team – that's the environment they thrive in." The breed was almost pushed to extinction toward the end of the nineteenth century until Vasco Bensaude, a wealthy Portuguese businessman, became interested in saving the breed in the 1930s. Thirty years later the breed reached the United States, where they became classified in the

Working Group A working group, or working party, is a group of experts working together to achieve specified goals. The groups are domain-specific and focus on discussion or activity around a specific subject area. The term can sometimes refer to an interdis ...

. (recognized by the American Kennel Club) According to American Kennel Club, the dogs do jobs such as

guard dog A guard dog or watchdog (not to be confused with an attack dog) is a dog used to watch for and guard property against unwanted or unexpected human or animal intruders. The dog is discerning so that it does not annoy or attack the resident hum ...

, pulling sleds, and rescuing people and things from water – they are mostly family friendly.

Breeding and original owners

Sunny is a purebred Portuguese Water Dog, and was selected from a breeder in the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

area.

Media response

Although Sunny was purchased from a breeder, president of

The Humane Society of the United States The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is an American nonprofit organization that focuses on animal welfare and opposes animal-related cruelties of national scope. It uses strategies that are beyond the abilities of local organizations. ...

, Wayne Pacelle, wrote on a blog post, "As we always say in such circumstances, we hope the Obamas considered adoption or rescue as the first choice in obtaining a pet." He further went on to thank the Obama family for making a contribution to the Humane Society in Sunny's name, and helping reduce the suffering of dogs, although he would like the policies to finally become law.

Incidents

There have been minor incidents involving Sunny. In 2013, at a Military family arts and crafts event, Sunny knocked over a 2-year-old girl while in front of

. However, the child was unharmed. Sunny was not aggressive to the child, licking her face. In January 2017, Sunny reportedly bit a

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

visitor on the face, leaving a cut under the visitor's eye, which required stitches. The visitor, who was a teen friend of Malia, was treated by the president's physician Dr.

Ronny Jackson Ronny Lynn Jackson (born May 4, 1967) is an American physician, politician, and retired United States Navy rear admiral who is the U.S. representative for . Jackson joined the White House Medical Unit in the mid-2000s under George W. Bush, a ...

References

External links