Obama Family Announces Tragic Loss

She cleared White House hedges, chased anything that moved, and kept the Obama family on its toes for 13 years.

Now former President Barack Obama is saying goodbye to Sunny, the Portuguese water dog who joined his family during his second term.

“Yesterday, we lost a cherished member of our family,” Obama wrote Wednesday on X.

Sunny arrived in 2013 as a 1-year-old, joining the family’s first dog, Bo. In his tribute, Obama recalled a companion who wanted everyone in on the action.

“And whereas the way to Bo’s heart usually involved a treat, Sunny was more interested in having us run around with her, roll on the floor with her, or have her belly rubbed for as long as we were willing,” Obama said.

His daughters, Sasha and Malia, had Sunny’s affection “even if they were pestering her when she was napping,” he wrote. Staff members also had a shadow, with Sunny trailing them around and “helping them on the job.”

Bo had a devoted defender.

“She was fiercely protective of Bo, who she rightly sensed wasn’t always as alert and attentive as she was,” Obama said.

The two dogs became White House attractions in their own right, appearing at public events and on the family’s annual holiday card. Their popularity came with paperwork: By 2015, former first lady Michelle Obama said both had official White House schedules.

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“Everybody wants to see them and take pictures,” she said at the time.

“I get a memo at the beginning of the month with a request for their schedules, and I have to approve their appearances,” she said.

Away from those appearances, Sunny kept the family busy.

“We got Sunny at the start of our second term in the White House, and all of us – including our first dog, Bo – immediately fell in love,” Obama wrote.

“We also had trouble keeping up with her, for Sunny was a force of nature,” he said.

Obama described her as “athletic and full of boundless energy, she leapt over the hedges on the South Lawn like they weren’t even there, chasing squirrels, birds and anything else that moved.”

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Water, however, was another story.

“She had her eccentricities: other than Bo, she preferred people to dogs; she was a loud and sloppy drinker; and despite being a Portuguese Water Dog, she hated getting wet,” Obama said.

Those quirks were part of the dog the family adored.

“But as far as our family was concerned, she was pretty much perfect, and for 13 years, she would be by our side – always loyal, always sweet, always ready for adventure, still fiery and gorgeous till the very end of her days,” Obama said.

He ended his farewell by imagining Sunny reunited with Bo.

“We will miss her terribly, and imagine she’s with her big brother now, making sure he’s okay.”

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