White House pet lore: "He's a good turkey and I don't want him killed"

Although First Dogs are the most popular White House pets, they are by no means the exclusive animal residents of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

There have been goats and alligators, donkeys and even turkeys. Lore has it that the first Thanksgiving turkey pardon came during Abraham Lincoln's administration.

The year was 1863. The turkey sent to the White House for dinner had become a pet, "Jack," who bonded with Tad and followed him everywhere.

At Thanksgiving time, Jack's neck was on the line. When Tad found out that a man was on the grounds to butcher the turkey, he burst into the room where Lincoln was holding a Cabinet meeting. According to Mrs. Lincoln: A Life, by Catherine Clinton, Tad said:

"Jack must not be killed; it is wicked." President Lincoln replied, "Jack was sent here to be killed and eaten...I can't help it." Tad, still sobbing, said, "He's a good turkey, and I don't want him killed."

With that, President Lincoln took out a pen, wrote an order of reprieve, and Jack ran off to save his feathered friend.

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