Today, in honor of President’s Day, we have compiled a list of all the pets that have lived in the White House throughout history. Welcome to Part one of Presidential pets!
Each of our Presidents have had at least one pet during their term, with the exception of Chester Arthur and Donald J Trump, both of whom are the only Commanders-in-Chief not have pets with them during their terms.
All told, 94 dogs have lived in the White House (to date), along with a number of cats (Lincoln had the first inaugural cat!), a few parrots, many horses, and even a badger, bears, an alligator and a wolf.
Without further ado, we introduce you to the Presidential Pets throughout history. Today we will start with Washington and run through Lincoln in honor of Presidents Day.
George Washington, 1789-1797
Washington was the ultimate animal lover. In fact, he once returned a British general’s dog under a flag of truce! He had his favorites though, and Nelson – his horse – was one of these. He rode Nelson when he accepted General Charles Cornwallis’ surrender at Yorktown, the battle that ended the Revolutionary War. Here’s a list of his other four-legged family members:
Horses
While Nelson and Blueskin were his two preferred horses during the American Revolution, a president in the 1700s had many they could depend on. Washington’s other horses included Samson, Steady, Leonidas, Traveller, Magnolia, Rozinante, Nelson and Blueskin.
Dogs
Washington was a big fan of dogs and the ones history have recorded will live on forever. They were all French hounds and include Drunkard, Mopsey, Taster, Cloe, Tipsy, Tipler, Forester, Captain, Lady Rover, Vulcan, Sweetlips, and Searcher.
Horses
Mrs. Martha Washington owned a parrot during her term in the White House, yet we have not found the name of this bird!
John Adams, 1797-1801
While Washington loved his horses, it was Adams who built the first White House Stables for his favorite horse, Cleopatra. President Adams and his wife, First Lady Abigail, also had two mixed-breed dogs named Juno and Satan.
Thomas Jefferson, 1801-1809
Jefferson had a mockingbird named Dick and two dogs that were of the Briard breed, which were gifts from General Lafayette. But Jefferson has always been best known for his bear cubs.
In 1807, an explorer named Zebulon Pike sent two bear cubs to Jefferson. The President kept the cubs briefly on the lawn near his house until he sent them to Mr. Charles Willson Peale for his Philadelphia museum. The cubs were never given names by President Jefferson and were eventually given to the Peale Museum.
James Madison, 1809-1817
President Madison was never a big animal lover, but his wife was. Dolley Madison had a green parrot as a pet.
James Monroe, 1817-1825
James Monroe didn’t have many pets, but his wife Maria Monroe did have a spaniel.
John Quincy Adams, 1825-1829
In 1826, the Marquis de Lafayette gave John Quincy Adams an alligator. The alligator actually lived in the White House (in a guest bathroom) for several months. His wife, Mrs. Louisa Adams, also raised silkworms! She used the silk for her elegant gowns.
Andrew Jackson, 1829-1837
Andrew Jackson was an accomplished horseman and had many animals in the Executive Stables. His favored wartime mount was a horse named Sam Patch. He also kept several racing fillies named Emily, Lady Nashville and Bolivia.
Truxton, was also one of his beloved champion race horses and he kept many ponies. But Jackson didn’t just love horses – he also had a parrot named Poll who cursed like a sailor! We’re not sure who taught his parrot that nifty trick.
Martin Van Buren, 1837-1841
A gift from the Sultan of Oman resulted in the first pair of tiger cubs arriving (and living for a short time) at the White House. Congress eventually forced him to send to the pair to a zoo.
William Henry Hudson, 1841
Hudson kept a billy goat and a Durham cow during his presidency.
John Tyler, 1841-1845
Tyler had a horse named, The General and a pair of Italian Wolfhounds that he imported for his wife, Julia. When The General passed on, Tyler buried him on his estate, Sherwood. His gravestone bore the inscription: “Here lies the body of my good horse ‘The General.’ For twenty years he bore me around the circuit of my practice, and in all that time he never made a blunder. Would that his master could say the same! John Tyler.”
James K Polk, 1845-1849
It is said Polk learned to ride before he could walk and had a great love of horses, but it’s not clear if he kept horses or other pets at the White House during his term. We suspect he did.
Zachary Taylor 1849-1850
Taylor’s favorite horse was “Old Whitey,” a wartime mount. He also had a canary named Johnny Ty who died shortly after they tried to pair him with a mate (only to discover it too was a male). While Taylor provided a home on the White House grounds for Old Whitey, it was later discovered that visitors often pulled a hair or two from Whitey’s tail for a souvenir.
Millard Fillmore 1850-1853
Fillmore was an avid animal lover with multiple pets (although we haven’t discovered the exact number). He was a founding member and president of the Buffalo chapter of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Franklin Pierce 1853-1857
No animals were known to have resided at the White house during his tenure. However, Commodore Perry once brought him two tiny “sleeve dogs” from Japan and gave them to Pierce. The President kept one of the dogs and gave the other to Jefferson Davis. Davis later became president of the Confederacy.
James Buchanan 1857-1861
While we’re not sure if they were really pets, Buchanan was given a herd of elephants from the King of Siam. He was also given a pair of Bald Eagles, and he had a Newfoundland (dog) named Lara.
Abraham Lincoln 1861-1865
Lincoln loved animals as much as he loved people. His animals included a turkey named Jack (the first to receive a Presidential Pardon on Thanksgiving), and a cat named Tabby who has the distinction of being the first official White House cat. Lincoln also had a pig named Fido, and ponies belonging to Tad and Willy Lincoln.
His son, Tad Lincoln, kept a white rabbit and two goats named Nanny and Nanko.