King Tut helped Herbert Hoover become president, and is said to have died from the stress he had endured while being in the White House.
King Tut & Herbert Hoover
Campaign officials felt a photo of Herbert Hoover (who had never run for office) with his dog King Tut, a Belgian shepherd - commonly known as "police dogs" at the time, would help him win votes. The photo was circulated around the country, and Hoover did win with an overwhelming majority of votes.
That year when Hoover became president, the stock market crashed, causing the country to go into the Great Depression. King Tut was very protective of his family, and over time became overwhelmed with the many visitors to the White House. The stress proved to be too much when King Tut stopped eating, so President Hoover decided to send his dog to a quiet home. According to an article published on August 16, 1929, "Illness has forced King Tut, President Hoover's Belgian police dog to abandon his nightly practice of assisting the White House police in patrolling the grounds of the executive mansion. Tut was taken to the president's fishing preserve in Virginia over the last week-end and shortly after his return developed an ailment which veterinarians diagnosed as stomach trouble. It is thought to be of only a temporary nature and pending his recovery, the dog has been given a comfortable bed in a corner of the White House laundry."
King Tut never improved and passed away at the age of eight in late 1929, earning him the distinction as the presidential dog who "worried himself to death."
