There are many stories of dogs and cats being mascots, but HMS Jaguar was presented with a live Jaguar during a visit to Rio de Janeiro. Other big cats were also gifted. A puma for HMS Puma, a Lynx for HMS Lynx and even HMS Ocelot was gifted an Ocelot!
In this selection you will see Churchill meeting the famous Blackie the cat onboard HMS Prince of Wales, the jaguar that was gifted to the crew of HMS Jaguar by Rio in 1963, a monkey called Winnie who was on the Portsmouth destroyer Velox and two huskies involved in the 1969 trek across the Arctic, that were on HMS Endurance.
13. Animals aboard Navy ships
5th September 1931: A sailor from the naval vessel HMS Vernon holding the ship's feline mascot, Minnie during a stay at Portsmouth. Picture: Fox Photos/Getty Images Photo: The News archive
14. Animals aboard Navy ships
We don't know the name of this dog, however it sailed on board HMS Berwick, an armoured cruiser that was launched in 1902 and was used during World War One. Photo: The News archive