Dogs and Presidents of the United States
A History of Dog Ownership from1850 to 2008
Dogs were owned by many United States Presidents and their families. John F. Kennedy probably had the most dogs, second only to Calvin Coolidge, Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin D. Roosevelt. Millard Fillmore was a founding member and president of the Buffalo chapter of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals but there is no record of his pets.
Dogs Owned by Presidents
Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865) owned dogs but there is no record of names or breeds.
Rutherford Hayes (1877-1881) was the owner of Hector and Nellie, Shepherds and Duke, a spaniel type of dog.
James Garfield's (1881-1885) wife owned a dog named Veto.
Glover Cleveland's (1885-1889) wife had a Japanese poodle.
Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893) owned dogs but names and breeds are unknown.
Theodore Roosevelt's (1901-1909) family had many dogs including Pete, a bull terrier; Sailor Boy, a Chesapeake Retriever; Jack, a terrier; Skip, a mongrel Manchu; and Emily Spinach, a spaniel.
Warren Harding (1921-1923) owned Laddie Boy, an Airedale and Old Boy, an English Bulldog.
Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929) was the owner of Peter Pan, a terrier; Paul Pry, an Airedale; and Roy Rob, a white Collie; Calamity Jane, a Shetland Sheepdog; Tim and Blackberry, Chows; Ruby Rough, a brown collie; Boston Beans, a bulldog; King Kole, a police dog; Bessie, a yellow collie; and Palo Alto, a bird dog.
Herbert Hoover (1929-1933) had King Tut, a police dog; Big Ben and Sonnie, Fox Terriers; Glen a Scotch Collie; Yukon, an Eskimo dog; Patrick, a Wolfhound; Eaglehurst Gillette, Setter Weejie and Pat, a Wolfhound.
Franklin Roosevelt (1933-1945) owned Major, a German Shepherd; Meggie, a Scotch Terrier; Winks, a Llewellyn Setter; Tiny, a English Sheepdog; President, a Great Dane and the famous Fala, the Scottish Terrier. Blaze was Elliot Roosevelt’s Mastiff.
Harry S Truman (1945-1953) acquired Feller, an unwanted dog and his daughter Margaret owned Mike, an Irish Setter.
Dwight D. Eisenhower (1963-1961) owned Heidi, a Weimaraner.
John F. Kennedy's (1961-1963) daughter Caroline owned Charlie, a Welsh Terrier and Pushinka, a gift from Soviet Premier Nikita Khruschev; other dogs included Shannon, Clipper, Butterfly, White Tips, Blackie and Tipper, and also Charlie’s pups.
Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1969) had Beagle and Little Beagle and Him and Her, also Beagles; Blanco, a white Collie and the famous Yuki, a mongrel dog.
Richard Nixon (1969-1973) owned Checkers while Vice President and as President had Vicki, a poodle; Pasta, a Terrier and King Timahoe, an Irish Setter.
Gerald Ford (1974-1977) had Liberty, a Golden Retriever.
Jimmy Carter (1977-1981) did not own a dog; his daughter Amy was given a dog by a teacher but later returned it.
Ronald Reagan (1981-1989) had Lucky, a Bouvier des Flandres who grew too large and was sent to the ranch when she grew too big and was replaced by Rex, a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel.
George H. W. Bush (1989-1993) owned Millie, a Springer Spaniel and Ranger, one of Millie’s puppies.
William J. (Bill) Clinton (1993-2001) had Buddy, a chocolate Labrador Retriever who did not get along with Socks, the family cat.
George W. Bush (2001-2008) had Miss Beasley and Barney, Scottish Terriers and Spot, a mongrel dog.
There are many tales about the relationship United States Presidents had with their dogs, such as President Kennedy taking his dog into the Oval office with him when making a decision about the Cuba Missile Crisis. More Information about United States Presidents and their pets can be found at The Presidential Pet Museum.
John F. Kennedy and Dog
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JFK Family and Dogs
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