A multi-million dollar, 15,000 square-foot snapshot of a jungle sits between the Pete Maravich Assembly Center and Tiger Stadium. Inside, a Siberian-Bengal tiger, Mike VII, is often visited by children, students and visitors who have never witnessed such a wild, massive creature, much less one just a few feet away.
However, this reality is subject to change at the University. A petition to make Mike VII the last live mascot at LSU has been signed by almost 90,000 people on Care2, an online petition platform with over 40 million members worldwide. Senior Director of Engagement Rebecca Gerber challenges students to join the effort in ending the live mascot tradition.
“I want to challenge students to think about it like we used to think of SeaWorld,” Gerber said. “Does that tiger belong there at all? Although it is a cool experience for people and for kids to get to see the tiger, it is not a great experience for the tiger. Even when we give them a good life, that’s not what they’re here on earth to do. They’re not here to amuse us.”
Mike VII is one of only two live tiger mascots in the U.S., the other being Tom III at the University of Memphis. The first tiger was brought to the University in 1936 and was named after an athletic trainer, Mike Chambers. There have been seven tigers on campus since, and when Mike VI died in 2016 from a rare form of cancer, there was much controversy as to whether there would be a Mike VII.
Gerber said Care2, along with other organizations, started petitions to propose that Mike VI be the last tiger at the University. Although a seventh Mike did arrive on campus last year, LSU President F. King Alexander and the administration did listen to feedback, spending nearly $1 million on enhancements to Mike’s habitat and officially ending the practice of bringing him into Tiger Stadium.
Despite these improvements, Gerber said that keeping a live tiger on campus is unnatural and needs to come to an end. She has gained support from thousands.
“We heard from some students that are a little uncomfortable about the fact that LSU is one of the last colleges that still ha a live mascot, and we really wanted to challenge other students to think about it,” Gerber said. “Does LSU want their legacy to be one of the last college campuses that has a live mascot? Speak up.”
The University has not responded to Care2’s petitions to end the longstanding tradition, and Gerber’s hopes to talk to Alexander about the issue are fading. Gerber said she thinks the only way for this to be the final Mike is for students, faculty and alumni to start making noise about it. Many students still support the tradition of the live mascot, and visit Mike VII daily.
“He lives a life of luxury,” said civil engineering sophomore Katie Mathews. “He’s not suffering in any way. He obviously has fun here too, and we have fun with him. He has a whole team of veterinarians, and it’s not like he’s out here 24/7. He goes inside too. I think the live mascot is LSU’s thing.”
Marketing freshman Casey Godbery said the live tiger gives her an experience that she cannot get anywhere else.
“I see him every morning,” Godbery said. “Every time I walk by, I always come see him. He’s always doing different stuff and playing around. I want him to stay. I think that they take care of him, and people are always in [the habitat] cleaning for him.”
The LSU School of Veterinary Medicine has been caring for the live mascots since 1976, during Mike IV’s Mike reign. Mike VII is currently 2 years old, and was donated to the University from a sanctuary in Okeechobee, Florida.
Gerber said she understands the students’ connection to the tiger, but wants people to understand the nature of orphan.
“I get the argument that a tiger is beautiful, how great it is for him to be at this school that you’re proud of and to see a tiger on campus,” Gerber said. “What we want to ask them to do is to think about how we used to talk about SeaWorld when we would make those same exact arguments — how great it is to see an orca up close, when you really can’t just see an orca in the wild.”