Pets in the White House Past and Present

Over the years, many of our presidents have enjoyed the company of a variety of pets while serving their country. At times, the White House seemed to be almost a zoo, depending on which President was in office! This list of presidential pets offers a fascinating glimpse into the private lives of this country's highest elected official. Part One of a series, this article covers the years from 2007 back to 1963

George Bush, our current President owns at this writing two Scottish Terriers named Barney and Miss Beazley, as well as a cat named India. Nicknamed "Willie", the cat's name was given in honor of Texas baseball player Ruben Sierra, also known as "El Indio". When he first became President, he owned an English Springer Spaniel named Spotty, offspring of his parent's dog, Millie. Spotty is the official White House Tour Dog.

Bill Clinton enjoyed the antics of a black and white tuxedo cat named Socks while in office. Socks was quite popular in the media during Clinton's term of office. President Clinton also owned a chocolate Labrador Retriever named Buddy, who could frequently be seen on the evening news accompanying his owner to the Presidential helicopter. Hillary Clinton put together and published a book of letters that children had written to Socks and Buddy. Buddy was killed by a car in 2001 in front of his New York home.

George H.W. Bush owned an English Springer Spaniel called Millie. Millie is one of the very few dogs to have "written" a book. Titled "Millie's Book: As Dictated to Barbara Bush", it became a non-fiction best-seller. Millie had a litter of six puppies in 1989, and a male pup named Ranger became the president's personal dog.

Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy owned Lucky, a Bouvier des Flandres, and Rex, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Lucky grew too big and rambunctious to live at the White House, and was sent to the Reagan ranch to live after being replaced by the smaller Rex.

Jimmy Carter's daughter Amy was given a mixed breed dog by a teacher at her elementary school. Named Grits after Carter's campaign slogan "Grits and Fritz" the dog was later given back to the teacher. Amy Carter also owned a Siamese cat called Misty Malarky Ying Yang.

Gerald Ford often had company in the Oval Office in the form of a beautiful Golden Retriever called Liberty. Ford's daughter, Susan, also had a Siamese cat named Shan as her personal pet.

Richard Nixon's most famous pet was a black and white part-color American Cocker Spaniel who was named Checkers by his daughter Tricia. The famous Checkers Speech was given by Richard Nixon in September 1952 when he was a candidate for the office of Vice President. Nixon had been accused of accepting illegal campaign contributions, and in a live address to the nation that was both televised and broadcast on radio, he denied accepting any money or gifts, except for a puppy given to him by a Texas salesman. He stated that his children loved the dog, and while it could be thought of as a gift, the family was keeping it, no matter what anyone thought. The speech brought Nixon widespread sympathy and ensured him a place in the election as Eisenhower's running mate.

While in the White House, Nixon and his family owned Vicky, a Poodle, Pasha, a Yorkshire Terrier, and King Timahoe, an Irish Setter who was considered to be Nixon's favorite pet, and was a gift from a staff member.

Lyndon Johnson was well known as a Beagle lover, but received bad press when he was photographed lifting one of his Beagles, named Him by its ears. Him had a mate, a female Beagle named Her, and together they had a litter of puppies born at the White House in 1965. Two of the puppies, Kim and Freckles, were claimed by Johnson's daughter, Luci. Kim went back to Texas with Luci when she married, and Freckles continued to be a White House dog until Johnson left office. She was then adopted by a staff member. Her died in 1964 after swallowing a rock, and Him was killed by a car in 1966.

After Him's death, J. Edgar Hoover gave President Johnson another Beagle. Johnson promptly dubbed the puppy J. Edgar after Hoover. J. Edgar moved back to Texas and lived at the LBJ Ranch with his owners when the family left the White House.

President Johnson owned a solid white collie named Blanco. The dog was given to the Johnsons as a gift from a little girl in Illinois. Blanco was given to a doctor in Kentucky before Johnson left office.

Johnson's favorite dog was Yuki, a small white mixed breed that Luci Johnson found at a gas station in Texas in 1966. Yuki was originally Luci's dog, but her father fell in love with him, and he remained at the white house with Johnson and his wife, leaving the White House with them on January 20, 1969 to live at the LBJ Ranch. Yuki outlived President Johnson and went to live with Luci Johnson Nugent after the President's death. Yuki died in 1979.

The Johnsons also had hamsters and lovebirds at the White House.

President John F. Kennedy was actually allergic to dogs, cats, and horses, but that didn't stop the Kennedy family from filling the White House with pets of all kinds. One pet that got a lot of press was Caroline Kennedy's Pony, Macaroni. Her brother John also had a pony named Tex, who was given to the children by Lyndon Johnson. Leprechaun was the name of yet another pony given to the President by the people of Ireland. . All lived at the White House from time to time. Jacqueline Kennedy was given a horse called Sardar by Pakistani President Ayub Khan in 1962, which she used for one of her favorite pastimes, fox hunting in Virginia.

The Kennedy children also had pet birds, a canary named Robin and two parakeets called Bluebell and Marybelle. A cat by the name of Tom Kitten was also part of the clan. Hamsters also were included in the menagerie, and went by the names of Debbie and Billie. A rabbit named Zsa Zsa rounded out the list of small pets.

The White House was home to many dogs during the Kennedy years. President Kennedy enjoyed having the dogs lined up and waiting to greet him when he arrived at the White House in the Presidential helicopter.

Charlie, a Welsh Terrier, was Caroline's pet. Shannon, a Cocker Spaniel, was given to President Kennedy by the President of Ireland.

A beautiful dog, Clipper was a German Shepherd given to Jackie Kennedy by her father-in-law, Joseph Kennedy. Wolf was an Irish Wolfhound, given to the Kennedys by friends from Ireland in 1963.

Pushinka was given to the President from Premier Khrushchev. Pushinka's sire and dam were Soviet space dogs in their native country, with the dam, Strelka, a noted participant in outer space experiments. Pushinka mated with Charlie the Welsh Terrier, and the results were Butterfly, White Tip, Blackie and Streaker. When the puppies were born, President Kennedy called them "Pupniks". Two of the pups were given away to children in the Midwest. White Tip and Blackie lived at one of the Kennedy's other homes, and eventually were re-homed with family friends.

Sources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._Presidential_pets

http://www.presidentialpetmuseum.com/whitehousepets-1.htm

http://home.comcast.net/~sharonday7/Presidents/AP060334.htm

http://www.jfklibrary.org/Historical+Resources/Archives/Reference+Desk/Pets.htm