Peru Offers National Hairless Dog To Obamas (PHOTOS)

LIMA, Peru — Completely bald and older than the Incas, the Peruvian hairless dog seems like an odd fit for the White House.

But Peruvians are mindful of President-elect Barack Obama's preference for a hypoallergenic breed due to his daughter Malia's allergies _ and say the dark, rough-skinned pooch with large ears and a pointy snout could be just the solution.

At his first postelection news conference on Friday, Obama said choosing a pet dog for his daughters is a "major issue."

"It has to be hypoallergenic. On the other hand, our preference would be to get a shelter dog, but a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me," the president-elect said.

The Friends of the Peruvian Hairless Dog Association responded on Monday, sending a letter to the U.S. Embassy in Peru offering the Obama family a 4-month-old pup that responds to "Machu Picchu," the name of Peru's famed Inca citadel.

"My family also has suffered from ... not being able to have a pet because my son and I are asthmatic, so we thought it would be ideal for him (Obama) to have a dog like ours," said association president Claudia Galvez.

Galvez, who has lived with six dogs of the breed for eight years, says being hairless has its benefits: The dogs are flealess and relatively odorless, too.

They were kept as pets during the Inca empire and depictions of the breed appear in 1,200-year-old, pre-Inca artwork.

The hairless dog was long scorned for its appearance before it was recognized internationally as the official Peruvian dog.

Comments

[larry278]

To be obvious, the Obama's will choose the dog as a family. It's not our business. It's an Obama family choice.

[KNadine]

Stop being so uptight. It's fun to guess which pet the girls are going to choose. Lighten Up - believe me, it feels better. All that said, I hope it's not that dog. It looks like it just recovered from a crack problem.

[Januarycarol]

Oh well, it probably has a beautiful mind.

[AlanBJ]

he he :)

[IslandGyal]

Or a "great personality", so says all ugly folks....

[VeroucaSalt]

As an animal lover, I have to say that is a pretty ugly looking dog. But those ears are fascinating!

[johnnygoodwud]

gurantee this is not the image 'O' wants to create. i'm just praying it's not a poodle, can't imagine him walking a poodle. how about a bulldog?

[MsLiz]

After having basset hounds for twenty years, I decided I wanted a breed more amenable to training (getting a Companion Dog degree for a basset hound isn't easy). I researched dogs on the internet, and on the continuum of intelligen­ce/trainab­ility, bassets are at one end and poodles on the other. Don't diss poodles, who were bred for hunting.

[pbley68]

No fur, so no more flea problems for the White House.

[Sapna]

What a fascinating animal...Love its strong face...

[ciceroette]

Well shoot, take the dog, and rename him "YODA." ( all president's need sage advice.) besides, FDR had Fala with him everywhere( although he did once forget him on a military ship) That is the trouble with small dogs, sometimes they get lost in the crowd. That was an interesting question from one poster...would this dog be considered a gift, and therefore belong to the nation? I was never clear on how the status of gifts from other nations was decided. However, Caroline Kennedy received a dog from the Russians, didn't she? ( relative of Laika, the first dog in space?)
Yoda would be Obama's Oval Office dog, ( sage advice) and the children's dog could come from a shelter. Let the dog pick the child, and everything will work out well. In this age of homeless pets, how can one have too many dogs? Hey, ( new idea) maybe he can call this Peruvian dog, "Hope" and the next one "Change."

[chronic]

The dog is pure U G L Y and shouldn't anywhere near the Obama White House!

[KenHussein]

I like the dog. what's ugly is the Bush policies.

[SharonAustinTX]

How large does this dog get when it's fully grown? Anyone know?

[Archivist1000]

Info on the XOLO .. http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/xoloitzcuintle.htm

[Meds]

Yes. And anyone offering this dog to Obama family is offensive.

[MsLiz]

Way to start an international incident.

[weatherwaxx]

I suppose the US offering someone a bald eagle would be offensive? This is a lovely gesture, it's extremely practical - but I hope they save a shelter dog. There are plenty of low-allergen mixed breeds out there. Machu is in no danger of being killed because nobody wants him.

[PCRX]

Yikes... that looks like the "Yo Quiero Taco Bell" dog after it fell into a batch of the toxic hot sauce....

[jupitor]

Isn't it wonderful people from other countries are offering these children pets, and what it means to put a hand of welcome out to our prez, and their children! The people's prez, indeed!

[txgal44]

Yeah, it's wonderful but this dog is going to scare the c ra p out of those girls. Very nice gesture, but this is not the dog for them.

[mlaiuppa]

Love the ears! Wouldn't mind having one myself. My dog looks similar, only is covered in short black hair with some white bits on the chest and toes. My dog is Afghan Hound/Boston Terrier. Go figure.

[MsLiz]

That is a bizarre combination. Enjoy!

[LWkcma]

My wife and I are both allergic and we have both cats and dogs. We take pills. I am unfamiliar with this particular breed of dog but I know that hairless cats still have the dander which is the cause of allergic reaction. Also if the animal is given as a gift does it mean that it is America's or the Obama's?

I agree that many shelter dogs are pure breeds, as I recall Barak said most shelter dogs are mutts. All our dogs and cats are rescues. I understand that Poodle and Bichon Frise [sp] are hypo allergenic as are other breeds. If allergies weren't an issue I would reccommend a Pit Bull that they could put lipstick on and name it Pallin.

[itsover]

No way...this dog is scary looking...

[moda31]

it would be an interesting choice for sure, might need an extensive wardrobe to adjust to the DC winters.

[MilesTone]

No way, no how, no Peruvian dog in the White House!

[kittyarmy]

Why not?

[DebbieinPhx]

I have nothing against a Peruvian dog on the basis that he's from Peru (I think it's sweet that they thought enough to offer)... but honestly a hairless dog?

This dog is supposed to be for his daughters, and nothing personal against this little pooch, but my children would run from the room screaming if I presented them with a hairless puppy! Puppies have hair, ask any child.

My youngest is allergic and we got a pound puppy , he is a wirehaired little thing that was half bichon and half we-have no-idea-what. She loves him, sleeps with him.. not one allergy attack. I take him to the groomer every two weeks and spray him with a dry shampoo followed by a good hair coat hydration spray, on off groomer weeks. Most children who are allergic to dogs are reacting to the dog's dander, so keeping doggie's hair clean and well hydrated will more than likely mean that the Obama's can have their pick of most low dander dogs, ie poodle, poodle crosses, bichons, etc. I agree with Michelle's musing about considering something like a golden doodle, it's a great happy-go-lucky, rambunctious type of puppy dog and will bring a great deal of joy to those adorable girls.

[ChaiKat]

What a cute little guy. All animals are beautiful. There are a lot of pure-breed dogs in shelters though. People think animals are disposable. A puppy turns into a dog fast and many people unprepared to care for an adult dog will not think twice about leaving them at a shelter. I've heard every excuse in the book, allergies being the most common.

Where there's a will there's a way. Take it from a person who has been allergic to dogs and cats since high school, and now shares her home with 5 cats. It's possible.

[emmaspeaks]

I like it, its cute, but there are many many choices. It was genuinely nice of them to offer. Truly people are excited about President Elect Obama. And here is the diplomatic challenge. If you have a dog in mind, or you haven't decided yet, or maybe you don.t want the Peruvian dog, how do you graciously say "No Thank you."