PetKnows

In honor of the Inauguration, and in anticipation of the dog that will soon join the Obama family in the White House, we thought we’d take a look back over the years at some of the nearly 400 pets that have call the White House home.  While dogs and cats have dominated the 1600 Pennsylvania house since the beginning, the historic house has seen quite the mix of animals.  Below is a list of just a few…

• George Washington had a horse named Nelson, a donkey, and dogs
• John Adams had a horse named Cleopatra and a couple of dogs
• Thomas Jefferson had a pet bear
• James Madison had a parrot
• John Quincy Adams had an alligator (and yes, it was kept on the grounds)
• Andrew Jackson had a parrot that was allegedly taught to swear, as well as fighting cocks
• Martin Van Buren had to tiger cubs
• William Henry Harrison had a pet cow and goat
• James Buchanan had an Eagle
• Abraham Lincoln had rabbits, horses, goats, and turkeys (including the first one to be pardoned by a president)
• Benjamin Harrisson had two Opossum
• Theodor Roosevelt had the largest family of pets with dogs, lizards, bears, guinea pigs, a badger, a blue macaw, chickens, a barn owl, rabbits, a one-legged rooster, a pony, and a pig named Maude.
• William Howard Taft had a couple of cows
• Calvin Coolidge had a raccoon named Rebecca, a bear, a pygmy hippo, a goose, a donkey, lion cubs, and a bunch of dogs
• Herbert Hoover had a few alligators
• Harry S Truman had a boa constrictor
• The Kennedy’s had a horse, pony, rabbit, and a bunch of dogs and birds

• Sheep were frequently kept at the White House in early years to keep the massive lawn trimmed.
• Also interesting to note - Chester Arthur is the only president who lived in the White House sans pets.

You can see a full list of the many pets and their names at PresidentialMuseum.com or at this Wikipedia article. I also particularly like this slideshow from the White House Historical Association.