Think about the dogs on the Titanic

Canine passengers aboard the Titanic

On the night of April 14, 1912, the RMS Titanic struck an iceberg and sank in the North Atlantic taking more than 1500 human souls with her. What you don’t hear about is the number of animals that were on board the luxury liner before that fateful night; the dogs, cats, chickens, birds, and of course rats. All the animals perished except for three of twelve dogs; two Pomeranians and a Pekinese.

The Titanic had a top-notch kennel on board that housed many of the pets belonging to first-class passengers. The dogs were walked daily by the ship’s crew and there was even a dog show scheduled for Monday evening, April 15 that sadly never took place.

The three dogs that survived all had something in common. They were kept in the staterooms, not in the kennel and they were very small dogs. They were taken onto the lifeboats, either wrapped in blankets or tucked under a coat. The survivors were,

Lady: a Pomeranian purchased by Margaret Bechstein Hayes, in Paris. Her owner wrapped the dog in a blanket and boarded Lifeboat #7.
Sun Yet Sen: a Pekingese belonging to Myra and Henry S. Harper, publishing magnate. The couple and their dog were on Lifeboat #3. According to J. Joseph Edgette, a historian at Widener University and curator of a museum exhibit about the Titanic, Mr. Harper said, “There seemed to be lots of room, and nobody made any objection.”
Another Pomeranian: owned by Martin and Elizabeth Jane Rothschild. Mrs. Rothschild hid the dog until the following morning when those on Lifeboat #6 were rescued by the RMS Carpathia. The crew initially refused to take the dog on board, but Mrs. Rothschild insisted. Mr. Rothschild didn’t survive the shipwreck.

The stories of dogs during the sinking of the Titanic

A Newfoundland named Rigel belonging to First Officer William Murdoch withstood the freezing north Atlantic waters and barked to get the attention of the Carpathia’s crew, aiding rescuers to locate the lifeboats. This story was questionable as there was no record of Rigel and wasn’t included in the survivor’s accounts. Since the story couldn’t be verified, it was largely discounted.

This story is both true and heartbreaking. One passenger, Ann Elizabeth Isham boarded the Titanic in Cherbourg with her Great Dane. She refused to leave the ship without her dog, which was too big to get in a lifeboat. Ms Isham was one of the four first-class female passengers who died on the Titanic. There were accounts, however questionable, that a recovery ship found her body with her arms wrapped around her dog.

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About the Image

Milo is remembering the dogs that were on the Titanic! He has his ticket in paw and ready to set sail! Fortunately for him, his journey will not end the way it did for those that were on board the Titanic on that fateful night.

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