A Mascot’s Misery: Animals Do not Belong on the Sidelines

Getting wrapped up in school spirit at a university can be a thrilling experience; the adrenaline rush from a touchdown, the thrilling nature of a tiebreaker during the last few seconds of a game, and singing the school fight songs along with thousands of other people in the crowd. While these school traditions can be some of the most memorable and exciting moments of a person’s college experience, at several universities around the United States, there are those in attendance at games that have an entirely different experience: live wild animal mascots. For these unlucky attendees, the parts that stand out to them are the terrifying, screaming fans; the overwhelming stress that envelopes them as they are uncomfortably restrained (often by a leash or small cage) in an unfamiliar environment; and the forced interactions with hundreds of people that can be dangerous for both the humans and animals present.

Dozens of Live Animals Are Exploited as College Mascots

In the U.S., dozens of live animal mascots at nine schools have been exploited recently across the country: Mike the tiger at LSU, Baylor University’s bears, University of North Alabama’s lions, University of Colorado’s buffalo, Colorado State’s ram, University of Memphis’s tiger, University of Arkansas’s boar, U.S. Air Force Academy’s falcons, and Auburn University’s golden eagle. While one animal may be used at a time for this cruel practice, many schools rotate through several animals for each event, or have replaced the original mascots over the years when they fell ill, were too aggressive with fans, or died.

The Use of Animal Mascots Goes Back Many Decades

Sources claim that the first instance of a school using a live animal mascot occurred in the U.S. at Yale in 1889, when a student from England named Andrew Graves brought the first “Handsome Dan” bulldog to the football and baseball games. An Olde English Bulldogge named Walter now represents Yale as Handsome Dan XVIII. This practice quickly caught on thereafter at other universities, when people observed how the live animals seemed to bring the crowds together. For example, LSU has used a series of tigers named Mike, repeatedly replacing each after they die. After Mike VI was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2016, animal advocacy groups urged the school to make Mike VI the last live mascot at LSU. Unfortunately, LSU did not consider these protests, and 2025 marks 89 years for LSU’s live tiger mascot program since Mike I arrived on campus on October 21, 1936. Since 1936, LSU has used seven tigers to act as Mike. Similarly, Baylor University began using live bears in 1917, and the school has used more than 50 live bear mascots since then. The current bear mascots, Judge Indy and Judge Belle, live on campus in a tiny bear habitat.

Before 2024, the University of North Alabama was the only school in the country with a live lion living on its college campus; Leo III resided on the UNA campus in the George H. Carroll Lion Habitat. Leo III, the third lion to live on campus, passed away on May 2, 2024. The lion habitat is currently vacant. North Alabama has used live lion mascots for more than 40 years. The “Tigers of Memphis” refers to the three Bengal Tigers who served as the mascot for The University of Memphis since 1972. After the passing of Tom III in 2020, the university partnered with the Memphis Zoo to keep the tradition alive from a distance, so these animals no longer reside on the campus grounds.

Other live animal mascots include:

• Colorado State University’s Cam the ram, who is cared for by a group of student volunteers called the Ram Handlers. The first live mascot, a ram named Buck, made his debut at a basketball game against Denver University on January 11, 1946. Colorado State University has used 26 different live rams since then.
• Tusk the boar is the official live mascot for the University of Arkansas Razorbacks. Tusk IV is a Russian boar who has been the live mascot since the 2011 season. He currently resides at the Stokes Family Farm in Dardanelle, as 2018-19 was his last season before entering retirement.
• The U.S. Air Force Academy’s falcon mascot was initially chosen by the first graduating class in 1955. The original mascot was a peregrine falcon named Mach 1. The live mascots today include three different falcons named Nova, Karena, and Odin, who perform at sporting events, civic events, and home football games.
• While Auburn University’s official mascot is Aubie the Tiger, the university also has a live golden eagle named Aurea, or War Eagle VIII, who performs the War Eagle Flight before Auburn home games. Aurea lives at the Auburn University Raptor Center in the university’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

College Animal Mascots Have Been Hurt and Caused Injury

Although these animal mascots’ suffering is often not as clear to sports spectators as it is to animal behavior specialists, they have been hurt in more obvious ways over the years. At the University of Colorado, the “Ralphie Handlers” are a select group of varsity student-athletes who run with Ralphie around the University’s Folsom football field before each half of each home game (a tradition that has occurred for 53 years.) During one of CU’s Spring games, Ralphie got loose and outran three of his handlers, trampled another, and tried to escape. Miraculously, no one involved suffered serious injuries.

Aurora the falcon, the mascot for the Air Force’s football team, was injured in November 2018 during a prank before the service academy’s game with Army at West Point. According to the Air Force Times, Aurora suffered an injury to both wings.

Lastly, University of Texas mascot Bevo, a longhorn steer, nearly killed the tiny Georgia mascot Uga, a small bulldog. Before the Sugar Bowl in 2019, these two mascots were put in proximity to one another to “meet” before the game. Bevo charged at Uga, nearly attacking him.

It Is Beyond Time to End the Use of Animal Mascots

Human mascots dressed in animal suits can do just as much—if not more—than live animals for promoting school spirit (including elaborate dance routines), and even more important: it is their choice. Live animals are not given the choice whether they want to participate in these events, nor do they consent to living their entire lives in captivity to do such work. Please, do not attend any school sponsored games or events that use live wild animals for entertainment to show that you acknowledge this cruelty and stand with us in rejecting it.

Keep Wildlife in the Wild,

Devan