01/21/21 Triumph for pet adoption: From the animal shelter to the White House!
Animal Friends Croatia believe that Biden's rescue dog will encourage pet adoptions throughout the world
- The White House had already housed President Johnson's rescue dog and President Clinton's adopted cat
Joe Biden, the new president of the USA, moved into the White House with his family and his two dogs. The younger of the two – Major – was a rescue! The Biden family adopted Major two years ago after he had been abandoned at a dump and rescued by the swift veterinary intervention. Biden then took the opportunity to thank the local Humane Association for finding a home for Major, as well as countless other animals. A few days before Biden's inauguration, there was an 'indoguration' for Major, which celebrated the fairytale path of this abandoned dog, from the animal shelter to the White House. The funds raised by people attending this virtual event were donated to the shelter from which Major had been adopted.
Although some cite Major as the first rescue dog living in the official residence of the president of the United States, it also housed a mutt named Yuki during the presidential mandate of Lyndon B. Johnson in the 1960s. His daughter Luci found Yuki abandoned at a gas station in Texas. Yuki was the first rescue dog in the White House, where he loyally accompanied the President in almost all his activities. The President would take Yuki with him on cabinet meetings and into the Oval Office, they'd swim together in the pool, and Johnson even danced with him at his daughter Lynda's wedding. He would always say that Yuki was the smartest and friendliest dog he had ever met. Yuki was allegedly with him even at the moment of Johnson's death.
Biden's wife, Jill Biden, announced that the presidential pair would also like to adopt a cat. It wouldn't be the first adopted cat in the presidential residence as Socks used to live there. Socks was a cat adopted by Bill Clinton's daughter back when he had been the governor of Arkansas, and he lived to be nearly 20 years old. Black-and-white Socks regularly appeared on the photographs taken at the White House during Clinton's 8-year presidential mandate, oftentimes sitting on the President's shoulder. He had his own online fan club, made appearances at animal-related charity fundraisers, and he was one of the topics Hillary Clinton wrote about in her book "Dear Socks, Dear Buddy: Kids' Letters to the First Pets."
"Politicians should be role models and use their positions to bring awareness to the public. In a situation where there are lots of abandoned animals, pet adoption is a great example of socially responsible behavior. This is why President Biden's gesture of having a rescue dog living in the White House will surely have a positive effect on raising awareness of the importance of adopting pets instead of buying them – and not just in the USA, but in the whole world. Major's path from the street to the presidential residence is a triumph for pet adoption", said Animal Friends Croatia.
They emphasized that animals are not objects and they should not be the subject of trade. They stated that there are currently thousands of cats and dogs waiting for adoption in Croatia and that the shelters could be emptied quickly if only all those who wanted to get a dog or a cat chose adoption instead of buying: "Shelters and advertisement sections are offering animals of all ages, sizes, and colors, and truly anyone can use their heart to choose his new fourlegged family member. We'd like to remind everyone that dogs and cats in the animal shelters and under the care of animal welfare organizations are all healthy, vaccinated, and castrated, and the dogs have microchips too, and they cannot wait to find their new homes."
Animal Friends Croatia invites everyone who has the conditions to take care of an animal, long-term and responsibly, to choose to adopt dogs or cats instead of buying them.
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