Presidential pets

There's no way I can take away from the importance of how the presidential candidates will deal with queasy financial markets, national security or world affairs, but I think we need to know about one largely overlooked aspect of this campaign. What is the potential presidential pet situation?

John McCain already has the requisite menagerie: several dogs, Sam, an English Springer Spaniel, Coco, a Poodle mix and Yorkies Lucy and Desi. Oreo, a black and white cat, shares the household with a parakeet and saltwater fish. Barak Obama, on the other hand, has none.

So, Barak, you're just not holding your own in the pet department. You might have not considered that, if history serves, lacking a pet bodes poorly for your presidential future. Several one-term, largely forgettable presidents left no record of having pets during their terms in office. Unlucky number 13, Millard Fillmore and widower Chester A. Arthur both took over from presidents who died in office and were not reelected on their own. Franklin Pierce was not renominated for a second term by his own Democratic party. Andrew Johnson, who completed Lincoln's term upon his death, had an extremely turbulent presidency, and escaped impeachment by only one vote. This poor man's pets were some mice that lived in the White House.

Most of our presidents have been avid animal lovers. Animals have run the gamut from James Buchanan's elephants, a gift from the King of Siam, to silkworms reared by Louisa Adams, wife of our sixth president, John Quincy Adams, the first presidential son to become president. George Washington, the father of our country, had 36 hounds and 12 horses, although his favorite was his horse, Nelson, which he rode to accept Gen. Cornwallis' surrender at Yorktown.

Many exotic animals came to presidential households as gifts. Explorer Zebulon Pike sent two bear cubs to Thomas Jefferson as a way to increase interest in the American West. John Quincy Adams kept a pet alligator, a gift from the Marquis de Lafayette, in a bathtub in the East Room. Calvin Coolidge had a veritable zoo, with several dogs, cats, birds, goose, donkey, raccoons, lion cubs, a wallaby, bobcat and pygmy hippo.

Theodore Roosevelt shared his love of animals with his six children and provided homes to a larger variety of animals than any other president before or since. Their collection included dogs, bears, guinea pigs, cats, garter snakes, pony, kangaroo rats, ducks, badger, blue macaw, rabbit, hyena, hen, one-legged rooster and a pig. That many kids and animals generated some good stories. Algonquin the pony was brought up in the White House elevator to cheer up a sick child. And one of the Roosevelt sons disrupted an important meeting in the Oval Office by opening a bag of snakes on his father's desk.

Honest Able Lincoln was more than honest; he was also compassionate. His sons kept many pets, including Jack, the turkey, who was supposed to be Thanksgiving dinner. Ten-year old Tad pled for his life to be spared, starting a White House tradition that continues today. Every Thanksgiving, the president grants one turkey a reprieve and it is released into the wild at a national reserve.

In addition to dogs, a cat and songbirds, Woodrow Wilson, our 28th president, kept a herd of sheep on the White House lawn to support the war effort during WWI. Men were away at war, so the sheep not only cut the grass; their wool was auctioned off to raise money for the American Red Cross.

Think pet birthday parties are something new? Serving as president in the early 1920s, Warren G. Harding may not have been a very good president, but the press and the country loved his dog, Laddie Boy, an Airedale with a better reputation than his master. Laddie Boy's birthdays were recognized with parties including other dogs and dog biscuit cakes with frosting. Newsboys collected copper pennies which were melted down to make the popular pet's statue, which resides at the Smithsonian Institute.

The Kennedy household was famous for its many pets. Pushinka was a gift from Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, and perhaps US-Russian relations reached a new high when Pushinka produced a litter of puppies sired by Caroline's Welsh Terrier, Charlie. The pony, Macaroni, was given to Caroline by Vice President Lyndon Johnson. Johnson, when President, made a major political blunder when he picked up his beagle, Him, by the ears. The photo made front page news and caused howls of protest from animal lovers.

A final word for Senator Obama: there's still time to rethink the pet thing. History indicates that pets are helpful in reaching presidential ambitions. The acquisition of a German shepherd dog named King Tut helped the taciturn Herbert Hoover get elected by creating a warmer image. Pets humanize their owners, but when the going gets tough, they also provide a sympathetic ear, play a major role in reducing stress and could care less about politics.

Jan Jaeger is owner of Geronimo's, Ltd., Nantucket's pet supply and gift shop, and is a member of DWAA and CWA (Dog and Cat Writer's Associations of America). Her pets at home are Junior, a Chesapeake Bay Retriever, and Miz Edna. At the shop are cats Messrs. Fish and Chips, Flower bunny and three budgies. Send e-mail to jan@ geronimos.com. I