High school football in Massillon, Ohio is an eagerly anticipated season. Part of what the locals look forward to is Obie, a live tiger cub http://www.care2.com/causes/investigation-exposes-extreme-tiger-cub-abuse-and-neglect-at-roadside-zoos.html who is leased to Massillon Washington High School. But Obie might not make his decades-long traditional appearance as mascot this season. And that 's in the tiger cub 's best interest, says Care2 member Amanda Whelan, http://www.care2.com/causes/help-care2-member-amanda-prevent-the-murder-of-12-exotic-animals.html who started a petition http://www.thepetitionsite.com/807/480/353/stop-the-yearly-tiger-cub-purchase-by-ohios-massillon-washington-high-school/?TAP=1007&cid=causes_petition_postinfo with over 118,000 signatures demanding an end to this mascot tradition. …show more content…
The safety of the tiger cub, and the safety of tiger cub-human interaction. 2. How is the animal treated during the season? 3. What happens to the tiger after the football fanfare? Point number three is particularly concerning. This year, officials removed former cute Obie cubs who grew up into adult tigers from an unlicensed Toledo-area sanctuary. The sanctuary owner said he took in the animals that "no one else wanted." Tiger Cubs Aren 't Disposable Amanda Whelan, a passionate Care2 member, has a problem with that. To Whelan, tiger cubs aren 't disposable objects that can just be thrown away, and that 's why her petition demands that the Massillon tiger cub mascot tradition ends. Obie tiger cubs have been subjected to hell on earth since the early 1970s. The screams of the crowd, blinding lights and loud sounds from the band are hellish for tiger cubs with sensitive ears and eyes -- cubs who wouldn 't naturally leave their mother 's side until they were over two years old. The cubs will often lose control of their bowel movements because they 're so scared. And when football fanfare is over, the tiger cub is forced to live in the equivalent of