WASHINGTON —  Malia and Sasha Obama will have to wait at least two more months for that puppy their dad promised them.

President-elect Barack Obama said on Election Night that he had promised his young daughters that they could get a dog once the race was over.

But the pup won't become part of the first family until after they move into the White House on Jan. 20.

In an interview with her husband broadcast Sunday on CBS' "60 Minutes," future first lady Michelle Obama said: "We're on call-mode on the dog front. Because the deal with the dog was that we would get the dog after we got settled. Because as responsible owners we _ I don't think it would be good to get a dog in the midst of transition."

She added: "We cut that deal with the kids before ... America knew about it. So they're _ they're good with it."

"Although," Barack Obama said, "Americans ..."

"They're ready for us to get the dog now," Michelle Obama said.

Throughout the interview with CBS' Steve Kroft, the Obamas engaged in amiable banter, often finishing each other's sentences. For example, when Barack Obama said he found it soothing to wash dishes, Michelle Obama interrupted, "Since when was it ever soothing for you to wash the dishes?"

"You know, when I had to do it," the president-elect said. "I'd make it into a soothing thing."

The family wants a dog from a shelter, and they need one that will not trigger 10-year-old Malia's allergies.

"We're getting a lot of suggestions though," Obama told CBS. "Boy, I mean the _ people are sending suggestions. And we're taking it all under advisement."

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