Peanut, Greece’s top dog, has met several visiting European leaders before becoming so in April. On Thursday, the former stray gave himself a fine introduction, grabbing the attention of everyone as he interrupted a news conference being held by the prime ministers of Greece and Slovakia. 

Greek Premier Kyriakos Mistotakis expressed support for the country’s Balkan neighbours’ efforts to join the European Union, and froze momentarily as Peanut could be heard barking loudly a few meters away at the prime minister’s official residence.

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“That is the dog we recently adopted who is often quite lively,” Mitsotakis said, turning to Slovakia’s Eduard Heger, who laughed as he listened through an interpreter.

“This is the first time he has intervened during a press conference. Usually, he just greets guests at the door and is more polite,” Mitsotakis said.

The Greek Premiere adopted Peanut in April after his visit to animal welfare volunteers on World Stray Animals Day. The dog is usually spotted roaming the rooms of the official residence, known as Maximos Mansion, wearing a blue bandana over his collar.

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Mitsotakis’ government has led efforts to crack down on animal cruelty.

Parliament voted to deem serious animal abuse punishable by up to 10 years in prison last year. Plans to create a national pet registry to identify and register unsterilized cats and dogs with DNA samples were approved by lawmakers last week. 

Last year, Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, a former senior judge, adopted Calypso, a stray cat rescued on the island of Karpathos.

The two have been photographed together for social media posts.

According to Petpedia.co, “Every 60 seconds, one animal suffers abuse and nearly 65% of all abused animals are dogs. In fact, more than 10 million animals die from abuse in the US alone every year. Furthermore, More than 115 million animals are used for laboratory experiments yearly.”

(With inputs from Associated Press)