United States presidential pets

"FDOTUS" redirects here. For First Daughter of the United States, see First Family of the United States.

Socks the cat at the podium in the White House Press Briefing Room in 1993

Grace Coolidge with Laddie Boy, an Airedale Terrier, and Rob Roy, a white Collie

United States Presidents and their families have often had pets while serving in office.

History of White House dogs

The first White House dog to receive regular newspaper coverage was Warren G. Harding's dog Laddie Boy.

Pets also featured on presidential elections. Herbert Hoover got a Belgian shepherd dog, King Tut, during his campaign and pictures of him with his new dog were sent all across the United States.

In 1944 Franklin D. Roosevelt was running for his fourth term when rumors surfaced that his Scottish Terrier, Fala, had accidentally been left behind when visiting the Aleutian Islands. After allegedly sending back ships to rescue his dog, Roosevelt was ridiculed and accused of spending thousands of taxpayers' dollars to retrieve his dog. At a speech following this Roosevelt said, "you can criticize me, my wife and my family, but you can't criticize my little dog. He's Scotch and all these allegations about spending all this money have just made his little soul furious." What was later called the "Fala Speech" reportedly helped secure re-election for Roosevelt.

Miss Beazley, a Scottish Terrier given to Laura Bush by her husband

Richard Nixon was accused of hiding a secret slush fund during his candidacy for vice president under Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952. He gave the televised "Checkers speech" named after his cocker spaniel, denying he had a slush fund but admitting, "there is one thing that I did get as a gift that I'm not going to give back." The gift was a black-and-white cocker spaniel, Checkers, given to his daughters. Although there had been talk of Nixon being dropped from the ticket, following his speech he received an increase in support and Mamie Eisenhower reportedly recommended he stay because he was "such a warm person."

Animal lovers were upset when President Lyndon B. Johnson was photographed picking his two Beagle dogs named Him and Her up by their ears. Others did not understand the uproar; former President Harry S. Truman said, "What the hell are the critics complaining about; that's how you handle hounds."

