Major (Joe Biden's dog)

Last updated

Major
Major Cropped Jan 2021.jpg
Major in 2021
Breed German Shepherd
SexMale
Born (2018-01-17) January 17, 2018 (age 6) [1]
Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.
Years active2021
Known for United States presidential pet
TermJanuary 20, 2021 – December 21, 2021
Successor Commander and Willow
Owner Biden family
AppearanceBlack with pale tan markings

Major (born January 17, 2018) is a German Shepherd owned by Joe Biden's family. [2] [3] Major, who was born in 2018, is the first shelter dog to live in the White House. [4] [5] Previously, President John F. Kennedy and his wife Jackie had owned two German Shepherds. [6]

Contents

Major was a rescue from a litter that had been exposed to "something toxic" in their home, [1] and their owner was unable to afford the expense of veterinary care for them. [4] [6] He was fostered by the Bidens earlier that year from the Delaware Humane Association's shelter and has been with them since late 2018. On the day Joe Biden adopted the dog from the shelter, he stayed "telling stories and taking selfies with staffers" for over an hour. [4] The origin of Major's name is not publicly known, but Beau Biden, Joe Biden's son, was a major in the Delaware National Guard. [6] [7] [8]

Incidents

On November 28, 2020, then-President-elect Biden fractured his foot while playing with Major. [9] Biden said in an interview that Major was waiting to play after the president-elect emerged from a shower: "I'm joking, running after him and grab his tail. And what happened was that he slid on a throw rug. And I tripped on the rug he slid on." [10]

On March 8, 2021, Major and Champ, Biden's other German Shepherd, were temporarily moved to live with a family friend in Delaware after a minor incident in which Major nipped a security guard. [11] Major has been known for displaying agitated behavior on multiple occasions, in the past including "jumping, barking, and charging" at staff and security. Joe Biden noted in an interview that the bite did not penetrate the skin. [12] [13] They returned to the White House on March 24 after Major received some training, [14] including training on how to live with a future cat that the Bidens adopted in the White House. [15] [16] On March 30, Major was involved in a second biting incident at the White House, having bitten a National Park Service employee during a walk. [17]

Major is not the first presidential dog to have biting incidents. In separate incidents, Franklin D. Roosevelt's dog, also a German Shepherd named Major, bit United States Senator Hattie Wyatt Caraway, and attacked Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Ramsay MacDonald, tearing MacDonald's pants off. [18] [19] [20] Theodore Roosevelt's bull terrier Pete bit numerous people, even tearing the pants off of ambassador of France to the United States Jean Jules Jusserand. [21] [22] [23] [24] [25]

Political activities

In July 2020, Biden's granddaughter, Naomi, posted a tweet showcasing Champ and Major fighting over a Donald Trump chew toy. Though the tweet was subsequently deleted, the photo resurfaced on social media before the 2020 United States presidential election. [26]

Champ and Major both appeared in advertisements for Biden in his 2020 presidential campaign against President Donald Trump who had no pets in the White House. [6] During the campaign Biden tweeted that "Some Americans celebrate #NationalCatDay, some celebrate #NationalDogDay...President Trump celebrates neither. It says a lot. It's time we put a pet back in the White House." [4]

Three days before the inauguration of Joe Biden, the Delaware Humane Association held an "indoguration" for Major. More than 7,400 people attended via Zoom and it featured a performance by Josh Groban. The event raised $200,000 in donations for the association. [27]

Departure from the White House

In December 2021, on the day the Bidens announced a new puppy, Commander, was to move into the White House, it was announced that Major would no longer be a resident there, after experts recommended that it would be safer for him to live in a quieter environment with family friends. [28]

