Obamas mourn death of family dog Sunny

Former President Barack Obama said Wednesday that Sunny, the Portuguese water dog who spent years roaming the White House as one of the family’s two “first dogs,” has died after 13 years with the Obamas.

“Yesterday, we lost a cherished member of our family,” Obama wrote on X, saying the family would “miss her terribly.”

Sunny joined the Obama household as a puppy in 2013, at the beginning of Obama’s second presidential term, as a companion for Bo, the family’s first Portuguese water dog. Obama said the whole household, including Bo, “immediately fell in love” with her.

“For thirteen 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,” he wrote. “As far as our family was concerned, she was pretty much perfect.”

Obama described Sunny as “athletic and full of boundless energy,” recalling that she could leap over the hedges on the South Lawn as if they were not there. She was also, he wrote, a dog with firm preferences. Unlike Bo, who could usually be won over with a treat, Sunny wanted attention and action.

Sunny most enjoyed “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 wrote. He also noted her quirks: She was “a loud and sloppy drinker” and, despite being a Portuguese water dog, hated getting wet.

Sunny was close to Obama’s daughters, Sasha and Malia, who were 12 and 14 when she arrived. “She loved the girls, even if they were pestering her when she was napping,” Obama wrote. “She loved our team, and would often follow them around, helping them on the job.”

The post was reshared by former first lady Michelle Obama. CBS News reported that it had been viewed on X more than 2 million times within three hours of being shared.

Sunny and Bo became familiar figures during the Obama years, often seen running on the White House lawn and appearing at official events. The BBC reported that Sunny met high-profile visitors including world leaders and Pope Francis, and that she and Bo met the pope in the Blue Room of the White House in 2015.

Former chief White House photographer Pete Souza said it was an “honour” to work with Sunny, describing her as a “willing subject” who had “the rare distinction of being petted by both a President and a Pope,” according to the BBC.

Bo died of cancer in 2021 at age 12. The Obamas adopted him in 2009, fulfilling a campaign promise to Malia and Sasha after Obama’s first inauguration. In his message Wednesday, Obama said Sunny was now with her “big brother” Bo.