List of Presidential pets

President	Pet(s)
George Washington	Sweetlips, Scentwell, and Vulcan (among others) – American Foxhounds Drunkard, Taster, Tipler, and Tipsy – Black and Tan Coonhounds Royal Gift – Andalusian donkey, a gift from King Charles III of Spain Nelson (1763–1790) and Blueskin – Horses Snipe – Parrot – Said to have been owned by First Lady Martha Washington. Cornwallis, named for General Cornwallis – Greyhound Samson, Steady, Leonidas, Traveller, Magnolia – Stallions
John Adams	Juno, Mark, and Satan – Dogs Cleopatra and Caesar – Horse
Thomas Jefferson	Dick – Mockingbird; Dick was the favorite from among at least 4 mockingbirds the president had while in office Bergère and Grizzle – shepherd dogs from France, possibly Briards Two grizzly bear cubs, male & female pair, gifted from Captain Zebulon Pike Caractacus – Horse, named after Caratacus, a 1st-century British chieftain; offspring of Jefferson's mare Allycroker and a Godolphin Arabian named Young Fearnought
James Madison	Polly – Parrot, outlived both James And Dolley Madison
James Monroe	Spaniel – Belonged to youngest daughter, Maria Monroe Sebastian – Siberian Husky
John Quincy Adams	Silkworms – First Lady Louisa Adams spun their silk. An Alligator – gift from the Marquis de Lafayette.
Andrew Jackson	Polly (or "Poll") – African grey parrot, learned to swear; (later attended Jackson's funeral but had to be removed due to loud and persistent profanity) Fighting cocks Bolivia, Emily, Lady Nashville, Sam Patch, and Truxton – Horses
Martin Van Buren	Briefly owned two tiger cubs given to him by the Sultan of Oman before Congress forced him to donate the tigers to the zoo
William Henry Harrison	Sukey – Durham cow Goat*
John Tyler	Le Beau – Italian Greyhound Johnny Ty – Canary The General – Horse
James K. Polk	No known pets
Zachary Taylor	Old Whitey – Horse
Millard Fillmore	Mason and Dixon – Ponies
Franklin Pierce	At least two miniature "teacup" Japanese Chin dogs, part of a gift exchange with Japan following the Perry Expedition Two birds from Japan, which had just opened its trading posts to the United States.
James Buchanan	Lara – Newfoundland Punch – Toy Terrier Eagle
Abraham Lincoln	Old Bob caparisoned in a mourning blanket at Abraham Lincoln's funeral Nanny and Nanko – goats Jack – Turkey, intended as Christmas dinner, but Tad Lincoln intervened Fido – Dog Jip – Dog Tabby and Dixie – Cats. Lincoln once remarked that Dixie "is smarter than my whole cabinet." Horse Rabbit Old Bob – Horse
Andrew Johnson	Fed white mice he found in his bedroom
Ulysses S. Grant	Butcher Boy, Cincinnatus (a gift from the citizens of Cincinnati, Ohio), Egypt, Jeff Davis (his wartime mount), Jennie, Julia, Mary, and St. Louis – Horses. Billy Button and Reb – Ponies Faithful – Newfoundland Rosie – Dog
Rutherford B. Hayes	Dot – Cocker Spaniel Hector – Newfoundland Duke – English Mastiff Grim – Greyhound Otis – Miniature Schnauzer Juno and Shep – Hunting dogs Jet – Dog Piccolomini – Cat Siam – First Siamese cat in the United States Miss Pussy – Siamese cat-Siam and Miss Pussy were gifts from the King of Siam.
James A. Garfield	Kit – Horse Veto – Dog
Chester A. Arthur	Rabbit Three horses
Grover Cleveland	Hector – Japanese Poodle Mockingbirds Three Dachshunds
Benjamin Harrison	Whiskers pulling a cart at the White House, with Russell Harrison and his children Dash in front of his doghouse Whiskers ("His Whiskers," or "Old Whiskers") – Goat, kept at the White House for the presidents grandchildren; may have belonged to Russell Harrison Dash – Collie Mr. Reciprocity and Mr. Protection – Opossums
William McKinley	Washington Post – Yellow-headed Mexican parrot; could whistle "Yankee Doodle" Valeriano Weyler and Enrique DeLome – Angora kittens Roosters
Theodore Roosevelt	Archie riding Algonquin Roosevelt family with Skip Illustration of Slippers, the White House cat Admiral Dewey, Bishop Doane, Dr. Johnson, Father O'Grady, Fighting Bob Evans – guinea pigs Algonquin – "Calico pony" (Shetland), favored by Roosevelt's son Archie Baron Spreckle – Hen Bill – lizard Blackjack – Manchester Terrier Eli Yale – Hyacinth macaw Emily Spinach – Garter snake Fedelity – Pony Gem and Susan – Dogs Jack and Peter – Terriers Jonathan Edwards – small black bear from West Virginia named after the religious leader, an ancestor of Mrs. Roosevelt; eventually sent to the Bronx Zoo Jonathan – Piebald rat Josiah – Badger Manchu – Pekingese Maude – Pig Peter – Rabbit Pete – Bull Terrier Rollo – Saint Bernard Skip – Mongrel Sailor Boy – Chesapeake Bay Retriever Tom Quartz and Slippers – Cats Bill – Laughing hyena, gift from Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia barn owl One-legged rooster
William Howard Taft	Caruso – Dog Mooly Wooly and Pauline Wayne – Cows
Woodrow Wilson	Davie – Airedale Terrier Old Ike – Ram Puffins – Cat Mountain Boy – Greyhound Bruce – Bull Terrier Songbirds Sheep
Warren G. Harding	Laddie Boy Laddie Boy (1920–1929) – Airedale Terrier Old Boy – Bulldog Petey – canary
