BO IN THE WHITE HOUSE

Columbia, Missouri:

The world's Super Power Nation has finally got its new first dog.

Tuesday, the Obamas made public Bo, their six-month Portuguese water dog (a gift from Senator Ted Kennedy and his wife Victoria) to the scampering media persons in the White House.

"He's a star - he's got star quality," USA Today quoted Obama as saying. "He doesn't know how to swim," his daughter Sasha was quoted as saying.

There are a whole bunch of CEOs ready with their advice for the President: The ten things your dog will love; the do's and dont's of having a pet; how to keep your pet off the common allergies and sickness; tips for raising a pet, if you will!

For all the cute reasons, Bo's the front page stuff! The Portuguese can smile! Of all the breeds, he's the chosen one!

The overzealous curiousity is only natural, since, apparently, the White House sans a pet was a national concern that has been settled.

"Bo may have even outdrawn the queen -- Queen Elizabeth II, that is, who got a big media welcome on the White House lawn when she visited President Bush in 2007," USA Today said. Mr Bush is retired to his ranch in Texas, to the relief of the world. I understand he might as well have a pet there to play with.

Meanwhile, CNN interviewed "dog whisperer" Cesar Millan live on how best to handle a Portuguese water dog like Bo.

The President has already imposed some limits on where he'll sleep. "Not in my bed," he was quoted by the national dailies as saying. More of him (it) is awaited.

Sounds weird for a nation that has its hands full of, and with, just about everything: Iraq; Afghanistan; global recession and unprecedented job cuts, among many other things. Bo's going to have a tough time in the White House, it seems.

There's much to it though than what appears from a 30,000 feet view.

Americans love their pets beyond madness. It's crazy, but that's the way it is. There can be issues about humans, but Americans don't like to mess around with pets.
Pets are an integral part of their lifestyle. A family could spend heaven pampering its pet (family budget factors in this expense very much) and tending to it.

So it was an issue that the Obamas did not have one until recently. Bo's here now and the first family may smile.

There are stringent regulations for the pet owners and stern punishments for those who meet out cruelty to them. No two questions about that.

For the Asians, and particularly the Indians, if that's lifestyle, it's your take! The new government in New Delhi might as well convene an emergency cabinet meeting as soon as it's installed in May and ponder why there wasn't any Indian breed on Obama's list of choices! Afterall, we've not had a change in our foreign policy for nothing. Hawks and lobbysts, you got to do a better job.

Jokes apart, common and hard-working Americans find in their pets relaxation. There is some one to connect to on a different plane. In the life filled with taxes, pets bring some solace; peace, and happiness. Pets become family members.

Conversations may begin with cats and end up on dogs. There are a whole bunch of organisations, which, as their campaigns suggest, "put pets with people."

Pet clinics; pet food; pet clothes; pet shows - it's a big market too!

Contrast that with what one of my fellow-journalists from Vietnam, an Alfred Friendly fellow and also a pet-lover who has a cat back her home, had to say. In the run up to our programme, she was worried about her cat and where to keep it for six months while she's in the US. "So, how's your cat," I enquired. "Tasty," she joked.