Expert: Candidates can't offend dog owners

ANNAPOLIS, Md., Sept. 28 (UPI) -- Political parties court many constituency groups but can't afford to offend dog owners -- with canines in 40 percent of U.S. households, a pet expert says.

Claire McLean, founder and director of the Presidential Pet Museum, said 66 percent of pet owners -- an additional 34 percent of U.S. homes have cats -- said they would not vote for a presidential candidate who is perceived to dislike pets.

"Our presidents show goodness of heart during their private and personal moments with the animals with which they have bonded," McLean said in a statement. "It is one similar interest that crosses all party lines and unites a common cause: the public's fascination with pets and the presidency."

In the 1950s, when Richard Nixon was accused of using campaign contributions for personal expenses, he delivered a speech and admitted keeping one gift for personal use -- a dog his daughters named Checkers. The public was warmed by the vice president's story and Nixon was able to save his place on the GOP ticket.

Franklin D. Roosevelt's Scottish Terrier Fala followed the president everywhere and became a part of Roosevelt's public image. Fala received so many fan letters he was assigned his own press secretary, McLean said.

"Many believe it was Herbert Hoover's German Shepherd King Tut who sealed the president's landslide win in 1928 -- Hoover sent autographed images of himself and King Tut to thousands of voters," McLean said.