REXANO Tiger Mascot PETA VS LSU AND COMMON SENSE Jeff Crouere

PETA VS LSU AND COMMON SENSE

By Jeff Crouere , May 23, 2007

LSU fans throughout the world are mourning the death of Mike the Tiger, who passed away the other day at the age of 17. Mike was the beloved mascot of LSU and lived in a multi-million dollar facility across from Tiger stadium. Over the years, millions of fans have seen Mike at LSU games or visited him on the campus.

Now that he is gone, the university is searching for a replacement. Unfortunately, the radical animal rights group PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, has stepped in to criticize the university. PETA believes that Bengal tigers should not be taken from the "wild" and that its existence should not be confined to a "cage."

According to Lisa Wathne, a PETA expert on captive exotic animals, "Big cats in captivity are denied everything that it natural and important to them, such as the opportunity to run, climb, hunt, establish their territory and choose their mates."

Wathne believes that Mike had a terrible existence, but, at least he lived in complete comfort for 17 years. In fact, for the last year of his life, Mike resided in a $3 million facility with a waterfall, bathing poll and 15,000 lavish square feet of living space.

In the wild, life is no picnic for Bengal tigers, as only 500 remain. Their natural habitat is disappearing and hunters are killing the tigers for their organs and fur.

At LSU, Mike the Tiger is protected and allowed to live in first class conditions, supervised by excellent veterinarians.

It should be apparent to practically everyone, except PETA radicals, that a tiger's life in comfortable captivity is much preferable to living at risk in the wild.

Hopefully, LSU will not be deterred in their goal to find another Mike the Tiger. The mascot brings joy to Tiger fans everywhere and also provides one lucky tiger a life that is protected. By bringing Bengal tigers into captivity, the species will be preserved, which is a much better fate than allowing poachers to exterminate the remaining tigers "in the wild."

Jeff Crouere is a native of New Orleans, LA and he is the host of a Louisiana based program, “Ringside Politics,” which airs at 8:30 p.m. Fri. and 10:00 p.m. Sun. on WLAE-TV 32, a PBS station, and Noon till 2 p.m. weekdays on several Louisiana radio stations. For more information, visit his website. E-mail him at jeff@ringsidepolitics.com .