Champ and Major Biden come to DC

It’s been less than a week since Joe Biden was sworn in as president, and his White House is already going to the dogs.

“Champ and Major have joined us at the White House!” first lady Jill Biden tweeted On Monday.

German Shepherds arrived at the White House on Sunday, a spokesperson for Jill Biden said. The move ends a four-year canine drought at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

“The first family wanted to settle down before they brought the dogs back to Washington from Delaware,” Jill Biden’s office said, noting the couple are quickly adjusting to their new life. “Champ is enjoying her new dog bed by the fireplace and Major loved running on the south lawn.” his office said.

The Bidens got the now older champion as a puppy in 2008, shortly before moving into the Vice President’s official residence at the Naval Observatory. Biden took his name from his father, who told him, “Every time you get knocked down, champion – get up!”

Major, meanwhile, is the first shelter dog to enjoy life in the White House.

The Bidens adopted him from the Delaware Humane Association in 2018 after he and five other puppies were exposed to a toxic substance. Biden has not spoken publicly of Major’s name, but the late president-elect’s son, Beau Biden, was a major in the Delaware National Guard.

The mischievous couple may soon have more company – the Bidens have said they also plan to have a cat. Asked for an update on a possible first feline, Jill Biden spokesperson Michael LaRosa told NBC News, “stay tuned!”

The animal additions are particularly interesting because Donald Trump was the first president not to have a pet since Andrew Johnson in the 1860s, according to the Presidential Pet Museum.

Former Presidents weren’t limited to having dogs and cats – Calvin Coolidge had a donkey and bobcat, Teddy Roosevelt had a badger, a flying squirrel, and a one-legged rooster, and John Quincy Adams had an alligator, a gift from the Marquis de Lafayette, said the animal museum.