Biden’s dog Commander bites secret service agent (again)

The officer bitten by Commander wasn't seriously injured
The officer bitten by Commander wasn't seriously injured - CAROLYN KASTER/AP

Joe Biden’s two-year-old German Shepherd has bitten another secret service agent in the 11th recorded incident.

Commander, who joined the White House in late 2021, last year sent a bodyguard to hospital when he sank his teeth into his arm and thigh.

Another “biting incident” took place on Monday evening, CNN reports. The agent in question received medical treatment on-site and is doing “OK”, a spokesman said.

It comes two months after the Bidens said they were training Commander to cope with the White House’s “unique” environment, following reports that he had bitten several bodyguards and that Jill Biden, the First Lady, could not control him.

Secret Service communications chief Anthony Guglielmi said: “Around 8pm, a Secret Service Uniformed Division police officer came in contact with a First Family pet and was bitten.

“The officer was treated by medical personnel on the complex.”

The president is said to have spent time trying to train two-year-old Commander
The president is said to have spent time trying to train two-year-old Commander - ADAM SCHULTZ/AP

Emails obtained by Freedom of Information request show several agents have raised concerns about the German Shepherd, both in the White House and the Bidens’ home in Wilmington, Delaware.

One characterised the dog as “extremely aggressive”, adding: “I believe it’s only a matter of time before an agent/officer is attacked or bit.”

A bodyguard received a “friendly soft bite” that did not break the skin or rip a business suit, according to a separate email.

Referring to a third incident, an official cautioned: “Looks like the dog was being playful but playful can go wrong quickly.”

A spokesman for the First Lady said: “The First Family continues to work on ways to help Commander handle the often unpredictable nature of the White House grounds.”

White House officials have previously said the environment is “unique and often stressful” for pets, and that the Bidens had worked on “on additional leashing protocols and training, as well as establishing designated areas for Commander to run and exercise”.

Major, an older German Shepherd also owned by Bidens, was sent to Delaware in 2021 when he bit a secret service agent and caused a “minor injury”.

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