Pearl is a sweet nine month old beagle. Sherry says:

“Favorite Toys: Her favorite thing to chew on is actually paper, which is annoying but as far as actual toys, she loves these plush soccer balls from the dollar store. Luckily they’re only a buck since she destroys them by the end of the day. She’s also partial to rawhide bones.

“Favorite Foods: Pearl is a total scavenger and will eat anything she can find, as though we were starving her. Her definite favorite though, is peanut butter. When she sees me stuffing her Kong full of peanut butter, she looks just like that photo up top!

“Pearl is still having trouble remembering that she’s at the bottom of the pack and is not an actual person, but she’s the most loving, kind-hearted dog I’ve ever known!”

Thanks, Sherry!

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Post from: Blisstree

Pet of the Week: Pearl

After last night’s acceptance speech by U.S. President-elect Barack Obama, wherein he mentioned his two young daughters had earned a puppy, I wondered what other pets had followed their families to the White House.

I found that there really weren’t many domesticated pets in the first few years: The majority of “pets” the early presidents and their families had were horses, goats, cows, and birds, and John Quincy Adams apparently had an alligator. There are dogs mentioned here and there but they pretty much belonged to the First Ladies or their children, with no other info given.

George Washington had four Black and Tan Coonhounds named Drunkard, Taster, Tipler and Tipsy. John Adams had two dogs named Juno and Satan and Rutherford Hayes apparently had the first Siamese kitten to reach America in the late 1870’s. James Garfield had a dog named Veto, and Theodore Roosevelt had Pete, a bull terrier, Sailor Boy, a Chesapeake Retriever, and a mongrel named Skip.

Things really picked up in the early 1900’s: While Warren Harding “only” had two dogs – an Airedale named Laddie Boy and an English Bulldog named Old Boy, Calvin Coolidge owned and/or cared for 12 dogs during his administration (among many other animals), and Herbert Hoover had 8 dogs. There were 7 dogs in the White House with FDR and his family, while Truman had just one, “Feller, the unwanted dog.”

Eisenhower had a Weimaraner named Heidi, and JFK’s young family had several pets, including a cat, a canary, parakeets, ponies, hamsters, a rabbit, and five dogs. Lyndon B. Johnson had three beagles named Little Beagle and Him and Her, as well as Blanco, a white Collie and the famous Yuki, a mongrel.

Richard Nixon acquired his dog Checkers while still Vice President, and gained three more dogs during his presidency. Gerald Ford had a golden retriever named Liberty (pictured above). Ronald Reagan had Lucky, a Bouvier des Flandres who was sent to the ranch when she grew too big, and was replaced by Rex, a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel.

George Bush had Millie, a Springer Spaniel and then Ranger, one of Millie’s puppies. Bill Clinton had Socks the cat and a chocolate lab named Buddy, who did not get along with Socks. George W. Bush has Miss Beazley, Barney, and Spot, and a cat named India.

Other interesting finds: Millard Fillmore was apparently a founding member of the Buffalo chapter of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and Andrew Johnson is probably most well-known for feeding flour to white mice as his presidency crumbled around him.

[images: wikipedia; wikipedia]

Post from: Blisstree

Pets in the White House

The Early Show on CBS did a segment last week on the smartest and dumbest dog breeds. I’ve heard of some breeds not being as bright as others, I’m not sure what their criteria was.

Anyway, they say the dumbest breeds are:

1. Afghan Hound
2. Basenji
3. Bulldog
4. Chow Chow
5. Borzois
6. Bloodhound
7. Pekingese
8. Mastiff
9. Beagle
10. Basset hound

and the smartest are:

1. Border Collie
2. Poodle
3. German Shepherd
4. Golden Retriever
5. Doberman Pinscher
6. Shetland Sheepdog
7. Labrador Retriever
8. Papillon
9. Rottweiler
10. Australian Cattle Dog

Like I said, I’m not sure what they’re basing their rankings on exactly. I’ve known a pretty smart beagle and a dumb-as-a-box-of-rocks poodle so it’s a safe bet that it’s all relative anyway!

What do you think of the lists?

[image: flickr]

Post from: Blisstree

Smartest and Dumbest Dog Breeds