When President Obama was on the campaign trail and giving his acceptance speech, he promised his kids a new puppy for the White House.  The puppy hasn’t come yet, but Obama is assuring us that their new pet is on its way.

There’s still speculation as to what kind of dog the First Family will get, but they seem to be leaning toward a Portuguese Water dog. Michelle Obama said the breed has the kind of temperament and size they are looking for. This is a great choice for the new residents of the White House.

One of the great things we know for sure about the Obamas’ new dog is that it’s going to be rescue dog from a shelter. There are a couple reasons why this is much better than getting a dog from a breeder. The most obvious reason is they are saving a dog from a shelter whose fate is unknown. If they didn’t adopt the dog, and no one else did, then what would happen to it?

In addition to helping the rescue dog population, they are also not supporting the dog breeders. Breeding dogs can cause a lot of problems for the animals. Not only can breeding dogs help promote puppy mills, but pure breed dogs often have extreme genetic defects as well. Dog breeds have certain genetic disorders that are diluted when the breed is mixed. In cases where breeders produce pure breeds, that dilution doesn’t take place.

Obama said the family would get the dog once he returned from the NATO summit in April.