Peruvians offer Obama children bald, toothless dog

"We have two criteria that have to be reconciled," Barack Obama explained with faux-seriousness during his first news conference as the president-elect, referring to the search for a White House puppy for his two daughters, Sasha and Malia. "One is that Malia is allergic, so it has to be hypoallergenic... On the other hand, our preference would be to get a shelter dog."

How to satisfy these two competing conditions? It's not easy to find hypoallergenic dogs in shelters. As Obama put it, most of them tend to be "mutts like me."

Some Peruvians think they have the solution, the Telegraph reports, "in the form of a bald and often toothless breed once popular with Incan kings."

Owners of the Peruvian Hairless dog, a breed dating back 3,000 years and depicted in pre-Hispanic ceramics, say it is perfect for children who suffer from allergies.

"We want to give a male puppy to Obama's daughters, so they get to experience all the joys of having a dog but without any allergies," said Claudia Galvez, 38, director of the Friends of the Peruvian Hairless Dog Association.

According to Peruvian folklore, the dogs have above-average body temperature, which compensates for their lack of hair and helps alleviate symptoms of asthma or arthritis suffered by their owners.

Mrs Galvez delivered a letter detailing her offer to the US embassy in Lima on Monday and hopes the Obama family will accept it.

If they do, she has a 4-month-old pedigree puppy currently known as Ears ready to send to the family.

"But if we send it to the United States, its official name will be Machu Picchu," she said, referring to the ancient Incan citadel, Peru's top tourist attraction.

Photo: Wikipedia