UPDATED 3/10, 10:10 a.m. ET:Major’s saga continues. On Tuesday evening word arrived from a Secret Service official that the German Shepherd “nipped” at an agent’s hand and didn’t break the skin. The agent is still working.
UPDATED 3/9, 10:15 a.m. ET:First Lady Jill Biden’s spokesman Michael LaRosa clarified the situation, stating, “With the First Lady traveling for three days, Champ and Major went to Delaware to stay with family friends.” White House correspondent Kelly O’Donnell added that NBC News was told of the German Shepherds, “Yes, they will be back.”
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki commented on the matter to MSNBC’s Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski, saying, “I don’t have any specifics, I don’t have any updates for you, Mika, on reports about an incident. But what I can tell you as a dog lover—I know you are—is that Major and Champ are part of the Bidens’ family. They’re members of the family. They often go to Delaware when the First Lady is traveling, and they’re adjusting to their new home. But I don’t have any more on those reports, I just know that they’re beloved members of the family, and of course of the White House family, too.”
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President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden’s two German Shepherds have been removed from the White House and are back in Wilmington, Delaware after a display of aggression from their 3-year-old dog Major, CNN reports.
Major, who was adopted from a Delaware animal shelter by the Bidens back in November of 2018, was involved in a “biting incident” with an unidentified person in White House security, according to sources CNN spoke with.
The victim’s condition has not been revealed.
The Bidens’ other German Shepherd, 13-year-old Champ, was also sent back to Delaware with Major despite having nothing to do with aforementioned aggressive behavior. The two dogs moved into the White House shortly after Biden’s inauguration.
It’s reportedly not the first time that Major has rattled people in the White House. CNN has sources saying Major has previously jumped, barked, and charged at both members of White House staff and security.
