Maybe I've lived in a shoebox my entire life, but I had always been under the impression that all mascots were beloved, lively and costumed humans. They were fun, animated, the object of millions of photos. And while they may have been sweating their faces off under layers and layers of fabric, it was no secret that their spirit was able to breathe life into the game regardless of the scoreboard. I was under the impression that all mascots were this way.
The word mascot is actually derived from the french word 'mascotte`'which means 'good luck charm.' So technically, a mascot doesn't have to be a human wearing a costume. Actually, one of the earliest sports mascots actually wasn't living, or a human. Yes, in 1908, the Chicago Cubs used a taxidermy mount as their mascot.
While this photo looks like it could make its way into a remake for the "Pet Sematary", this story gets much worse. The history becomes dark and tragic. After Comiskey the taxidermy mount went out of style, the team went in and out of using human mascots. These human mascots tended to have short tenures, however. They seemed to prefer live animals. For the longest time, these mascots consisted of dogs and roosters. But in the end, they preferred their namesake: cubs.
The baby bears were unruly. According to an article from the Chicago Reader, their 1914 mascot, an Alaskan import by the name of Clara Maduro, was deemed "too strong and determined in its ways to be among peaceable people" as reported by the Tribune. She was later scheduled to be executed, but gained a reprieve and found her home in Lincoln Park Zoo for the rest of her life. The 1910 team disliked their unnamed bear cub mascot so much that they snuck in and left him in the rival Giants' clubhouse. During this time, it seemed that the cubs weren't bringing the team much luck either, these years were some of the worst for the team. However, people were still sending the team live baby bears. Eventually, tragedy struck.
Nobody really grieved this poor animal. He was quickly replaced.
I had never been aware that people used live animals as mascots until this Saturday. I was on a trip to Tennessee to see the Jayhawks face the Memphis Tigers. I had a lot of mixed feelings seeing Tom III, the beautiful Bengal tiger in his cage being towed around the length of the stadium with the spirit team waving their poms around him and a siren blaring atop his small trailer. When I became slightly uninterested in the game, my eyes would sometimes wander to Tom III on the sideline pacing in his little trailer. My friends and I exchanged looks of wonderment and in some regards, sorrow.
These animals simply don't belong on the sidelines.
Problems didn't stop when the Chicago Bears stopped using bear cubs after 1916 and the stories are endless.
The University of Northern Alabama brags that they are the only school to ever have live lions on campus. However, Leo I and Leo II both only lived to be about 11 years old which is about half, in some cases a third, of the time that the average lifespans of lions are. Questions have been raised about the care of these lions.
In 1957, Smokey II, the University of Tenessee Bluetick Coonhound attended the Sugar Bowl. Unfortunately, he and Judge, the Baylor Bear got into a nasty altercation. Smokey II survived the encounter and went to serve the university until his retirement in 1964, however, it was said that he was never quite himself after the incident.
Ralphie, the University of Colorado's 1,000-pound bison is no stranger to wiping out her handlers. The university decided to use female bison simply because they are said to be more docile, however, Ralphie will routinely take out her handlers on her pre-game run.
Bevo, the Texas Longhorn steer of the University of Texas has been around since 1916 and his history is an aggressive one. From Bevo II charging an SMU cheerleader who had to defend himself with his megaphone to Bevo III breaking out and running across campus for 2 days to Bevo V essentially breaking loose and scattering the Baylor Band, the encounters haven't been so smooth.
To my knowledge, Lions and Tigers have not escaped during a game. Which is good.
However, here are a few things that even I, as a human, get slightly scared by or annoyed at during sports games:
Fireworks
Blowhorns
Blaring AC/DC
Yelling
Limited Space
Sirens
Drunk People
The Sun
Do we need them on the sidelines?
There is so much care, time and money invested into these beautiful animals. There is absolutely no intention of harm. For example, Mike VI (of Lousiana State University) has been stricken with cancer and enjoys his peace away from games and care from a multitude of professionals. And thankfully, Tom III of the University of Memphis has a soundproof, climate controlled cage. But we cannot say that all other mascots have it the same. And for the 7+ hours that they are at games, discomfort is a given.
The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals comments, “In their natural environments, tigers and lions would quietly roam many miles of territory, hunt, and raise their young. Bears would climb trees, investigate caves, and fish in streams. Animals kept as mascots aren’t allowed to do any of these natural things.”
The human mascot for the NFL’s New England Patriots states, “The position of a team mascot is rewarding, exciting, fun, interesting, and can essentially lead to even bigger and better opportunities. … Though [these are] wonderful opportunities to humans, animals do not enjoy any of those benefits.” He adds, “While live animals must be tucked away in a corner of a stadium and are rarely seen during the game, a human mascot in costume can be visible, active, and instrumental during the entire event.”
And the question remains —
After everything: the tragedies, the injuries, the millions of photos, and the dull hours on the sidelines — Should we still be using exotic animals as mascots?