Bo, the Portuguese water dog that was President Barack Obama’s first pet and liked playing in the presidential suites, died on Saturday.

Michelle Obama confirmed on Instagram that her 12-year-old son, Bo, has cancer. According to President Barack Obama, the family had lost “a great friend and reliable companion.”

Mr. Obama said on Twitter that Bo “was a regular, loving presence in our lives for more than a decade—pleased to see us on our good days, our horrible days, and every day in between.”

He was unflustered among kids, put up with all the noise that came with being in the White House, had a big bark but no bite, liked to jump in the pool in the summer, and had amazing hair.

In April 2009, Massachusetts Senator Edward M. Kennedy and his wife, Victoria, sent the first daughters, Malia and Sasha Obama, a 6-month-old dog called Bo, as a gift.

The youngsters named the dog Bo after the artist Bo Diddley and also because one of their relatives had a cat with the same name.

The dog quickly became the focus of attention throughout the nation. President Lyndon B. Johnson’s beagles, Him and Her; President Ronald Reagan’s Cavalier King Charles spaniel, Rex; President Bill Clinton’s cat, Socks; and President George W. Bush’s Scottish terrier, Barney, were among the many four-legged White House inhabitants.

After President Donald J. Trump’s tenure concluded, the White House became the first in decades to be devoid of full-time pets. President Biden resumed the practice with his two German shepherds, Champ and Major, in January. After multiple episodes of biting, Major was recently sent for retraining.

Bo was popular for playing on the White House South Lawn in front of the press corps, barking during press conferences, and receiving support letters from young people all around the country.

A children’s book about him is Bo, America’s Commander in Leash, written by Naren Aryal and drawn by Danny Moore. He also appeared in an official White House photo with his tongue out.

Sunny, a second Portuguese water dog, joined Bo at the White House in 2013 after Mrs. Obama stated that Bo needed more interaction with other dogs.

Mrs. Obama said that Bo was originally supposed to be a buddy for Malia and Sasha, but “we had no idea how much he would mean to all of us.”

She said that the dog walked into their offices with a ball in his mouth “like he owned the room” and that he was “a constant, comforting presence in our lives.”

He was allegedly there for both the Pope’s visit and the traditional Easter egg roll on the South Lawn.

According to Mrs. Obama, in an Instagram post signed “Michelle, Barack, Malia, Sasha, and Sunny,” Bo helped the couple adapt to life as empty nesters when Malia and Sasha went off to college.

No one was happier than Bo last year, she said, when everyone was at home due to the epidemic. “Everyone in his family was back together under one roof, just like the day we got him.”