For over 200 years, the White House has doubled as a political powerhouse and a makeshift zoo. In this episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy dives into the wild history of presidential pets—from George Washington’s hounds named Drunkard and Sweet Lips, to John Adams’s dog Satan, to Calvin Coolidge’s raccoon Rebecca, and even a hippopotamus on the White House lawn.
These weren’t just mascots—they shaped presidential images, headlines, and sometimes scandals. Discover which president defended his dog in a campaign speech, which one sparked outrage for mistreating his beagle, and which one received a Soviet space dog’s pup as a gift during the Cold War.
It’s a bizarre, hilarious, and surprisingly touching look at how animals have walked, flown, and occasionally bitten their way through American history.
Watch to find out which president had the most chaotic menagerie of all time—and what it says about life inside the most famous house in the world.
#PresidentialPets #USHistory #WhiteHouseFacts #DailyFacts #FunFacts #AmericanHistory #pets #animalfacts #Historyfacts #presidents #USPresidents #WeirdAnimals Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources
National Archives. (n.d.). Presidential Pets Through History.
Smithsonian National Museum of American History. (n.d.). White House Animal Encounters.
The Presidential Pet Museum. (n.d.). Presidential Pets Database. https://presidentialpetmuseum.com
National Geographic. (2013). When Presidents Had Tigers and Raccoons.
White House Historical Association. (n.d.). Presidential Pets Timeline.