Great Question About Obama Pup
Here's a great question I received via direct message on Twitter (www.twitter.com/mary_martin):
This is why I didn't campaign for a greyhound–it raises their profile. More people become interested for the wrong reasons, and then who knows, maybe racing would actually be reinvigorated! (Not to mention the White House is not exactly the optimal environment for a greyhound.)
Perhaps if there were a heartfelt message followed by action that supported it, no matter what breed were rescued, adoptions would increase. That's what I'd like to think. But perhaps if there were a heartfelt message followed by action that supported it, no matter what breed were rescued, demand for that breed from wherever people could get them would increase. Maybe both.
I don't think we know the answer. (Of course, a "mutt" from a shelter would have been the optimal situation, though from what they Obama's say, that would have been impossible.)
What I do know is that this was a very important action, as everyone appears to care far more about what the Obama's do than what the Bushes ever did. And if he had just gotten Bo without the initial spiel about mutts like me and the intention to rescue there wouldn't have been such an uproar.
Yes, the demand for dogs like Bo will increase, and that's a problem.
But betrayal is also a problem. Saying something and then doing something else is a problem. And I think that's what has upset so many people.
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I think this is the part that makes me the most angry. The Obama's are supposed to be model parents and yet they just accept that their daughter has allergies and that's that?
Sheech….my mother was allergic to animal fur
really bad….but she loved animals so she found
a way to cure it through yoga & some kind of breathing exercises. My neighbor was allergic to dogs but when his son brought home a stray dog that the whole family fell in love with…he
took the dog down to their finished basement and
rolled around on the floor with him for a few hours & guess what? Right..it nearly killed him
but little by little he became allergy free. Why
in the world don't the Obama's try to help their
daughter? They're educated people with all sorts
or resources & money…..Gee if the kid breaks a leg does that mean she'll be crippled for life?
Anybody who thinks allergies can't be cured
or at least managed is living in the last century.
And oh….is there some law that says they can't have 2 dogs…or 3? I have 3 dogs…no staff and a much smaller house then the white house…..and amazing as that may sound, ya know, somehow I manage. Don't get me wrong…I still like the Obamas 100 times more then McCain & that skank from Alaska, but lets face it..THEY ARE NOT ANIMAL LOVERS…by any means..if they were, they would already have some 4 legged compamions…would they not?
I hate to be a downer, but this is the same man that told "Field and Stream," a hunting magazine,
“if you talk to sportsmen in my home state of Illinois, they will tell you that I've always been a forceful advocate on behalf of the rights of sportsmen, on behalf of access for sportsmen and hunters.” Regarding the future, Obama stated, “I think that having a head of the Department of Interior who doesn't understand hunting and fishing would be a problem. And so my suspicion is that whoever heads up the Department of Interior is probably going to be a sportsman or sportswoman.”
He also issued this statement regarding the beef recall in Feb. 2008:
“As the parent of two young daughters, there are few issues more important to me than ensuring the safety of the food that our children consume. I commend the Humane Society of the United States for bringing this important issue to the public attention and believe that the mistreatment of downed cows is unacceptable and poses a serious threat to public health.”
Clearly our use of animals is hardly a topic of interest to him, since his emphasis in the first statement is on encouraging "manly traditions" and the second on the safety of food, NOT on the cruel and unnecessary practices of humans. So for him to purchase a dog from a breeder, over a shelter, really shouldn't be all too surprising. I agree that it is unfortunate, that people will now rush to purchase these dogs, but I can't say I am either surprised or disappointed. Like Mary said, actions speak louder than words. And although I may be happy Obama was elected over McCain, I'm not thrilled with a number of his decisions or statements.
To further complicate the issue, Obama chose a fairly rare breed – so even if folks *wanted* to adopt a PWD from a shelter, few will be able to. (Big if, I know, but still.) Of course, the irony is that shelters will be overflowing with PWDs in a few years, once Obama's no longer prez and the breed novelty has worn off.
Had Kennedy gifted him, say, a Labrador, pit bull or Chihuahua, Obama's adoring throngs would at least have the option of adopting members of this breed.