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Joe Biden’s Dogs, Major & Champ, 1st Spotted & Heard Barking After Their Move To White House

Joe Biden
AP Photo/Evan Vucci
With the Washington Monument in the background, President-elect Joe Biden stands with his wife Jill Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris stands with her husband Doug Emhoff as they look at lights placed around the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool during a COVID-19 memorial Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Joe Biden hugs first lady Jill Biden as they arrive at the North Portico of the White House, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Joe Biden his wife Jill Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris her husband Doug Emhoff watch a military pass in review ceremony on the East Front of the Capitol at the conclusion of the inauguration ceremonies, in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Former President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle, former President George W. Bush and his wife Laura and former President Bill Clinton and his wife former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stand at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery during Inauguration Day ceremonies in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) View Gallery View Gallery 24 Photos.
Evening Writer

Dogs are back at the White House, after Donald Trump broke the 115-year tradition. Major and Champ barked as Joe Biden signed an executive order that lifted a ban on transgender people serving in the military.

President Joe Biden has new roommates at the White House: his German shepherds Major and Champ. The new POTUS’ pooches finally left Delaware and moved into their new living quarters in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 24, four days after Biden was inaugurated into office. The dogs are already making their presence on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. known, too: they were seen happily roaming the White House’s lawn in the video below, captured by ABC News.

Major and Champ are making sure their neighbors in America’s capital can hear them, too! They could be heard barking as Biden signed an executive order that repealed “the transgender military ban to ensure everyone who’s qualified to serve in the military can do so openly and free from discrimination” on Jan. 25, which the White House’s Twitter account announced that Monday. You can watch Biden lift the ban — and the dog barks that accompanied this celebrated action — which Donald Trump had put into effect in Aug. 2019.

People are celebrating the First Dogs’ arrival at the White House for many reasons. Major, whom the POTUS and First Lady Jill Biden officially adopted from the Delaware Humane Association in Nov. 2018, is widely believed to be the first ever shelter dog who has lived at the White House, since John Adams was the first president to first take up residence at the historical landmark in 1800.

Many citizens were delighted to see pets at the White House again, too, after Trump opted to not own any during his four-year presidency. This is extremely rare for a president to do; in fact, James K. Polk has been the only other president to not keep any pets at the White House…who held office between 1845-1849. Trump also broke a 115-year tradition of owning dogs at the White House (the last to not own dogs was William McKinley, who instead kept birds and cats).

Inviting pets into the White House wasn’t the only change Biden made during his first days as the POTUS. He also gave the Oval Office a makeover, which entailed parting ways with many of Trump’s old decorations. As you can see, Biden’s hard at work at getting rid of many signs of Trump’s time in office.