Obama family announces death of former White House dog Sunny at age 13

Barack and Michelle Obama shared a joint tribute to their Portuguese Water Dog, Sunny, who spent thirteen years with the family, the second Obama pet to die after Bo passed in 2021.

The former president and former first lady announced Sunny's death on social media, posting a series of photos and a lengthy written farewell that traced the dog's life from her arrival during the Obama second term in the White House through her final days. Sunny was 13. No cause of death was disclosed.

InStyle reported on the joint Instagram post, which described Sunny as a "cherished member" of the Obama household. The New York Post noted that Barack Obama also shared the announcement on X, formerly Twitter.

The Obamas adopted Sunny in 2013, shortly after Barack Obama began his second term. She joined Bo, the family's first Portuguese Water Dog, who had arrived at the White House in 2009. Bo died at age 12 in May 2021.

Sunny leapt the South Lawn hedges and charmed a pope

The couple's tribute painted Sunny as the livelier half of a two-dog household. They wrote that the entire family, Bo included, "immediately fell in love" when Sunny arrived.

Barack and Michelle Obama described the dog's energy in detail in their joint post:

"We also had trouble keeping up with her, for Sunny was a force of nature. Athletic and full of boundless energy, she leapt over the hedges on the South Lawn like they weren't even there, chasing squirrels, birds, and anything else that moved. And whereas the way to Bo's heart usually involved a treat, Sunny was more interested in having us run around with her, roll on the floor with her, or have her belly rubbed for as long as we were willing."

The post also noted Sunny's quirks. She preferred people to dogs, with one exception. She was, by her owners' telling, "a loud and sloppy drinker." And despite her breed's name, she hated getting wet.

Photos shared alongside the tribute showed Sunny perched on a white bed, running through a stone corridor, lounging with a stuffed animal, sitting on a beach with sand on her face, and waiting by a door to be let outside. One image captured her receiving head scratches from Pope Francis during a 2015 White House visit.

Michelle Obama has remained a frequent subject of public attention in recent years. Her comments about empty-nest parenting drew sharp debate online, and she has continued making high-profile appearances around the country.

Thirteen years 'by our side,' then a farewell to Bo

The tribute spent several lines on Sunny's bond with the rest of the household. The Obamas wrote that she "loved the girls", daughters Malia and Sasha, "even if they were pestering her when she was napping." She trailed White House staff around the building, and she stood guard over Bo, "who she rightly sensed wasn't always as alert and attentive as she was."

The former president and former first lady closed their post with a line that tied Sunny's death to Bo's:

"But as far as our family was concerned, she was pretty much perfect, and for thirteen years, she would be by our side, always loyal, always sweet, always ready for adventure, still fiery and gorgeous till the very end of her days. We will miss her terribly, and imagine she's with her big brother now, making sure he's okay."

Bo's death in 2021 had also prompted a public tribute from the Obamas. The two Portuguese Water Dogs became familiar fixtures of the Obama presidency, appearing in official White House photos as early as April 2009, when Malia was photographed walking Bo on the grounds with the rest of the family.

The former first lady has been spotted at public events in recent months, and both Obamas have remained visible figures in Democratic politics and public life since leaving office.

A family photo captioned in the original reporting placed Barack, Michelle, Malia, and Sasha Obama together at the Barack Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. Another showed the full family with both dogs at the White House on April 5, 2015.

Neither the Instagram post nor any available reporting disclosed where Sunny died or what caused her death. The Obamas offered no medical details, and no veterinary statement accompanied the announcement.

Barack Obama's name surfaced in a different animal-related controversy when diary entries from Anthony Fauci revealed the former NIAID director had sought Obama's help managing fallout over government-funded experiments involving beagles.

No politics in the post, just a family saying goodbye

The tribute contained no political content. It read as a straightforward family farewell, built around memories of a dog who spent more than a decade with one of the most prominent households in American public life.

Sunny's death leaves the Obama family without either of the two dogs that became part of the White House story during the 2009, 2017 presidency. Bo arrived first, a gift that became a national news event. Sunny followed four years later and outlived him by several years.

Michelle Obama has also drawn attention for her appearances at sporting events, where her choices about whom to support have occasionally prompted public commentary.

Whatever else divides the country, losing a dog after thirteen years is the kind of thing most Americans understand without explanation.