WASHINGTON — The election is not over for museum visitors weighing in on what President-elect Barack Obama calls a “major issue” for his transition: selecting the first dog.
Seventh-grader Mary Grace Moran, visiting the Newseum with her class from Covington, La., cast her vote for a poodle by dropping coins in a clear plastic tube.
“I have a poodle, and my brothers have really bad allergies,” the 12-year-old said, expressing concern for Obama’s sneeze- prone daughter, Malia.
Visitors cast votes with coins and a few dollar bills in a small exhibit on presidential pets at the Newseum, a museum about the news. The museum says it will use the cash for educational programs.
Newseum is not without guidance on the puppy issue. Obama has said that the family would like something hypoallergenic and that the family likes the idea of rescuing a shelter dog, even though “a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me.”
So the exhibit is offering the American Kennel Club’s top five recommendations for allergy-sensitive breeds — poodle, soft-coated wheaten terrier, bichon frise, Chinese crested (caution: it’s mostly hairless) and miniature schnauzer — along with an unspecified shelter dog.
So far, a shelter dog appears to be the people’s choice, followed by the bichon frise, a small, fluffy non-shedding breed.