Commander turned out to have biting problems as well. He was involved in at least two dozen such incidents before he was removed from the White House. [29]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 Armus, Teo (November 9, 2020). "Dogs are returning to the White House: Biden's German shepherds, including the first shelter pup". The Washington Post.
  2. ↑ Sophie Vershbow (November 7, 2020). "Another Great Thing About Biden's Win: There's Going to Be a Dog in the White House Again!". Vogue . Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  3. ↑ Morales, Christina (November 8, 2020). "Biden to Restore a White House Tradition of Presidential Pets". The New York Times . Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Wertheim, Bonnie (November 10, 2020). "Dog People Are Loving This (at Least Some of Them)". The New York Times . Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  5. ↑ Slater, Georgia (November 7, 2020). "President-Elect Joe Biden's German Shepherd Major to Be First Rescue Dog in the White House". People . Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Dareh Gregorian (November 10, 2020). "Biden's bringing the big dogs to the White House — German shepherds Champ and Major". NBC News . Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  7. ↑ "US election: Champ, Major and other White House pets". BBC News . November 11, 2020. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  8. ↑ Mizoguchi, Karen (November 17, 2018). "Joe Biden Adopts German Shepherd Named Major from Delaware Shelter: 'We Are So Happy'". People . Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  9. ↑ Jaffe, Alexandra (November 30, 2020). "Doctor says Joe Biden fractured foot while playing with his dog". Chicago Tribune . Associated Press. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  10. ↑ Nelson, Steven (December 3, 2020). "Joe Biden says he broke foot tripping after shower when he pulled dog's tail". New York Post. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  11. ↑ Stump, Scott (March 9, 2021). "Joe Biden's dogs back at family home in Delaware after 'recent incident' at White House". Today . Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Biden Defends Major As 'A Sweet Dog' Just In Need Of Some Training". NPR . March 17, 2021. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  13. ↑ "President Joe Biden's Dogs Sent Back To Delaware After 'Biting Incident' Involving White House Security Member". CBS 3 . March 9, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  14. ↑ Treisman, Rachel (March 24, 2021). "First Dogs Return To White House After Major Biden Causes Minor Injury". NPR . Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  15. ↑ Walters, Joanna (April 30, 2021). "Jill Biden lets cat out of the bag: White House dogs to have new feline friend". The Guardian. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  16. ↑ Berger, Miriam (May 1, 2021). "Biden has had his dog days. Now he'll join the club of 'cat people' world leaders". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  17. ↑ Lahut, Jake (March 30, 2021). "White House says Major Biden was involved in another biting incident while on a walk". Business Insider.
  18. ↑ "White House Police Dog Bites Senator Caraway" . Newspapers.com. The Morning Call. The Associated Press. April 30, 1933. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  19. ↑ "FDR's German Shepherd, Major". Presidential Pet Museum. March 5, 2016. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  20. ↑ Hughes, Jesse (April 1, 2021). "Major and Major: 2 presidential dogs with 1 story". www.thedenverchannel.com. KMGH. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  21. ↑ "SNAP SHOTS" . Newspapers.com. The Buffalo Illustrated Sunday Times. October 30, 1910. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  22. ↑ "Major's not the only misbehaving White House dog. But don't let that deter you from adopting a shelter pup". NewsChannel 3-12. March 10, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  23. ↑ "Presidential Pets". CBS News. CBS Interactive Inc. October 4, 2016. Archived from the original on May 17, 2018. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
  24. ↑ Kaur, Harmeet (March 10, 2021). "Major's not the only misbehaving White House dog. But don't let that deter you from adopting a shelter pup". CNN. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  25. ↑ "Theodore Roosevelt's Pete". Presidential Pet Museum. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  26. ↑ "Fact check: Biden did not post picture of his dogs playing with a Trump chew toy". Reuters. December 16, 2020.
  27. ↑ Steven, Taylor (January 20, 2021). "Joe Biden's Dogs Shepherd In New Era of Presidential Pets at the White House". The Wall Street Journal . Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  28. ↑ Washington, Associated Press in (December 21, 2021). "Commander in, Major out: White House pet shakeup after biting incidents". the Guardian. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  29. ↑ "Bidens' dog, Commander, bit Secret Service personnel in at least 24 incidents, records show". cnn.com. February 21, 2024. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
Honorary titles
Preceded by
Bo and Sunny
Barack Obama's Portuguese Water Dogs
(January 20, 2017)
 White House pet dogs
January 20, 2021 – December 21, 2021
Served alongside: Champ (Until June 19, 2021)
Commander (Since December 20, 2021)		Succeeded by
Commander
as sole presidential dog
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