“Is the Major outside the doghouse?” George Stephanopoulos of ABC News asked in an individual interview with the president, which aired on “Good Morning America” on Wednesday.
“The answer is yes,” replied Biden. “Major was a rescue puppy. Major didn’t bite anyone and penetrated the skin. The dog is now being trained with our trainer at home in Delaware.”
Earlier this month, Major had what a source described to CNN as a “bite incident”. The person bitten by Major was a United States Secret Service agent, according to a Secret Service official.
During his interview with ABC, Biden did not say whether Major would return to the White House.
But White House press secretary Jen Psaki said shortly after the incident that the two dogs of the Biden family, Champ and Major, were being looked after by “family friends” in Delaware and that the dogs would return to the White House ” coming soon”.
The president also stated that Major was not banned to Delaware in response to the incident, but that the move was previously planned to accommodate the first family’s next schedule.
“He was going home. I didn’t ban him home. Jill was going to be gone for four days. I was going to be gone for two, so we took him home,” said Biden.
Major, a German shepherd adopted by the Bidens from a shelter in Delaware in 2018, is known to exhibit restless behavior on several occasions, including jumping, barking and “attacking” staff and security, according to the people with whom CNN talked about the dog’s behavior at the White House. The oldest of Biden’s German shepherds, Champ, is approximately 13 years old and has physically slowed down due to his advanced age.
Biden said 85% of people in the White House “love” a major.
“But he came around the corner, there are two people he doesn’t know, you know, and they move and move to protect. But he’s a sweet dog. Eighty-five percent of the people there love him. do is lick them and wag their tails, “said the president at ABC.
Kate Bennett of CNN contributed to this report.