Favorite Famous Pets

Famous pets have been dogs, cats, monkeys, horses and all other species. Some may consider famous pets to be only real life animals like Rin Tin Tin or Mr. Ed while others will include fictional pets the Budweiser frog or Curious George. I am going to hit on a few examples that are personal favorites and focus on real life pets.

One pet in my local area is the famous pink colored poodle Lacie, the unofficial mascot of the Cherry Blossom Festival in Macon, Ga. and the most famous of the Macon pets. Every spring thousands from around the country and the world descend on middle Georgia for the annual event. There are arts and crafts, parades, softball and other sports, and just driving around town looking at the blossoming cherry blossom trees which give off beautiful pink blooms. But one of the most famous and noticeable attractions may just be Lacie the pink poodle. She is owned and trained by Paul and Alice Williams who own Pet Grooming.

The other famous pet in my state and one of the most famous in the world is Uga, the official mascot of the University of Georgia Bulldogs. For over 50 years this white bulldog has been pacing the sidelines, sitting on his block of ice and occasionally terrorizing opposing players at Sanford Stadium. The original Uga, known simply Uga I, first took to the sidelines in 1956. His descendants, all owned by the Frank W. Seiler family of Savannah, have followed in his path. Currently the Uga throne is held by Russ on an interim basis. Uga V became a college football celebrity in 1997 when he both appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated and starred in the film, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." But Uga V is hardly the only Uga to attain media celebrity. Uga IV was featured in Time, Newsweek and Football News as well as Sports Illustrated (as was Uga VI). The Ugas have been honored by the Georgia House of Representatives, Georgia Senate Chamber and Georgia Governor's Office, and the Uga tradition was also the subject of a recent documentary, "Damn Good Dog."

One of the most famous cats ever is Morris the Cat. Morris the Cat is the mascot for 9Lives brand cat food, appearing on packaging and television commercials. A large tabby tom, he is "the world's most finicky cat", and eats only 9Lives brand, making this by voice-over comments when offered other brands. He also starred in the movie Shamus with Burt Reynolds and Dyan Cannon in 1973. He is a "spokescat" for responsible pet ownership, pet health and pet adoptions through animal shelters. He has "authored" three books: The Morris Approach, The Morris Method and The Morris Prescription. Over the years several cats have portrayed Morris. The original Morris was discovered at the Hinsdale Humane Society, a Chicago-area animal shelter,[1] in 1968 by professional animal handler Bob Martwick. All cats to play Morris have been rescues, either coming from an animal shelter or a cat rescue. The current Morris lives in Los Angeles with his handler, Rose Ordile.

And one of my favorite pets of all time is Trigger. Trigger was the horse ridden by Roy Rogers. Trigger and Rogers performed stunts at rodeos and were featured in numerous movies and television segments. Trigger had his own fan following, but few people know his original name: Golden Cloud. That wasn't western enough, so the name was changed to suit Hollywood's vision of a Western horse. Trigger and Roy Rogers performed together for 27 years. The horse died in 1965 at the age of 33.

So while famous pets have come from every walk of life and all gained different shades of notoriety, they are all famous pets in my book.