Bidens’ Dog Commander Joins a Long List of Naughty White House Pets
It’s a short trip from the White House to the doghouse. Commander, the latest presidential pet to make headlines for his biting behavior, is following in the pawprints of many four-legged dwellers banished from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The 2-year-old German shepherd with a history of nipping Secret Service agents is “not presently on the White House campus," the White House said Thursday.
The Secret Service doesn’t have a complete tally of incidents, an agency spokesperson said. Commander was removed while the family evaluates next steps. The Bidens’ other dog, Major, also a German shepherd, was sent to Delaware in 2021 for biting issues of his own.
President Biden and first lady Jill Biden “remain grateful for the patience and support of the U.S. Secret Service and all involved, as they continue to work through solutions," according to Elizabeth Alexander, the communications director for the first lady. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to say where Commander had been taken.
Jean-Pierre said she had never been bitten by him. “I’ve seen Commander many times. I was never worried," she said.
For all the joy presidential pets have brought to White House families, they have also created their share of drama. During Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency, from 1901 to 1909, the White House was home to six children and a menagerie of pets—including a hyena, a lion cub and a badger that, according to the president’s son, never bit faces, only legs. The badger was given to Roosevelt at a presidential speech, according to Andrew Hager, historian-in-residence for the Presidential Pet Museum.
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