LADDIE BOY'S HALF-BROTHER TO BECOME WHITE HOUSE DOG
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On September 7, 1923, The Evening Star reports that the late President Warren G. Harding's canine 'Laddie Boy'* "will be succeeded by his half brother as the White House dog."
The airedale, offered to the President by Mrs. A.B. Calhoun of Atlanta, Georgia, has not yet been named** but "is expected to arrive at the White House kennels within a few days."
JFK+50 NOTE
The airedale was only one of ten dogs owned by the Coolidges. The favorite was Rob Roy, a white male collie. Mr. Coolidge also owned 2 racoons, a donkey, bobcat, lion cubs, a wallaby, black bear and pygmy hippo. TR, however, had the most pets as POTUS, 48....BULLY!
*Laddie Boy (1920-1929) Airedale Terrier born in Toledo, Ohio & was presented to President Harding by Caswell Kennels. LB became an instant celebrity & spent more time in the White House than its kennels. LB tagged along on the golf course & had his own chair during cabinet meetings.
**Paul Pry was named by Grace Coolidge because "he always seemed to have his nose in everybody's business." The airedale snapped at people's ankles and was described as "uncontrollable" by the press. PP was sent to the Marines for training but they couldn't handle him either so he spent the rest of his days at the Navy Yard.
SOURCES
"Calvin Coolidge's Paul Pry," Presidential Pet Museum, www.presentialpetmuseum.com/
"Laddie Boy's Kin, As Yet Unnamed, Gift to Coolidge," The Evening Star, Washington, D.C., September 7, 1923, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
"The Coolidge Pets," by Leah Houghton, Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation, www.coolidgefoundation.org/
"The White House's First Celebrity Dog," by Diane Tedeshi, January 22, 2009, Smithsonian, www.smithsonianmagazine.com/
