(Photo credit: Amospets.com)
Pets. Scientists in England recently revealed that goats make delightful pets. The researchers involved in this analysis of goats stated that goats are affectionate and smarter than most people think. The scientists even went as far as to put together a list comparing dogs and goats. I don’t know…but in my opinion a goat just doesn’t seem like a practical pet unless you live way beyond city limits. Although, a goat is not the most unheard pet. Anyone who has spent time on a farm has probably had a goat as a pet. I once had a wild rabbit as pet. When I was around 10 years, my family had rabbits as pets. The tame lazy rabbits with soft velvety fur. We kept them in rabbit cages in the backyard. Dad used the manure in his garden. The whole neighborhood knew we had rabbits. Kids stopped by and visited with us just to play with our cute cuddly rabbits. One day a kid down the street caught a wild cotton tail and brought it to us. I named it Buckeye and kept it with me wherever I went. I zipped in up in my jacket with his head sticking out. He was always trying to escape but I held him close. Sometimes he would pee or poop on me and even bite me. But I liked that rabbit. What is the most unusual pet that you have ever owned? Hermit crab…gerbil…hamster…snake? The list goes on and on…People get weird pets from time to time. It happens. Even presidents who have lived in the White House have had interesting animals. And ta-da here’s a article I found by PetMD.
PetMD outlines pets owned by Presidents of the United States. Check out the slide show at PetMD
Info taken from Source: PetMD
10. Washington and Madison
Perhaps with their husband’s long working hours, they needed a pet they could really talk to. Both George Washington (1789-1797) and James Madison’s (1809-1817) wives, Martha and Dolly, respectively, had parrots.
9. Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809) liked having a resident bird as well. He had a pet Mockingbird.
8. John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams (1825-1829) had one of the more unusual and, arguably, dangerous pets: an alligator that had been gifted to him by the Marquis de Lafayette.
7. Mrs. Louisa Adams
Not to be outdone by her husband’s eccentric pet, First Lady Mrs. Louisa Adams kept silkworms as pets.
6. William Henry Harrison
Before Washington, D.C. became the bustling urban capitol it is today, there was a little more of a provincial feel to the White House grounds, so perhaps it wasn’t so unusual in 1841 to have a Billy goat and a Durham cow residing at the presidential palace, courtesy of William Henry Harrison.
5. James Buchanan
James Buchanan (1857-1861) was the lucky recipient of a herd of elephants — given by the King of Siam. Unlike the case with President Van Buren, who was told by Congress to donate his tiger cubs to the zoo (he did), President Buchanan got to keep his gift. He kept one elephant at the White House, along with his pair of Bald Eagles and his “very large” Newfoundland dog.
4. Rutherford Hayes
Rutherford Hayes (1877-1881) can be said to have brought the Siamese cat breed to America, since he was the first to own one. So at the time, it was quite the exotic cat to have. He also kept a small menagerie that included Jersey cows, a goat, canaries, a mockingbird, and various other animals.
3. Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909), would be at #1 if this was a list for the most pets. He had a living zoo on the White House grounds. Most notably: snakes, badger, lion, hyena, zebra, and five bears. And that is not counting the “normal” pets, like the dogs, cats, horses, birds, rats and guinea pigs.
2. Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921) kept a herd of sheep on the White House grounds — much like Google and others still do today — for lawn maintenance.
1. Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929) may have been inspired by his predecessor, President Roosevelt; he also had a large collection of pets at the White House — another real zoo. He had a wide assortment of dog breeds, but he also had a number of bird species, domesticated raccoons (one is said to have walked on a leash), a bobcat, wallaby, pygmy hippo, and a bear.
Source: PetMD
