Major, the German Shepherd, was given to family friends last year.
US President Joe Biden's younger dog, Major, caused a lot of trouble for the Secret Service agents last year and they were outraged by the White House's attempts to downplay bite injuries, newly released documents show. The documents were released in response to a lawsuit filed by Judicial Watch under Freedom of Information.
The records show that Major repeatedly bit Secret Service personnel over the course of several months last year. The timeline given in the documents are from February to August last year.
One of the emails, which was part of 36 pages of records received by Judicial Watch, notes that "at the current rate an Agent or Officer has been bitten every day this week causing damage to attire or bruising/punctures to the skin", the group said about the incidents that took place in March, 2021.
The documents further show that agents were advised to protect their "hands/fingers" by placing them "in their pockets", Judicial Watch further said.
But White House spokesperson Jen Psaki acknowledged just one incident on March 9, 2021, saying that Major "was surprised by an unfamiliar person and reacted in a way that resulted in a minor injury to the individual". The statement outraged the wounded agent who wrote an angry note to a co-worker which has now been redacted.
The New York Post reported that the Secret Service sought to keep the details of the dog bite incidents out of the official purview.
But one of the photos given to the Judicial Watch shows an agent's ripped wool overcoat. The agent wrote about the incident two months later, saying in a memo that "Major attacked me unprovoked, tearing the wool overcoat I was wearing".
The agent had also sought reimbursement for the coat, which was valued at more than $500, according to one of the documents, but it's not known if President Biden paid for it.
"These documents show Major was a dangerous dog and the Biden White House lied about it, placing Secret Service and other White House personnel at needless risk," Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton told the New York Post.
Major, a German Shepherd, was given to family friends last year, according to the White House, buts its present whereabouts are not known. After Major left, the Biden family's elder German Shepherd, Champ, died and they adopted a new puppy of the same breed, named Commander.