Send to a Friend

Your First Name: Your Last Name:   Your Email:   Your Friend's Email:

Your Personal Message:

Yes, I would like to receive National Wildlife Federation emails.

Your message has been sent

Thank you for sharing this page with your friends!

First Pets

If you liked the article about presidential pets in Ranger Rick this month, then you'll have fun with these fast facts:

• Sheep grazed on the White House lawns between 1918 and 1920. The wool from the sheep was given to charity.
• President John F. Kennedy and his family had a real menagerie at the White House: five dogs and a litter of puppies, two parakeets, ducks, a canary, a cat, a rabbit, a pony, as well as two hamsters and a salamander.
• President Thomas Jefferson kept a pet mockingbird, which often sat on his desk and sang. The bird also took food from the president's lips.
• President Ulysses S. Grant had more than 10 horses and ponies-all of which he loved. At 3:00 p.m. every day, he walked to the stables on the White House grounds and gave them treats.
• President John Quincy Adams was given an alligator. It lived briefly in the White House.
• Rebecca and Reuben were pet raccoons owned by President Calvin Coolidge. They were kept in an outdoor shed, but sometimes roamed the White House.
• Lions, bears, tiger cubs, elephants, a wallaby, a pigmy hippo, coyote, zebra, and hyena are just some of the many animals given to presidents. These animals didn't stay at the White House-at least not for long. They ended up at the zoo.