NEWS
Barack and Michelle Obama mourn the death of their ‘first dog’ Bo
Former US President Barack Obama and his entire family on Saturday announced that former “first dog” Bo had died.
Bo, a Portuguese water dog given to the Obama children, Sasha and Malia, by Sen. Ted Kennedy and his wife Victoria in 2009, was roughly 12 years old.
“Today our family lost a true friend and loyal companion,” Obama tweeted. “For more than a decade, Bo was a constant, gentle presence in our lives—happy to see us on our good days, our bad days, and everyday in between.”
Today our family lost a true friend and loyal companion. For more than a decade, Bo was a constant, gentle presence in our lives—happy to see us on our good days, our bad days, and everyday in between. pic.twitter.com/qKMNojiu9V
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 8, 2021
In an Instagram post, former first lady Michelle Obama said Bo died after a battle with cancer.
Michelle Obama also wrote that Bo was there for the former first couple as their lives “slowed down” and helped them “see the girls off to college and adjust to life as empty nesters.”
“For more than a decade, Bo was a constant, gentle presence in our lives—happy to see us on our good days, our bad days, and everyday in between,” the former President wrote.
In his memoir “A Promised Land,” Obama recalled how “of all the pleasures that first year in the White House would deliver, none quite compared to the mid-April arrival of Bo, a huggable, four-legged black bundle of fur, with a snowy-white chest and front paws.”
Bo, a Portuguese water dog, had come to the Obamas as a gift from the late Sen. Ted Kennedy and his wife, Victoria.
“It was an incredibly thoughtful gesture—not only because the breed was hypoallergenic (a necessity due to Malia’s allergies) but also because the Kennedys had made sure that Bo was housebroken before he came to us,” Obama wrote.
The Obamas said that they will miss Bo dearly, “but we are thankful that he lived such a joyful life full of snuggles, games of fetch, and evenings spent lying on the couch.”
See photos of Bo and the family below, during its lifetime:
