Who lets the dog out? Bo getting presidential escort for night walks

WASHINGTON — He has torn through magazines and stray socks, even sunk his teeth into the president's gym shoes. Charm school taught him to sit, heel and shake a paw on command. He spent his first summer vacation on breezy Martha's Vineyard.

That's just a scoop of the poop on Bo's first few months as First Dog of the United States.

Most of his dog days begin with early morning walks on the grounds with Michelle Obama, and end with a nighttime jaunt with President Barack Obama, the couple juggling their four-legged family member in shifts the way the first lady says they once handled daughters Malia and Sasha.

In between, 10-month-old Bo has playtime with the girls, meals, puppy mischief — and lots of just lying around.

Obama says walks with the family's Portuguese Water Dog are a highlight of his pressure-packed days. It's perhaps a sign of just how high-stress they are that the president even gets sentimental about the less pleasant duties of dog ownership.

"I'm the guy with the night shift," he told one television interviewer. "We go out and we're walking and I'm picking up poop and in the background is the beautifully lit White House. It's quite a moment."

Obama's daughters had asked for a dog but were told to wait until after the presidential campaign. Obama told the girls on election night that they had "earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the White House."

Immediately, it seemed everyone, everywhere, wanted information — and had an opinion. What kind of dog? When would it arrive? Would it be a shelter dog or a purebred? Would there be a message for society in the pick?

White House aides reported that the press office phones yielded far more calls breathlessly asking dog questions than about any other, weightier topic of the new presidency. Visiting Europe in early April, Obama even got a question about the dog at a forum he held in Strasbourg, France.

The Obamas quickly narrowed the range of canine choices to a Labradoodle or Portuguese Water Dog, two breeds unlikely to aggravate Malia's allergies. Obama had said he preferred to get a dog from a shelter — a mutt, essentially — but ended up disappointing animal advocates by choosing a breed rarely found in such places.