WASHINGTON -- He has torn through magazines and stray socks, even sunk his teeth into the president's gym shoes. Charm school taught him to sit, heel and shake a paw on command. He spent his first summer vacation on breezy Martha's Vineyard.

That's just a scoop of the poop on Bo's first few months as First Dog of the United States.

Most of his dog days begin with morning walks on the grounds with Michelle Obama, and end with a nighttime jaunt with President Barack Obama, the couple juggling their four-legged family member in shifts the way the First Lady says they once handled daughters Malia and Sasha. In between, 10-month-old Bo has playtime with the girls, meals, puppy mischief -- and lots of just lying around.

Obama says walks with the family's Portuguese water dog are a highlight of his pressure-packed days. "I'm the guy with the night shift," he told one television interviewer. "We go out and we're walking and I'm picking up poop and in the background is the beautifully lit White House. It's quite a moment."

In just four-plus months since he joined the first family, Bo has become one of the most popular dogs around. He won a Teen Choice Award for celebrity pet, besting Adam Sandler's bulldog Matzo Ball and Ashton Kutcher's Chihuahua Vida Blue, among others.

Last week, Bo accompanied the family on Air Force One to Martha's Vineyard, Mass., for summer vacation, creating a minor sensation when he wandered into the press cabin at the rear of the aircraft on each leg of the round trip.

To meet the demand for All Things Bo, the White House is distributing a Bo baseball card that reveals, among other things, that he can't swim and his goal is to become friends with foreign dignitaries. Anyone who writes to the dog (this happens, frequently) is sent one in return.

To see the card, go to www.tinyurl.com/bospage.

ASSOCIATED PRESS