Police patrols around the live mascots of LSU and Southern University have increased because of requests from members of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals for the schools to release the big cats.
PETA sent letters Tuesday to Chancellor Mark Emmert and Chancellor Edward Jackson of Southern warning them of the danger live mascots could pose to students and caretakers.
The letter cites the Oct. 3 tiger attack on Roy Horn, of Siegfried and Roy, and the animal rights group is asking both universities to let Mike the Tiger and Lacumba the Jaguar go to an accredited sanctuary.
“PETA points out that even seemingly ‘tame’ exotic cats – because of the stress that they experience from repeated transport, alien environments and boisterous crowds – pose the very real risk of attacking trainers, students or members of the public with virtually no warning,” the letter read.
Lisa Wathne, PETA captive exotic animal specialist, said the organization sent the letters to LSU and Southern, as well as to the University of Memphis and University of Northern Alabama – the only other schools with live big cat mascots. Wathne said PETA believes using wild animals as mascots is inappropriate.
“It perpetuates the notion that these animals can be tamed and kept as pets,” Wathne said. “It has contributed to the crisis with exotic animals, especially tigers, of people keeping them in basements and backyards.”
She said they want the schools to release the animals to sanctuaries because they would be in living situations that are much more natural.
She said transporting animals to sporting events causes stress to the animals, and the animals would not choose to be there if they could. Wathne said tigers do not seek out people in the wild, so she thinks they would not choose to be around crowds of people because of this.
David Baker, a University veterinarian and attending physician for Mike, said Mike enjoys the games and is in no way a threat to anyone at the University.
“That’s absurd,” Baker said. “[PETA is] using someone’s misfortune to push its own political agenda. Mike likes all the attention on game days, and 90 percent of the time we go to his cage he comes and lays right by us.”
He said no one is ever in contact with Mike and he is never outside an enclosed area, therefore he could not harm anyone. In the 70 years the University has had a live mascot, he said there has never been a serious accident.
Baker does not think sending the mascots to a sanctuary would benefit the animals because conditions could be worse.
“If you examine the arguments for sending [Mike] to a sanctuary, they don’t hold up,” he said. “Some of those places have smaller cages, no water and there isn’t a vet school attached to them. Mike’s got a whole hospital right here for him.”
John Ned, caretaker for Lacumba, said Southern has never had a problem with the jaguar in the 11 years the school has had her.
“Why not have her?” Ned said. “It’s a wonderful thing for the people to see and visit her, and she’s really a friendly cat.”
Wathne said PETA does not plan on trying to release the animals, but does plan to continue sending letters to try and persuade the schools to go strictly to costumed mascots.
“The only thing we can do is give them the best information we can to make the best decision,” she said.
Baker said he sees no reason why the University should not have a live mascot, and he cannot foresee any University leader getting rid of Mike in the future.
Both LSU and Southern campuses will have campus police patrolling areas around their mascot’s cages until the universities feel things are safe, said Baker and Amanda Larkins, assistant to the chancellor for Southern media relations.
Chancellor Mark Emmert said he has not worried about anyone trying to free Mike because he hopes PETA will handle things in a professional manner.
He said Mike is a symbol of the University and is very well taken care of by people at the University’s veterinary facilities.
“I see no reason why we need to respond to PETA’s requests because they are completely false,” Emmert said. “Mike’s staying.”