Former President Barack Obama announced the death of his family's dog Sunny, a 13-year-old Portuguese Water Dog he called "fiery and gorgeous", ending a chapter that began during his second term in the White House.
Obama broke the news on X on Wednesday, writing that the family had "lost a cherished member" the day before. Sunny died on Tuesday after 13 years with the Obama family. The former president's post described a dog that was, by his account, "a force of nature", a phrase he used alongside warmer memories of belly rubs and boundless energy.
No cause of death was given. Obama did not say where Sunny died or describe the circumstances beyond the family's grief.
The Obamas brought Sunny home at the start of Obama's second presidential term in 2013. She joined Bo, another Portuguese Water Dog the family had adopted four years earlier in 2009. Bo was a gift meant to help daughters Sasha and Malia settle into life at the White House.
Obama wrote on X that the whole family, Bo included, "immediately fell in love" with Sunny when she arrived. He described her as "full of boundless energy," a dog who wanted nothing more than to have people "run around with her, roll on the floor with her, or have her belly rubbed for as long as we were willing."
The former president's public persona has drawn scrutiny in recent years, including moments where he conceded his marriage has not been an equal partnership. But the post about Sunny was straightforward sentiment, a man writing about a family pet.
Obama offered a string of affectionate details. Sunny loved the girls, he said, "even if they were pestering her when she was napping." She trailed White House staff through the building, "helping them on the job." He called her "a loud and sloppy drinker."
"For thirteen years, she would be by our side, always loyal, always sweet, always ready for adventure, still fiery and gorgeous till the very end of her days."
He added that the family would "miss her terribly, and imagine she's with her big brother now, making sure he's okay." Bo died in 2021.
Pete Souza, the former chief White House photographer, also paid tribute. Souza said it was an "honour" to work with Sunny, calling her a "willing subject" who had "the rare distinction of being petted by both a President and a Pope."
That distinction was literal. In 2015, Sunny and Bo met Pope Francis in the Blue Room at the White House. The dogs also appeared in a family photo taken in the Rose Garden that same year. During the Obama presidency, Sunny met children at White House Christmas parties and foreign dignitaries on state visits. She was known for leaping over hedges on the South Lawn.
The Obama family's relationship with their dogs became a fixture of the former president's public image. The loss of Bo in 2021 drew similar public statements. The Washington Examiner noted that Obama described Sunny as "a cherished member of our family", the same language he used to open his post on X.
Presidential pets have long been part of White House tradition. The BBC noted that Donald Trump is "believed to be the only president in the past 100 years to not have a pet", a detail presented with hedged language and no specific sourcing.
The broader Obama family has remained in the public eye through various channels. Michelle Obama marked Barack's 65th birthday with an Instagram tribute earlier this year, and both have continued to draw coverage for their post-presidential activities.
The former president's post was notably personal for a figure who has often been criticized for calculated public messaging. Obama summed up Sunny in two words: "pretty much perfect." He did not use the moment for any broader commentary. No policy point. No political pivot.
Obama has faced sharper scrutiny on other fronts, including a DOJ probe into Obama- and Biden-era officials that has drawn attention in Washington. But the Sunny post was simply about a dog, and the gap a family pet leaves behind.
Whatever else you think of the man, a 13-year-old dog dying is just a family losing a companion. That part is universal.