The alligator, given to President
Did you know President John Quincy Adams had a pet alligator? He kept it in a bathtub in the East Room of the White House. But President Adams wasn't the only commander-in-chief with an unusual pet.
Thomas Jefferson received a pair of grizzly bears as a gift from Captain Zebulon Pike in 1807.
Teddy Roosevelt: This president still holds the distinction of possessing the most exotic pets of any White House occupant, and one in particular stands out: a black bear named Jonathan Edwards, who roamed the grounds of the Executive Mansion.
Royal Gift was the name George Washington chose for the Spanish jack that King Charles III of Spain gave to him in November 1784. The prized animal arrived at Mount Vernon one year later. Washington had made several previous attempts to buy a donkey from Spain.
Martin Van Buren (8th President, 1837-1841) received a pair of tiger cubs as a gift from the Sultan of Oman. President Van Buren wanted to keep the cubs, but Congress insisted they belonged to the people. Eventually the president donated the tigers to the zoo.
President Theodore Roosevelt had the most pets owned as a president at 48. He owned a few strange pets, including a black bear, a badger, a hyena, and even a three-legged rooster.
PARTY ANIMALS
Some of the more unusual U.S. presidential pets have been gifts from other world leaders. James Buchanan, the 15th president, received a herd of elephants from the King of Siam (now called Thailand).
Billy, or William Johnson Hippopotamus, (Before 1927 – October 11, 1955) was a pygmy hippopotamus given to U.S. President Calvin Coolidge. Captured in Liberia, he was given to Coolidge by Harvey Samuel Firestone in 1927.
President Theodore Roosevelt and family were prolific pet owners and animal lovers.
Presidential Pets (1860-1921) President Benjamin Harrison (1889-93) gave his grandchildren a pet goat named His Whiskers. One day, while pulling the president's grandchildren around in a cart, His Whiskers took off through the White House gates.
Theodore Roosevelt's Menagerie: President Theodore Roosevelt's children brought a fascinating assortment of pets to the White House when they moved into the residence in 1902. Their pets included the typical dogs, cats, guinea pigs, and ponies.
In addition to his love for animals, President Abraham Lincoln, our 16th President, was known for his giving spirit. He allowed his sons, Tad and Willie, to keep as many pets as they wished. The result was a menagerie that included rabbits, turkeys, horses, and even two goats, Nanny and Nanko.
Presidential Pets (1860-1921) President William Howard Taft's cow, Pauline, poses in front of the Navy Building, which is known today as the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Pauline was the last cow to live at the White House and provided milk for President Taft (1909-13).
Pete: Truman's White House Squirrel.
President Theodore Roosevelt had the most pets owned as a president at 48. He owned a few strange pets, including a black bear, a badger, a hyena, and even a three-legged rooster.
Rex. Throughout their lives President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan coddled a menagerie of critters ranging from horses to dogs to cows to goldfish. Their most famous White House pet was Rex, a beloved Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
Theodore Roosevelt's pet one-legged rooster . [Between 1910 and 1920?]
Tall, stately, stiffly formal in the high stock he wore around his jowls, James Buchanan was the only President who never married. Presiding over a rapidly dividing Nation, Buchanan grasped inadequately the political realities of the time.
President Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865)
Lincoln was the first president to bring felines into the White House. His cats Tabby and Dixie were gifts from Secretary of State William Seward.
President Reagan and Nancy Reagan with their new dog "Rex", a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. 12/06/1985. Rex came to the White House on December 6, 1985, as a Christmas present from Ronald Reagan to Nancy Reagan. Prior to this, Rex belonged to commentator William F.
President Barack Obama and his family were given the male Portuguese Water Dog as a gift after months of speculation about the breed and identity of their future pet.
In the generations to follow, multiple presidents enjoyed feline companionship, including Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Calvin Coolidge and John F. Kennedy.