This place is a pit

Baylor’s bear mascots deserve more suitable accommodations

September 5, 2002

Waco Tribune-Herald Editorial

This spring, Baylor University nurtured 11,000 daffodils, tulips and hyacinths to make the campus more pleasant for students, faculty and visitors.

Baylor officials understand the need to provide an environment that nurtures people and flowers.

Baylor’s black bear mascots also deserve a pleasant, nurturing environment.

Unfortunately, Baylor’s black bear mascots are kept in a lighted, sterile, concrete pit on campus that provides no semblance of a bear’s natural environment.

No one should doubt the good intentions of Baylor officials in charge of their live mascots, which are well-fed and given excellent medical care.

Despite criticism to the contrary, there is no evidence that the Dr Peppers consumed with gusto by generation of Baylor mascots have done anything other than promote satisfied bears.

The on-campus bear pit, however, is another matter.

Baylor has not kept up with the times when it comes to providing living quarters for its black bear mascots.

A dozen years ago Waco’s zoo was located near the Municipal Airport. It was an example of the way most people around the world have always accommodated wild animals – in small, sparse cages that are easy for human caretakers to clean.

Waco’s old zoo allowed visitors to watch animals locked in small, barred enclosures pace back and forth or sleep on bare concrete floors.

Waco’s new nationally acclaimed Cameron Park Zoo is an example of the enlightened way wild animals should be housed.

As much as possible, wild animals kept in captivity should live in habitats that approximate their natural environment.

Modern zoos make the required effort to build large living spaces for animals that need that room to exercise or feel at home.

Enclosures in modern zoos are built with ponds, waterfalls, trees, caves, secluded spots and other natural amenities, each designed for specific animals held inside.

The concrete bear pit on the Baylor campus may be good enough for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, but it should not be good enough for an excellent university. The bears deserve better and so does Baylor.