Calvin Coolidge	Portrait of Rob Roy and Grace Coolidge Rob Roy (1922–1928) and Prudence Prim – White collies Peter Pan – Wirehair Fox Terrier, the Coolidge's first White House dog; Paul Pry – Airedale Terrier, half-brother of Warren Harding's Laddy Boy Calamity Jane – Shetland Sheepdog Tiny Tim and Blackberry – Chow Chows Ruby Rouch – Collie Boston Beans – Boston bulldog King Cole – Belgian Sheepdog (Groenendael) Palo Alto ("Palo") – A black and white English Setter, a bird dog that Coolidge soon gave to Colonel Starling, chief of the Secret Service detail in the White House Bessie – Collie Rebecca – Raccoon, Rebecca was intended for a Thanksgiving feast; First Lady Grace had a tree-house built for her instead Ebeneezer – Donkey Nip and Tuck – Canaries, both olive green in color; the Coolidge's first birds Peter Piper and Snowflake – Two more canaries; Snowflake was white Goldy – A "yellow bird" Do-Funny – a trained songbird (troupial) from South America; said to be Mrs. Coolidge's favorite bird Enoch – Goose Smoky – Bobcat Blacky, Bounder, Climber (or "Mud"), and Tiger (or "Tige") – Cats, Climber was a Maltese Angora cat; Climber and Bounder were cousins from Coolidge's home state of Vermont Tax Reduction and Budget Bureau – Lion cubs from Johannesburg, South Africa Billy – Pygmy hippopotamus A wallaby A duiker (a very small type of antelope) Bruno – A black bear from Chihuahua, Mexico; Mrs. Coolidge promptly sent him to a zoo Pekin Ducks – Thirteen were received as an Easter gift; Mrs. Coolidge attempted to raise them in a White House bathroom, but eventually sent them to a zoo
Herbert Hoover	Herbert Hoover with King Tut King Tut – Belgian Shepherd Pat – German Shepherd Big Ben and Sonnie – Fox Terriers Glen – Scotch Collie Yukonan – Eskimo dog Patrick – Irish Wolfhound Eaglehurst Gillette – Setter Weejie – Norwegian Elkhound Two alligators
Franklin D. Roosevelt	FDR and Fala (1940) Fala (1940–1952) – Scottish Terrier Major – German Shepherd Meggie – Scottish Terrier Winks – Llewellyn Setter Tiny – Old English Sheepdog President – Great Dane Blaze – Bullmastiff
Harry S. Truman	Feller – Cocker Spaniel, because the Trumans "preferred to be a pet-free family" he was given as a puppy to Truman's personal physician Mike – Irish Setter
Dwight D. Eisenhower	Gabby – parakeet Heidi – weimaraner
John F. Kennedy	Kennedy family and dogs Gaullie – Poodle Charlie – Welsh Terrier Tom Kitten – Cat Robin – Canary Bluebell and Marybelle – Parakeets Macaroni – Pony Moe;– Doberman Pinscher Tex and Leprechaun – Ponies Billie and Debbie – Hamsters Pushinka – dog (gift of Soviet Union Premier Nikita Khrushchev, puppy of Soviet space dog Strelka) Shannon – Irish Cocker Spaniel Wolf – Dog, mix of Irish Wolfhound and Schnauzer Clipper – German Shepherd Dog Butterfly, White Tips, Blackie, and Streaker – (offspring of Pushinka and Charlie) Zsa Zsa – Rabbit Sardar – Horse
Lyndon B. Johnson	LBJ with Him Him and Her – Beagles Edgar – Beagle Blanco – white Collie Freckles – Beagle Yuki – Mongrel dog Hamsters lovebirds
Richard Nixon	King Timahoe, Vicki and Pasha looking out the window in the White House Vicki – Poodle Pasha – Terrier King Timahoe – Irish Setter Checkers (1952–1964) – Cocker Spaniel
Gerald Ford	Susan Ford, daughter of Gerald Ford, and the family's siamese cat, Shan, in 1974 Ford and Liberty in the Oval Office Liberty (February 8, 1974–1984) – Golden Retriever Lucky – Dog* Misty – (Liberty's puppy born in the White House) Shan – Siamese cat
Jimmy Carter	Grits – Border Collie (mix); Given to his daughter Amy by her teacher, but quickly returned after snapping at several White House visitors Lewis Brown – Afghan Hound Misty Malarky Ying Yang, daughter Amy Carter's pet – Siamese cat
Ronald Reagan	Rex Ronald Reagan on El Alamein Lucky – Bouvier des Flandres Rex (December 16, 1984–August 31, 1998) – Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Victory – Golden Retriever Peggy – Irish Setter m Taca – Siberian Husky Fuzzy – Belgian sheepdog Horses (El Alamein, Nancy D, Baby, Little Man, and others) at Rancho del Cielo
George H. W. Bush	Millie Millie (January 12, 1985–May 19, 1997) – Springer Spaniel. Ranger – one of Millie's puppies
Bill Clinton	Socks Socks (1989–February 20, 2009) – The Clintons' cat. Buddy (August 7, 1997–January 2, 2002) – Bill's chocolate Labrador retriever
George W. Bush	India Spot "Spotty" Fetcher (March 17, 1989–February 21, 2004) – female English Springer Spaniel named after Scott Fletcher; Puppy of Millie; Euthanized after suffering a series of strokes. Barney (September 30, 2000–February 1, 2013) – Scottish Terrier. Miss Beazley (October 28, 2004–May 17, 2014) – Scottish Terrier; Nicknamed "Beazley Weazley"; 2005 birthday gift from George to his wife. India "Willie" – cat (July 13, 1990–January 4, 2009) Ofelia – Longhorn cow (lives at Bush's Prairie Chapel Ranch)
Barack Obama	Bo and Sunny Bo (born October 9, 2008) – Portuguese Water Dog. Sunny (born June 11, 2012) – Portuguese Water Dog.
Donald Trump	No known pets

See also

• Canadian Parliamentary Cats
• Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office, United Kingdom
• Hermitage cats in Saint Petersburg, Russia
• Pets of Vladimir Putin
• Tibs the Great
• Cats of the President of Taiwan
• Pets of the British Royal Family
• Pets in the United Kingdom

Further reading

• Truman, Margaret (1969). White House Pets OCLC 70279; eBook (2016) ISBN 9781612309392

External links

• Presidential Pets Museum – Private museum in Glen Allen, Virginia
• Pets in the White House – White House for Kids (official Clinton archive)
• Morrow, Laurie Bogart, The Giant Book of Dog Names, p. 414
• Thomas, Nick (February 19, 2018). "A salute to presidential pets". The Oklahoman. Retrieved February 17, 2018.