Lot of excitement here at NAVCA as we near the time when we know what the Obama dog will be called. Most of our staff have suggested names and paid £1 to join the game. The winner takes half the proceeds and the rest goes to Sengwer Aid, a British charity helping the Sengwer people of Kenya.

Top names are Lincoln, King, Luther, Barry, Harambee and Toot. Lesser chances in my view are Rover and Champ but there you go who knows.

We simply can't wait to know.

I think it's sad they are getting a breeder dog. All across America, countless MILLIONS of dogs and cats are being gassed to death in dog pounds, and is literally costing tax payers the neighborhood of a BILLION DOLLARS a year to kill pets because nobody wants them-perfectly adoptable animals. Each state spends about $60 to several hundred MILLION dollars a year to kill dogs and cats. California spent $275 million in one year for pounds. Each pound across America is run by county monies which also fund SCHOOLS and law enforcement-and dog pounds cost about 9 to 10 percent of overall county costs. Most counties require OVER a million dollars a year just to run a pound. Miami-Dade, FL, for example, spent TEN MILLION DOLLARS to run their pound for 2007 alone. Every year these costs escalate.

The Obamas should make the message LOUD and CLEAR--DO NOT BUY FROM BREEDERS, GET A SHELTER DOG. Not just for humane purposes, but the ECONOMY. For everytime someone buys a dog, they KILL a shelter dog. Seriously. Breeders are a serious cause of animal overpopulation.

More people are dumping their animals on the streets-which they live short horrible brutal lives and die in agony from parasites, run over by cars, poisoned, human cruelty, etc. Homeless animals also NEVER get vaccinated. In Angola, Africa 91 children contracted rabies this year. What makes you think we are immune. Arizona already has a state wide rabies alert. It's not even summer yet.

All I can say to the Obamas-SHAME ON YOU. Shame! Shame! Encouraging Americans to buy breeds while TONS of animals are slaughtered in pounds and bull dozed in dump yards. Just because they have mixed blood in them. Sounds like Nazi Germany to me with these "superior breeds".

AMERICA-THE WASTEFUL.
AMERICA-THE CRUEL

Please spay/neuter your pet. For God's sake, dogs and cats do not have the option of condoms, and only humans have sexual hang ups-pets are healthier and happier spayed and neutered and dogs are three times less likely to bite. And they don't wander and get hit by cars and saves them from reproductive cancers.

The dogs name should be Teddy in honor of Ted Kennedy who they are getting the dog from??

The daughter is allergic to dogs.
Getting a pound dog would be difficult for her.
And Obama said he prefered a mutt but they can't.

I love dogs but surely the health of his children is important?

For Pete's sake. Let's get the facts straight! Tens of thousands of strays are pouring across our borders to stock animal shelters! In some areas, like the Norheast, they simply cannot keep the shelters stocked. California ought to look at stopping the influx of thousands of Mexican strays to stock shelters. Think of the disease potential. While some areas have too many dogs (some areas of the South) shelter populations nationally have been dropping like a rock the last 10-15 years. Let's tell it like it is! If the Obamas want a Portuguese Water Dog this is afetr all a free country isn't it? They can do as they like!

It is difficult to get a shelter dog that is also safe for allergic people and yes, his daughter's allergies should take precedence. Also, how do you know the dog ISN'T coming from a shelter or a rescue facility? Nowhere did it say the dog was coming from a breeder and shelters and rescue facilities get purebred dogs all the time - it's not just mutts in the shelters. Our dog is a purebred from a shelter. Wait and see before criticizing something you know nothing about.

Nobody should ever "squeeze in a few minutes" to get a dog......it is a BIG decision that should be carefully researched, planned out, and completely prepared for.

KUDOS to the Obamas for not rushing out and snatching up the first dog they saw, they are doing this RIGHT and ensuring that the pet they choose will be a compatible member of their family, and making sure that their dog comes home at a time when they will have plenty of time to spend acclimating it to their lifestyle.

If everybody would do this much research and planning before acquiring a new pet, there would be a lot less of them dying in shelters.

