Valentine’s Day: History’s Favorite Pets
We love our animals — whether it’s a dog, cat or bear, animals have so much power in their love that some are loved by entire nations. And for Valentine’s Day we don’t want to leave out our furry friends! Here are 7 of history’s favorite pets.
Image Source: Public Domain Via Wikipedia
Rin Tin Tin Rin Tin Tin, the German Shepherd pup, was found in an abandoned German military kennel in France by U.S. Army Corporal Lee Duncan. When the war ended, Duncan took his trained dog to Hollywood and made him a star. “Rinty” became popular with audiences and starred in his own films. The first Rin Tin Tin passed away in 1930. His son and other descendants continued performing in movies, radio shows, and television.
Unsinkable Sam “Unsinkable Sam” was one of the British Royal Navy’s favorite “Captain’s Cats” as a companion and mice and rat exterminator. History suggests he started out on the German side of World War II aboard The Bismarck and was one of the few survivors when it sank in 1941. Sam was picked up by the British battleship the HMS Cossack which later sank as well. 159 sailors died, but Sam survived. He then moved on to the HMS Ark Royal, which was later torpedoed. Sam was found “angry but quite unharmed” on a floating plank. The cat was then retired from shipboard service, and he spent the rest of his days a pampered pet in a home for retired sailors.
Greyfriars Bobby Beloved of Scotland, Greyfriars Bobby was a terrier who became a symbol of enduring loyalty. His owner John Gray was a member of the Edinburgh police force. When he died in 1858, Gray was interred in the Greyfriars churchyard. Soon afterward, Bobby was seen sitting on the grave. The dog spent most of the rest of his life guarding the gravesite. Shortly after his own death in 1872, a statue of Bobby was placed near the church.
Image Source: Public Domain Via Wikipedia
Winnipeg the Bear Winnipeg’s story starts in World War I. She was an orphaned cub that Lt. Harry Colebourn, a Canadian army veterinarian, purchased from a hunter. His regiment adopted her as a mascot, and Colebourn named her Winnipeg or “Winnie” after his hometown. When the regiment was deployed in 1915, it managed to smuggle her all the way to England. Before leaving for France, Colebourn left Winnie at the London Zoo. After the war, a writer named Alan Milne and his son Christopher frequently visited Winnie. The little boy named his teddy after the friendly bear, and thus,Winnie-the-Pooh was born. Winnie the Bear lived at the London Zoo until her death in 1934. She is remembered in Winnipeg with a statue.
Hachiko Hachiko became a national symbol through an act of extreme loyalty. The dog was the pet of Japanese Professor Hidesaburo Ueno. He met his master at the Shibuya Train Station in Tokyo at the end of every day. In May 1925, Ueno died while teaching, and he never returned to the station. Hachiko never stopped waiting for him. Every day for the next nine years, the dog sat outside the train station, appearing precisely when Ueno’s old train was due at the station. A year before his death in 1935, a statue of Hachiko was placed outside the Shibuya train station, where it still stands. Bronze paw prints mark the exact spot where he stood every day.
Old Abe Cats and dogs are not the only animals that win our hearts. Old Abe was a female bald eagle who was the mascot of the 8th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the Civil War. Old Abe saw battle in Vicksburg and Memphis. After the war, the regiment gave her to the state of Wisconsin, and she lived the rest of her life in a special room in the Capitol. Today, a statue of Old Abe keeps watch over the Wisconsin State Assembly Chamber, and her likeness graces the insignia of the 101st Airborne Division “The Screaming Eagles”.
Image Source: Public Domain Via Wikipedia
Trigger Known as “The Smartest Horse in the Movies”, Trigger was the faithful mount of film and television cowboy Roy Rogers. Originally named “Golden Cloud”, the clever horse mastered an almost endless list of tricks, including untying ropes and even shooting a gun. Starting in 1943, Trigger appeared in over 80 movies with Rogers, as well as 100 television episodes. Within a few years of his debut, he was so popular, he needed a body double to keep up with all the demands for personal appearances. The original Trigger passed away in 1965. The statue of a rearing horse that decorates the Denver Broncos home scoreboard was cast in Trigger’s image.
