Pets on ships.

[Jamie Brandane]

Recall in 1970 on Shaw Savill’s passenger/cargo liner Arawa, a passenger bringing onto the ship some exotic colourful birds - they were found by bedroom steward in passenger cabin. They were removed from passenger cabin, as their squawks, disturbed other neighbouring passengers, and were housed in a store room on Aft C deck, where the passenger had access to them for feeding. Unfortunately before we reached the English Channel, on instruction from the Master, the birds were bagged and thrown into the sea, as Health and Quarantine officials would not allow them to be landed in UK soil. Perhaps a more humane way would have been to let them fly from the ship in the Bay of Biscay, but then if birds carrying any disease, could have caused problems in the country where they make landfall in either France, Spain or Portugal.
Jamie Shedden, 2nd Purser, Arawa 1970

[Keith Wigglesworth]

Good story Brain, brought back a memory from a trip of mine on the mv Mahsud ( Cunard ) - visited Calcutta, Chalna & Chittagong picking up ?? going back to the USA. As well as some illegal substances, I also procurred a yellow bird ( about the size of a sparrow ) in a rattan cage and lotsa food. Initially he couldn't fly as had certain feathers removed so we could let him hop / fly around in the bar. Sounds awful now but . . . . once his flight feathers started to grown back, one of our favorite antics after a few beers was to thrust said bird from deckhead height and see if he could recover / take flight before crashing into the deck - we usually got it right ) Arrived in Wilmington USA and the customs / whoever didn't have any interest but by the time we got down to Housten he was spotted and taken away to wherever. Used to hang him outside during the day - can see him now, happy as, swinging about with the roll of the ship. Thanks for the memory recall !

[happy daze john in oz]

Hi John
That is not a skirt, It is a sarong, Everyone in the Spice Islands wore them, One for working in, one for going ashore and Sundays, and one for sleeping in.
The Captain had first choice when the Sew Sew Lady came on board to make them so you could not have the same design as him.
Very comfortable in the hot humid weather.
I noticed after 60 years since those days , No one in the Spice Islands wore them.
see the crowd below. with their parrots in cages, Charlie was Never in a cage,
We were the last of the Seafarers,
The world will not see our likes again.
Brian

In the last photo of the crowd, Ted my old school mate from Bolton, second on the left died in 2015.

Yes Brian, I have one I bought in Bali some years ago, wear it in the hot weather, much better than conventional clothes in the heat.

[happy daze john in oz]

On the Sheaf Tyne we had rabbits, they lived on the deck and enjoyed a swim in the pool.

No doubt the cook kept an eye on them. LOL

[happy daze john in oz]

Hi All
When I was on the Sea Princess in the 80’s I used to have 3 Pets kept in a jam jar.
Billy, Ted and Tug.
They were great, easy to look after, didn’t need much food and water, very quiet at night!
Cockroaches!
I miss them dearly.

Cockroaches, as Brian will testify, on some ships they would be seen as a main food source.

[Robert M Hughes]

We had 'Daisy' a friendly quite large dog on the 'Sovac' a mediterranean runner tanker - when she was on heat she went ashore looking for company - which she usually found. Fortunately never any offspring! When we were sent for scrap in Japan we managed to get her a transfer to another signing-on.
Happy ship Naples based.
Bob

[Nicholas Messinger]

I had a pet monkey on board P&O's mv Salmara, which I purchased in Singapore's Boogie Street, having gone ashore to buy a parrot!
The little chap was chained to the leg of a stall and looked so forlorn I bought him for $5 and took him back to my cabin where he
enjoyed a bath in the sink - and changed colour quite dramatically. A great favourite among our 12 passengers, all was well until we
reached Port Swettenham on the homeward leg, where he took a liking to the Old Man's cap and chucked it over the side as he and
the agent walked past my open window on the port side shelter deck. Told to get rid of the little chap, the passengers signed a
petition to keep him, but to no avail. A friendly stevadore took him on and later wrote to me that his kids loved their new pet!
The ss Singapore had a ship's cat - which, after a run ashore in Kobe, produced five kittens, which were born on my day bed. The
Old Man told me that as I was born on a farm, it was my job to dispose of them. Cowardice prevented me from drowning them in a
bucket so I obtained an onion sack from the galley, popped them inside with an old iron shackle, and dropped them over the side.
We carried lots of animals on the Far East run, the dogs often having better meat than the galleys provided. Many a time the dog's
tasty cuts were exchanged for cheap mutton and the animals given temporary accommodation in officer's cabins throughout the ship.

[Bill Powis]

S

Did anyone have any Pets on their ships. NOT the Human ones, animals or birds etc.??
we had a cat on the GOOD HOPE CASTLE for three trips, it then had kittens in my bunk while I was on watch, made a mess of my bunk , dragged it into the oil skin locker, we got to Mauritius on our way to Hong Kong Breakers, the Bosun put the six kittens in a bag with a shackle and dumped them into the harbour. The mother was crying and searching all over the ship looking for them. very sad.A few days later Ted and I took the Mother across to a Clan boat, as the cat would be eaten in the breakers in Hong Kong,
We went to the Mate`s cabin and showed him our cat, he said `NO, NO Cat`. then the cat jumped out of our bag and ran aft to where the Lascars lived. the Mate was going mad about it, so Ted and I left in a great hurry.

Brian

Sailed on the Esso Bernicia in 1973 out of Rotterdam to the gulf and there was a cat called Bernie which kept to itself, was not on board at the time but a seaman tormented the cat repeatedly until Bernie got his own back and clawed the person down his back when he was bare chested.
No one ever messed with Bernie during the time I wa on board

[Des Taff Jenkins]

I had many an exotic bird aboard when we were in port.
Des

[Doc Vernon]

I once had a lovely Pet on one of the Ships i was on.
She was a real Doll ,but i got caught and that was the end of my Pet!
Oh how i longed for her ,for the rest of the Voyage !
Was lucky though never got a DR for it!
Cruel it was! LOL (Sorry)