President Joe Biden’s dog Commander is not at the White House premises at present, a spokesperson for First Lady Jill Biden said Wednesday, after multiple reports of the German shepherd biting several Presidential staffers, including Secret Service agents.
File Photo: Commander, US President Joe Biden and US First Lady Jill Bidens German Shepherd, is ... [+]
The First Lady’s spokesperson said Commander “is not presently on the White House campus while next steps are evaluated,” the Associated Press reported.
The spokesperson noted that the Bidens are “grateful for the patience and support” of the Secret Service staffers and all other staffers as they attempt to “work through solutions.”
Last month, a tourist took a photo of Commander biting Dale Haney, the White House’s chief groundskeeper and later that month the dog bit a Secret Service officer.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre commented on the photo of Commander biting Haney and said the dog and the chief groundskeeper were playing and no skin was broken at the time.
It is unclear where the 2-year-old German shepherd is living currently and if there are plans to bring him back to the White House. The First Lady’s spokesperson said the White House can be a “stressful environment” for pets and the family was working on “ways to help Commander handle the often unpredictable nature of the White House grounds.”
Aside from the two biting incidents reported last month, the 2-year-old German shepherd has bitten Secret Service personnel at least 10 other times, according to the Department of Homeland Security’s records. The ten earlier biting incidents were recorded between October 2022 and January 2023, one of which required a hospital visit. It is unknown if any other biting incidents have taken place between January and September. Biden’s older German Shepherd Major was also involved in several biting incidents, which eventually resulted in him moving out of the White House.
Biden’s Dog Bit Secret Service Officers At Least 10 Times, Records Show (Forbes)
Biden’s dog Commander no longer at White House after biting incidents (Associated Press)