"He looks miserable!": PETA urges University of Georgia to retire Uga, the school's mascot
Uga X has been the University of Georgia's beloved mascot since 2015. Today, PETA once again called for the English bulldog's retirement.
"HE LOOKS MISERABLE!" according to a tweet from the animal rights organization. "No dog deserves to be packed up, carted from state to state, and paraded in front of a stadium full of screaming fans."
PETA also included a distressing video of the poor pup, sitting in a UGA-themed doghouse in the pouring rain.
"Animals are NOT mascots," PETA added. "@UGAAthletics must retire UGA immediately! He should be at home with a loving family."
Uga, known as "Que," is the latest to represent the school, a tradition that dates back to Uga I in 1956. It's Uga as in UGA, University of Georgia.
For 58 years, the Seiler family has considered it an honor to share, unpaid, their family pets with the university. Each dog has played a pivotal role over the years, including presiding over a national championship, making a cover of Sports Illustrated and becoming a movie star in a Clint Eastwood film.
PETA also encouraged the dog's retirement in January, after Bevo XV, the steer mascot of the University of Texas at Austin, charged the pup during the Sugar Bowl. Part of the organization's motto includes, "Animals are not ours to use for entertainment."
"Being forced into a stadium full of bright lights, screaming fans, and frightening noises is stressful — even terrifying — for sensitive animals like dogs, who would much rather be at home with their loving guardians," PETA said in a letter to the university earlier this year. "The public doesn't want to see animals used as props or forced to perform."
Additionally, English bulldogs have developed myriad health conditions due to inbreeding — including breathing difficulties, hip dysplasia and heart disorders — which can be exacerbated by travel and going to games.
Fans were quick to respond to PETA's outcry, with mixed reactions. While some people agreed that live animals should not be used as mascots under any circumstances, many fans argued that Uga lives a life of luxury.
