Presidential Pooches

Ever since President Elect Barack Obama's acceptance speech in Chicago's Grant Park, where he declared his daughters were getting a puppy (awww!) - animal lovers have been watching closely to get the scoop on who will be appointed 'first dog.'

This morning, on ABC's "This Week with George Stephanopoulos," President Elect Obama confirmed the family had narrowed their search to two breeds, a Labradoodle (lab/ poodle mix) and a Portuguese Water Dog. Obama went on to confirm they were searching rescue organizations to find their perfect pooch.

Four dogs have actually already been assigned to the incoming Obama administration. Only these dogs aren't Malia and Sasha Obama's new furry pals, these four canines are highly trained, Secret Service operatives. The four dogs are being dispatched from Ft. Myers, Virginia to work crowd control up to, during and after the inauguaration.

These four highly skilled security operatives are experts at sniffing out bombs, crowd control and are 'Patrol Certified'. Army Staff Sgt. Sarah Goulart told the Armed Forces Press Service, “That means they can do security missions, [and] if they need to be released on somebody, they can be released to detain them.”

These dogs come with related experience on their resumes, as well. One of the dogs, Mike, a six year old Belgian Malinois (left) worked security at Camp David, protecting President Bush as he and the first family enjoyed the Christmas holiday.

Woof!