Wake up, Washington.
Suck it up, deniers and purveyors of alternate facts. It’s officially a “landslide.”
As of January 20, 2021, an adopted-dog elect will reside at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. ADOTUS (Adopted Dog Of The Unites States) will rule.
That’s because President Elect Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, adopted Major, a German Shepherd, from the Delaware Humane Association (DHA) in 2018.
Major was reportedly part of a sickly litter that was dropped off at the shelter after ingesting a poisonous substance. Attentive shelter staff slowly nursed the pups back to good health. Back then, Joe and Jill Biden were looking for a companion for their then 10-year-old shepherd, Champ. When the DHA announced their search for fosters on a Facebook post, the Biden’s daughter, Ashley, alerted her parents who answered the call — and made it for keeps.
Patrick Carroll, Director of the DHA said that, on adoption day, the shelter staff that gathered around Biden never expected him to hang out with them for over an hour. Biden thanked shelter workers for their dedication to abused and neglected animals.
“He was telling stories about his dogs and his life. It was really a special moment,” Carroll told Inside Edition.
Both Champ and Major have been staples on Biden’s social media accounts during his run for The White House. The pair even has a dedicated Twitter account, “First Dogs.” Several weeks ago, Biden shared a video of Major licking his face. The caption read: “No ruff days on the trail when I have some Major motivation.”
Shelter officials across the country express hope that Americans will follow the Biden’s example.
“Hey, if a shelter pet is good enough [for the President of the United States], they’re good enough for anyone,” said Samantha Shelton, founder and CEO of Furkids, Georgia’s Largest Animal Rescue, No-Kill Shelters and Sanctuary.
“It shows how dogs in a shelter can become part of a family,” said Lisa O’Neill, Director of Angels Of Assisi in Roanoke, Virginia. “Whether it’s a family here or a family going all the way to the White House, it’s all the same to the dogs. They’re just happy to have a home.”
Loving, intelligent and fiercely loyal, German shepherds also have the dubious distinction of being among the top three breeds to be surrendered to shelters along with pit-mixes and chihuahuas. These breeds are among the many dog du jours of history that have been overbred, then abandoned. Happily, The DHA reported that all of Major’s littermates found forever homes.
While Major is the first-ever adopted shelter pet to occupy then White House, he is not the first rescued animal companion of a First Family. President Lyndon B. Johnson’s mixed-breed dog, Yuki, was found by his daughter, Luci, at a gas station on Thanksgiving Day, 1966.
Come inauguration day, the Biden’s will implement a Major paw-licy change.