Will the Butler Bulldogs become the Butler Bullfrogs? Graphic by Ollie Fitzgerald.

OLLIE FITZGERALD | ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR | ofitzgerald@butler.edu

Following the retirement announcement of Butler Blue IV to prioritize his health, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) sent a letter to President James Danko encouraging the university to fully retire its live bulldog mascot program. The letter proposes a new mascot — The Butler Bullfrogs — and offers to pay for a new bullfrog mascot costume. 

In a press release, PETA emphasized that nearly 90% of bulldogs suffer from breathing difficulties and are bred to have smushed snouts solely for aesthetics. This often leads to lifelong respiratory diseases, and “just breathing through their nose is like trying to suck in air through a tiny, crumpled straw.” 

The topic of poorly bred dogs, and specifically bulldogs, is not just a PETA concern. Veterinarians and animal protection organizations worldwide advocate for stopping the breeding of these animals. Countries like Norway, the Netherlands and Denmark have banned the breeding of new dogs with flat-faced structures. 

Jacob Shaw, PETA’s manager of strategic initiatives, was part of the team that worked on the press release and letter to Danko. He stated that PETA’s main goal is to get people to think about animal welfare, make animal-friendly choices and put more concern into how they think about animals. 

“I think the most important takeaway for people who are unfamiliar with PETA is that our mission is focused on alleviating as much animal suffering and abuse as possible,” Shaw said. “We do that through showing people how they can really take ownership of their own lives by making these more animal-friendly choices each day.” 

Shaw explained that PETA chose to reach out to Butler due to the opportune time of Blue IV’s retirement, and that, inadvertently, having a bulldog as a mascot may encourage others to buy breathing-impaired dogs from unethical breeders. He said that Butler clearly loves its bulldog, but it is important to recognize that they are suffering. 

PETA supports retiring all live mascot programs, not just because of the stress it may cause to the animals, but also knowing that pop culture inspires people to get certain types of pets from breeders. Animal shelters around the country are already overcrowded, and Shaw said that breeding more is “grossly irresponsible.”

“The best thing we can do if we’re going to be using dogs as mascots, at the very least, they [should be] mutts and promoting rescues,” Shaw said. “I would say anyone who’s looking for ethical clarity on this need not look further than ‘Adopt, don’t shop.’”

PETA has not yet heard back from Butler regarding their letter and proposal, and hopes that students learning more about it will encourage change.

“If most students on campus actually see where we’re coming from on this — you know, we’re not trying to be buzzkills — we’re trying to all love and care about dogs,” Shaw said. “This is actually one very easy thing we can do to help protect more of these breeding impaired dogs from being bred to suffer.”

Evan Krauss, the handler and owner of Butler Blue IV, declined to comment.