Uga VII died last week due to heart failure.
John Bazemore, AP
In an e-mail to the school's Athletic Director, Damon M. Evans, PETA asked the school to stop breeding animals to avoid deadly genetic issues.
"Purebred dogs are prone to countless congenital ailments from years of inbreeding -- every breeder perpetuates these genetic problems for future generations with each litter," PETA said in their e-mail to Evans. "Bulldogs are especially predisposed to breathing difficulties, hip dysplasia, and, as shown in the Uga lineage, heart disorders."
PETA also explains that Uga VII's heart illness was worsened by the pooch's exposure to hot weather and poor ventilation. The dog was four years old when he died.
Uga the Bulldog as been the University of Georgia's beloved mascot since 1956, according to the University's Web site. The school has not yet announced Uga VII's successor.
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Get real Ingrid, you have to be the BIGGEST IDIOT on the planet!!
Keep the dog UGA, get a robotic NEWKIRK!!
Member of the REAL PETA!
(People Eating Tasty Animals)
We need to send those PETA members to the moon to fix the problems up there, not at Sanford Stadium. UGA gets to sleep on a hotel bed every night before and after a game, he gets his own dog house with heating and air conditioning in it. He also gets his own bag of ice to sit on. Every saturday 92,000 friends come to pet him. PETA can go dive in a lake and take care of the catfish at the bottom.
the dogs selected to portray uga are so pampered and well taken care of that they live better than some of the students. to replace him with a robotic, anamatronic, or costumed mascot would be a travesty.
Heck...I'd throw on a costume to be treated that way!
exactly right. the dog gets treated so well. bottled water, laying on a bad of ice in heat and his own dog house at the game...
PETA needs to concern itself with abused animals and not pampered pets/mascots. These mascot, as was stated several times in this forum, are treated royally!!!! PETA..... consider looking into and defending the poor animals inbolved in dogfighting situations. Remember Michael Vick and others?Where was PETA then? The folks at PETA need to do much more research or perhaps.. simply look up the word "ethical" or "abused"?? "Protect" the animals that NEED protecting.
It's not the schools fault that this breed of dog is bred that way. Isn't it better that the dog lead a pampered life as a mascot for the short time they live.
Yep, . . And you can cross breed an English Bull Dog with a similarly colored Boxer Bull Dog and come up with pups which no one would ever know were crossed, . . and eliminate the fear of problems of inbreeding !!! . . I.M.H.O. . . .
I would rather see PETA nuts replaced with robots...with the endless "broken record" complaints they lodge you'd never know the difference.
i hope one day soon we can replace the peta extremists with robots.
If the PETA members were robots then they might actually be effective and/or dangerous, not just regular ridiculous losers.
normally i think peta is full of it, but they are correct about the defects. they should go back to the old style bulldog with the longer nose and body more proportionate to the head. if you look at pix of bulldogs last century, they are a completely different dog.
Yes, it's true that pedigree animals can have defects related to the inbreeding needed to keep the line pure. However, mutts often have the same defects. The new bulldogs are definitely not the healthiest of breeds, but here's a solution: adopt! Adopt a bulldog from a rescue, and pamper it like the others so that if it should live a short (or long) life, at least it lived off the streets and with the best of care. Furthermore, pure bred animals are needed in order to maintain the breed standard. Without them, we would soon realize the end to most breeds. However, keep purebred breeding to those with the knowledge and love to do so...not those careless backyard breeders!
I think they should stick with the real thing ! The bulldog has more meaning and more history than just being GA's mascot. Normally, I might ide with PETA, but dang it they are getting freakin' ridiculous. A ROBOT ???? Byron is very correct, the Uga' are very well taken care of ! If people would take the time to INVSTIGATE before using snap judgement, they might have different viewpoints.
PETA asked the school to stop breeding animals to avoid deadly genetic issues? Does PETA think the school does the actual breeding? If they did, I bet there would be some genetic testing in the process.Then what would PETA complain about. Personally, I wish I was treated as well as those mascots.
I'm with Harold. In my world PETA is People Eating Tasty Animals. Those vegetarian animal worshipers are missing a protein needed for proper brain function.
Why doesn't PETA tackle the real issues? This would be things like starving animals, neglected animals, etc. UGA is one pampered well cared for and loved by all dog. We are all saddened by his death.
The poor dog died because he couldn't stand to watch the dismal performance of the team!
A bulldog is a little strong as a symbol for that school. Why not a poodle?
PETA is totally ignorant. All the UGAs have lived normal life spans. PETA needs to go worry about abused animals and minks.
Why does anyone still listen to those PETA lunatics? They clearly have a contempt for humanity. What is wrong with the media people who are always giving them publicity?