EP-40: What if Your Dog Bit 10 People in Four Months?

02-12-2023 • 23 minutos

Title: Biden’s dog Commander has bitten Secret Service officers ten times in four months, Records show and Consider This Before You Judge Commander (or Any Other Dog)

Source: AP, NY Times https://apnews.com/article/biden-dog-secret-service-commander-bite-89448214f0832edabd28940f7a2c8d4c

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/01/opinion/commander-biden-dog-biting-german-shepherd.html

https://apnews.com/article/biden-commander-dog-bite-secret-service-e2592d3996381ea82e24a13d6666de77

Date: July 25, 2023

Situation:

The Biden’s German Shepherd Dogs Keeps on Biting People at the White House.

Secret Service records show that President Joe Biden’s German Shepherd Dog Commander has bitten agency officers stationed at the White House 10 times between October 2022 and January. At least one biting incident required a trip to the hospital for the injured officer.

Problem

The President’s dog keeps biting people.
1. This dog, Commander, is their second dog to bite secret service members.
2. Major, the other dog, also bit White House staff
3. Major was sent to live with friends in Delaware after the bites.
White House staff point out that the White House is a unique and often stressful environment.
And that the Bidens are working through ways to improve the situation.
Chief spokesperson for the Secret Service said, “The Secret Service navigates how best to operate around family pets, and these incidents are no exception. We take the safety and well-being of our employees extremely seriously.”
Biden received Commander in December 2021 as a gift from his brother James. The records released cover a fraction of his year and a half as a presidential pet.
On November 3rd, 22, a uniformed officer was bitten twice. The officer suffered injuries serious enough to require aid at the White House and at the hospital and was placed on restricted duty for several days.

Action/ What’s happening

Jill Biden’s Spokesperson said, “The Bidens have been working with the Secret Service and the White House residence staff “on additional leashing protocols and training” for the Commander and establishing designated areas where he can run around for exercise.
Secret Service Spokesperson said, “While special agents and officers neither care for nor handle the first family’s pets, we continuously work with all applicable entities to minimize adverse impacts in an environment that includes pets,”
Commander is often seen being led around by the White House’s chief groundskeeper.
Chief government relations officer of the Humane Society of the United States and president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund said dog bites can happen for a variety of reasons, and the odds of it happening can be reduced by understanding the signals a dog sends when it is in an uncomfortable situation and removing whatever is causing fear or stress. But sometimes, changing a dog’s environment may not be enough to keep them from biting.
The Biden’s are seeking the help of a professional dog trainer.
The AP reported on Oct. 5th that Commander was sent to an undisclosed location.

Result

Other questions: Why did James give them a GSD?
Are GSD good white house dogs?
This is a touchy situation
1. Stressful life
2. Trained fighting men dressed in suits everywhere
3. The owner does not have the time to train the dog or to do the things needed to change the dog's behavior.
Managing the environment to prevent bites is possible.

Other Presidents with biting pet dogs

Alexandra Horowitz wrote in the NY Times, “Commander is not the first biter in the White House. The Bidens’ previous dogs, Champ and Major, were sent back to Delaware in March 2021 after what was described as a biting incident. Teddy Roosevelt had a bull terrier called Pete who bit a Navy Department clerk and tore off the pants of the French ambassador. Franklin D. Roosevelt exiled his dog — also, coincidentally, a German shepherd called Major — after he bit the British prime minister, as well as the first woman elected to the Senate, Hattie Caraway (Lest anyone start hand-wringing about German shepherds, Eleanor Roosevelt’s Scottish terrier Meggie, a squat, short-legged dog, was a biter: She was sent away after biting a journalist.)”

Closing