As a longtime Portuguese water dog fancier and breeder, I have placed puppies who represent the best work of my head, heart and hands into the waiting arms of many wonderful families over the years. None of those arms, however, are as famous as the ones who'll welcome "Bo" this week. As America's first family welcomes their new PWD to his White House on Tuesday, I am confident that he will ably assume his role as the PWD ambassador to the United States. While Bo is getting adjusted to his new station, I'll take this opportunity to offer a few things his countrymen might want to know about their First Pet.

Bo's ancestors, like many of our country's people, were immigrants to the United States, and their arrival on these shores was a miraculous story of survival and determination. In the 1970s, there were very few PWDs left in the world. Once the stalwart companions of the fisherman in the Algarve region of Portugal, PWDs found themselves a kind of cultural relic after the fishermen's boats gave way to commercial fishing techniques in their native country.

The breed was saved from extinction by devoted Portuguese fanciers who decided that this gift from the sea must be preserved as a national legacy. To do this, several men and women cultivated breeding programs designed to ensure the survival of the breed. The tumultuous political times of the early 20th century imperiled their efforts, but some dogs still remained. It was from these survivors that Bo's ancestors hail: American fanciers began importing and breeding dogs in earnest in the 1970s and, by the mid-1980s, thanks to their diligence, the breed was secure enough in the United States that the American Kennel Club agreed to register it. Today, you can find PWDs in all 50 states, and Minnesota has its own Portuguese Water Dog Club of the Twin Cities with dozens of members and several local breeders in its ranks.

Commitment to healthy breeding
Bo is the lucky beneficiary of PWD fanciers' commitments to combating genetic disease in the breed. The national breed club, the Portuguese Water Dog Club of America, has been a champion of genetic health initiatives since its inception. This has resulted in the creation of several genetic tests that allow breeders to screen out dogs that carry or are afflicted with painful or fatal diseases from their breeding programs. The comparatively small gene pool of the breed is an ally of health discoveries (PWDs are even part of a human health study at the National Institutes of Health) and a source of great responsibility for breeders. Accordingly, our national club recommends that every dog used for breeding be comprehensively tested for structural and genetic health issues before being used in a breeding program; responsible PWD breeders are intentional about using only healthy, sound and steady dogs in their breeding programs.

Bo comes from a long tradition of responsible breeding. While the Obamas initially hoped to find a PWD in a shelter, I was never optimistic that they would find their new family member there. My lack of optimism stemmed from knowing my breeder colleagues well: There is a strong culture of responsibility among PWD fanciers that demands that breeders assume lifetime responsibility for any dog they've bred. Bo is an example of how this culture works. When his original placement did not work out (sounds like Bo was a little too cheeky with his older PWD "siblings"), he was returned to the loving arms of his breeders in Texas to be "rehomed." This is the likely outcome for any PWD who is not in a tenable family situation, including mine. Like every other PWD breeder I know, and in accordance with the demands of our national club, I contractually obligate my puppies' new families to return their dog to me should there be any reason they cannot keep him or her. As a further insurance policy against one of my PWDs ending up in a shelter, I microchip my puppies before they leave me for their new homes, enabling a shelter volunteer to call me should one of my pups ever end up there during the course of its life.

Do PWDs end up in shelters? Very occasionally — every breed community has its bad eggs. Thankfully, if that happens, our national club has a sophisticated and dedicated rescue program that will rescue and relocate any dog deemed a PWD in a shelter. There are many wonderful dogs deserving of love and a great life at shelters around the country;  adopting them is a worthy pursuit for any dog lover. The presence of large numbers of homeless pets in our communities, however, is a tragedy and one I'm not willing to contribute to. I believe the world has enough dogs; if you're intentionally creating them, you need to be responsible for them from the minute they are born into your waiting hands until the moment they slip away from you when the end has come.  Bo's breeders and the community that nurtured him think the same thing.

Intelligent, sensitive dogs
Bo will enchant the Obamas and probably drive them a little crazy. PWDs are very intelligent, sensitive dogs. They are capable of great acts of usefulness and altruism. Several dogs of my breeding are actively involved in animal-assisted therapy work with children and vulnerable adults; other PWDs thrive as service dogs, like "Rock-O," the peanut sniffing dog PWD that has been profiled in the media of late or "Dutch," the PWD who served our community and our country so admirably at the World Trade Center site in the horrible hours after 9-11.

The PWD's cleverness and emotional sophistication can be a grace, but it can also be an annoyance: Bo's extended family includes lots of inveterate food thieves ("counter-surfing" is the term of art in the breed community), champion chewers and master manipulators. Remember that Bo's ancestors were bred to work closely with people every moment of their waking lives. Today's PWDs retain the instinct to be close to their people; this manifests itself in greetings of unbridled enthusiasm, replete with jumping, chew-toy presentation, circling and "talking." Bo's devotion to people will also be apparent in the gaze of his brown eyes: PWDs make direct eye contact with their people — this is unusual and would be considered a sign of disrespect in other breeds.

Bo will keep the Obamas busy. As we watch the White House's newest resident endlessly running across its lawn and not breaking a sweat, we should remember that Bo's forebears were bred to have enormous stamina, the kind of stamina it takes to dive off of a boat in icy-cold water to retrieve nets and herd fish and then climb back up a rope ladder and do it again. And again. Accordingly, Bo will need a lot of physical and mental exercise. I think Sasha and Malia are up to the task, frankly, but they will need some coaching as they train Bo to be a good canine citizen: PWDs learn very quickly but relish putting their own spins on training exercises. For example, I have a dog that will complete the "down" command admirably, but only on his back, with his tummy exposed for petting.

Bo will enrich the Obamas' lives and, inevitably, break their hearts. Any dog who is loved and trained and welcomed into a family with open arms will quickly nestle its way into that family's heart. Bo will be loyal to the Obamas, and he will delight them with all of the gifts he brings from his heritage as a retriever, a swimmer and a companion. He will challenge them with his penchant for mischief and his endless means of finding foods — and nonfoods — to eat. He will become a member of their family and will bring them closer to one another during an exciting and challenging time simply by being Bo, a beautiful being who needs all of them to be happy and healthy.

When it is time, hopefully well after they have left this White House for another, they will come together as a family one more time to let Bo go. In their sadness, they will be comforted by the memories of the wonderful times they shared together, knowing that they have been uniquely blessed, as my family has been, because they shared their lives with a Portuguese water dog. With their Bo.

Welcome home, Bo. Your country, and this PWD breeder, wish you well.

Katie Barrett Kramer is a breeder of Portuguese water dogs under the kennel name of Hope in Minneapolis and a past president and current board member of the Portuguese Water Dog Club of the Twin Cities. The daughter-in-law of Joel and Laurie Kramer, she has blessed the Kramers with many PWD grand-dogs and one granddaughter.