This is a continuation of Part 1 which contains the dogs from President Barrack Obama to President Lyndon B. Johnson. In Part 2, we’ll look at dogs from President John F. Kennedy to President George Washington. Some American presidents possessed as many as twelve.
President John F. Kennedy, who served as the 35th president from 1961 to 1963, used to have the first dogs, namely Blackie, Charlie, Clipper, Pushinka, Shannon, Streaker, White Tips, and Wolf. Charlie and Pushinka were a Welsh Terrier. Pushinka was a gift from Soviet Prime Minister Khrushchev as a token of friendship. Among the first dogs, Charlie was his favorite. Charlie nibbled on the White House lawn while the gardeners worked on the lawn. Shannon is also a gift from the Prime Minister of Ireland. Shannon was an Irish Cocker Spaniel. Clipper is a German Shepherd, while Wolf is an Irish Wolfhound. The rest are Terriers. The first dogs greeted the president when he arrived at the White House in a presidential helicopter.
President Dwight D Eisenhower, who served as the 34th president from 1953 to 1961, owned the first dog, Heidi. She was of the Weimaramer breed. The origin of the dog’s name is German. Heidi means noble.
President Harry S. Truman, who served as the 33rd president from 1945 to 1953, owned the first dogs, namely Feller and Mike. Feller is of the Mongrel breed, while Mike is of the Irish Setter breed.
President Franklin D Roosevelt, who served as the 32nd president from 1933 to 1945, owned the first dogs, namely Major (German Shepherd), Meggie (Scottish Terrier), Fala (Scottish Terrier), Winks (Llewellyn Setter), Tiny (English Sheepdog), President (Great Dane), and Blaze (Mastiff). Fala is the most famous of all. Fala starred in the film, received an honor, and is depicted in a memorial. Fala is a Native American dog name meaning raven.
President Herbert Hoover, who served as the 31st president from 1929 to 1933, owned nine dogs, namely King Tut (police dog), Pat (police dog), Big Ben (fox terrier), Sonnie (fox terrier), Glen (Scottish Collie), Yukon (Husky), Patrick (Wolfdog), Eaglehurst Gillette (Setter), and Weejie (Moosedog).
President Calvin Coolidge, who served as the 30th president from 1923 to 1929, owned twelve dogs, namely Peter Pan (Terrier), Ladie Buck (Airedale), Oshkosh (Collie), Prudence Primm (Collie), Calamity Jane ( Shetland Sheepdog), Tiny Tim (Chow), Blackberry (Chow), Ruby Rough (Collie), Bessie (Collie), Boston Beans (Bulldog), King Kole (Police Dog), and Palo Alto (Bird Dog).
President Warren Harding, who served as the 29th president from 1921 to 1923, owned two dogs, namely Laddie Boy and Oh Boy. They are both Airedale breeds. At cabinet meetings, Laddie Boy had a chair to sit on. It’s like Laddie Boy is one of the cabinet members.
President Theodore Roosevelt, who served as the 26th president from 1901 to 1909, owned five dogs, namely Pete (Pitbull Terrier), Sailor Boy (Chesapeake Retriever), Jack (Terrier), Skip (Mongrel), and Manchu (Pekingese). Pete means stone in Greek, while Jack means graceful God in Hebrew. Manchu are the inhabitants of Manchuria. Since the Pekingese is a Chinese breed, the president uses Manchu as his name. It’s unfortunate for Pete. He bit too many people. As a result, Pete was kicked out of the White House.
President Rutherford Hayes, who served as the 19th president from 1877 to 1881, owned four dogs, namely Duke (Mastiff), Hector (German Shepherd), Nellie (German Shepherd), and Grim (Greyhound). The meaning of the dog names is leading in Latin, constant in Greek, and light in Greek, respectively. Nely, Nelie, Nelly and Nel are some of the variants of Nellie.
President Abraham Lincoln, who served as the 16th president from 1861 to 1865, owned two dogs, namely Fido and Jip. Fido’s race is unknown. Fido is a name that is a form of Fidel. It means faithful.
President George Washington, who served as the first president from 1789 to 1797, owned ten dogs, namely Mopsey, Taster, Chloe, Tipler, Forester, Captain, Lady Rover, Vulcan, Sweetlips, and Searcher. They are all of the Hound breed. The names are mostly English. We can skip the names. Chloe came from Khloe. He is Greek for flourish. And, Vulcan is the God of fire in Italian mythology. Mopsey may sound a bit strange. The name means messy.
We give the dog our free time, but the dog gives all the time to us. It’s no wonder American presidents live with the friendly pet in the White House. Some American presidents brought as many as twelve.
