Cat President

Rocco's really into Richard Kadrey lately

 It’s President’s Day on which we remember and honor our past presidents (NO, not you George and Dick) and their pets. Most of em owned dogs but there are a few cats as well as some other interesting sweeties in the bunch.

Thomas Jefferson had a pair of grizzly bear cubs.

John Quincy Adam, raised silkworms (ewwww!).

James Buchanan kept an eagle and an elephant.

Abraham Lincoln had two goats (named Nanny and Nanko), two dogs, a turkey named Jack, a horse, rabbit and TWO cats (Tabby and Dixie). He’s the first prez to have cats.
Lincoln once remarked that Dixie "is smarter than my whole cabinet."
Yea Abe!

Andrew Johnson didn’t have pets BUT he fed the mice who crept into his bedroom.

He'd place fresh water next to the fireplace and keep a constant basket of flour for them on the floor. Referring to the mice as his "little fellows," a lonely Johnson appreciated the fact that they didn't care where he came from—or whether or not he'd just been impeached.

I think I really woulda loved this dude.

Rutherford B. Hayes had the first Siamese cats in America.

Benjamin Harrison kept two opossum. One named Mr. Reciprocity, the other Mr. Protection. Okay then!

McKinley had two angora kitten named Valeriano Weyler and Enrique DeLome (beautifully mellifluous names!).

The doctor is in

Teddy Roosevelt had the most pets. In addition to ten dogs, he kept guinea pigs, snakes, lizards, a blue makaw, a small bear naked Jonathan Edwards, rats, badgers, rabbits, a barn owl, hens, roosters and two cats. Tom Quartz and Slippers were their names and I imagine they were in charge of the entire menagerie. Makes sense, don't it? Of course it does.

Woodrow Wilson had a cat named Puffins.

Warren G. Harding kept a squirrel (TAB and Oni would NOT approve).

The Sphinx of the Potomac, Silent Cal Coolidge, also had a lot of pets. Mostly dogs but there were a pair of lion cubs (Tax Reduction and Budget Bureau), raccoons (Rebecca and Horace), canaries (Nip and Tuck), a goose, an antelope, a wallaby and a black bear. He also owned a cat named Tiger and a bobcat named Smoky.

Herbert Hoover kept two alligators. Presumably they kept his many dogs in line.

After Hoover everyone just had dogs. ZZZZZZZZZZZZ. It’s not until JFK was in the Houz  that pets got more interesting again. In addition to a fleet of pups, he kept birds, ponies, rabbits, hamsters and a cat named Tom Kitten.

There’s another gap in exotica and/or felines bringing us to Ford and Carter who had Siamese cats. Clinton had a gorgeous Tuxedo named Socks. Idiot Boy (GW Bush, who else?) had a cat who would’ve made a better prez than him but then, a dead toad would've as well.

What are my brilliantly fabulous Tux’s doing on this snowy Monday? Rocco’s in bed reading. Coco is napping on The Amazing Bob’s lap. Good kittens!
Fela Kuti—Black President