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President Biden’s German Shepard Commander bit U.S. Secret Service personnel in 24 separate incidents at the White House and other locations, documents obtained by CNN show.
The documents, which were obtained through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, highlight how Commander’s behavior became a workplace hazard for hundreds of White House personnel. A number of Secret Service agents and other White House employees were forced to change their habits in order to avoid the dog’s outbursts.
“The recent dog bites have challenged us to adjust our operational tactics when Commander is present – please give lots of room,” an unnamed assistant special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s Presidential Protective Division wrote to their team in a June 2023 email. Agents were warned that they “must be creative to ensure our own personal safety.”
In October 2022, an unnamed Secret Service technician described an incident and noted that they were “worried about the family pets behavior escalating and that … something worse was going to happen to others.”
Incidents logged by the Secret Service occurred in numerous White House areas, Biden’s Delaware home, a vacation home in Nantucket and Camp David. Agents required medical treatment in 10 separate attacks.
The document incidents included members of the Secret Service’s uniformed division, members of the president’s protective detail and other USSS officials, CNN reported.
The Secret Service records do not include all of Commander’s alleged bites, as previous reporting has indicated that the dog has also bitten other White House personnel. At least one incident was confirmed after the Daily Mail obtained photos of the dog biting a White House gardener.
Daily Mail says these pics (snapped by a tourist) show Biden’s dog Commander “sinking his teeth” into a grounds keeper. Uh, someone at DM is smoking crack with Hunter Biden, because it looks like he’s playing with the guy. pic.twitter.com/5Flvaff7VQ
— Amy Moreno (@VivaLaAmes11) October 4, 2023
In total, Commander was accused of biting at least 12 White House staffers before he was removed from the White House back in October.
When asked for comment at the time, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre refused to elaborate and referred reporters to the first lady’s office.
In one notable incident, Commander bit a Secret Service agent who did not know he was off his leash at Biden’s Delaware home. The agent required six stitches after losing a significant amount of blood, documents show.
A source close to the Biden family told CNN that the Biden family feels “awful” and has been “heartbroken” over the dogs behavior.
“They’ve been heartbroken over this. They’ve apologized to those who have been bitten, taken flowers to some. They feel awful. Commander was over-protective, and even though they tried and tried to work on it, they had to let him go live with other members of their family,” the source said.