Obama is the president, leader of the free world, and has more staff that one could think. I think the excuse they can't find a hypoallergenic dog is a load of sh.. like everything else he is putting out lately.

Both he and Michelle have said they would rescue a dog and the fact is they lied. They are getting a dog from someone who breed it for CASH. Someone returned the dog to the breeder and now they are "re-homing" it at no cost.

Duh, who wouldnt give him a dog for free because the PUBLICITY is free! Talk about bringing in the business.

I am disappointed in our President and sad that he feels the decision they made is what they want to teach there two daughters.

Yes, let's see how Biden's breeder feels about all the "free publicity" she's gotten since he got his puppy......

http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/Bidens-Puppy-Breeder-Never-never-never-again.html?yhp=1

breeders are not the reason there are millions of dogs dying in shelters. Irresponsible dog owners are the reason. People who abandon dogs are the reason. Saying that every dog purchased from a breeder means another is killed in the shelter is ridiculous logic and also a disturbing statement about what people think about freedom of choice. If an individual wants a dog whose temperament and health history is known, as well as the shedding and therefore allergan producing potential, a pure bred dog is the only logical choice. Someone with specific requirements is NOT going to get a shelter dog and the death of dogs in shelters therefore has nothing to do with where a dog is acquired. It is what happens after the dog is acquired that determines if that dog will die in a shelter.

The American people are swallowing the Animal Right's agenda hook like and sinker. Please remember that Animal Welfare and Animal Rights are two entirely different issues. The AR agenda is to END ALL pet ownership. Is that what you people want?

What happened to the Biden's GSD breeder is scary and horrifying. She is producing a limited number of well bred, healthy working animals that cannot be found in shelters. Not only that, she is responsible for those dogs their entire lives. So if someone who purchases one of her pups cannot keep it for ANY reason, that dog will NEVER end up in a shelter. The dog the Obama's are rumored to be getting is a dog that was turned back to the breeder, because that breeder had a contract requiring that be done should there be any reason the dog couldn't be kept. How can anyone find fault in the Obama's getting this dog??

Buying from a breeder IS a responsible choice. Most breeders are also heavily involved in breed rescue. Please think before you swallow propaganda.

Bull! Breeders could not care less about animals. Their only motivation is money. I am angry that the Obamas are getting their dog from a breeder. The allergy excuse is ridiculous. I hope PETA goes after him!! You are darn right the American people are waking up to Animal Rights and Animal Welfare. Finally! The movement is huge and it is only going to get bigger. So deal with it. I would help a homeless animal before a homeless person any day!!

Breeders, good breeders, ONLY care about the animals. They do extensive health testing and spend significant money proving their dogs meet the breed standards in shows, competitions and field trials. This costs them quite a lot of money and there are NO cash prizes. There is VERY LITTLE to NO profit in breeding (except perhaps in commercial breeding, which is regulated by the USDA and a whole nother story).

If you are an animal lover, Animal Welfare should have your support, but the stated objective of Animal Rights groups is to END ALL pet ownership. So good luck having the right to keep pets if you choose to support the likes of peta and hsus. Use your brain.

I am not a breeder, by the way, and my current dogs are rescues, but my next dog will be a well bred pure bred dog because it is my American right to make that choice.

SHAME ON THE OBAMAS. They could have found a dog in a shelter or rescue that would have suited them. It's not about American rights or Russian rights or English rights or Irish rights it's about human rights and animal rights and God's constitution. If the constitution said murder was ok would you then go out and murder people.! Of course breeders are part of the problem, common sense will tell you that the more dogs that are being bred the less chance shelter dogs will have. If breeders really cared they wouldn't have gone to so much trouble to persuade the Obamas to get one of their dogs. They would have been happy to see homeless dogs getting homes. And remember a lot of these homeless dogs came from breeders once. Whether they are pure bred dogs or mutts they deserve respect and life. They are not USED GOODS.

The more promises the Obamas break the less chance they will have of being reelected.

it's not the American people's decision. It is a personal decision by a family who is making the best choice for THEM. You want to adopt shelter dogs? Go for it, but don't kid yourself into thinking that you are better than someone who gets a pure bred dog. It's what you do AFTER you bring the dog home that matters. Period.