Bubbaworld

With the Tulsa State Fair set to start tomorrow some might be looking forward to seeing the “big cats” of Great Cat Adventures, a company that displays leopards, tigers and other large cats at fairs all over the country.

If so, they are in for a disappointment as Tulsa State Fair officials have canceled the $11,000 contract with the company, supposedly in part because of a flurry of complaints.

This according to Mark Andrus, interim president and CEO of Expo Square, who inherited the job when Tulsa County Commissioners tossed Rick Bjorklund under the bus back in July.

According to the Tulsa World, the complaints originated with PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) which spearheaded an e-mail campaign protesting the display.

According to PETA:

In addition to public safety risks, such animal displays are nothing but misery for the animals who are subjected to grueling travel, intense confinement, extreme noise, and the stress of constant interaction with people.

If one subscribes to the view presented by PETA, Mr. Andrus and the other honchos at the Tulsa State Fair should also cancel the petting zoo, the wildlife displays and of course all the chicken, cow, horse, pig and sheep shows that are part of the fair, as each and everyone of these functions subjects the animals to the same conditions which PETA claims is imposed upon the “big cats”.

Of course don’t expect Mr. Andrus to actually show the same consideration for all those other animals that he supposedly has for the “big cats”, which are already in Tulsa with no where to go since their exhibit space has been reassigned, and other spots are full according to Andrus.

Yeah, sure.

The “big cats” find themselves in a position not unlike that of Bell’s Amusement Park.

Sadly it appears that the more things change the more they stay the same at the Tulsa Fairgrounds where one still can not trust administrators any further than they can toss them…

Update: 09/25/08 – Mark Andrus Reverses Himself

Evidently it got a little “hot” at the Tulsa Fairgrounds in the wake of the decision by interim president and CEO Mark Andrus to kick the “big cat” display from the Tulsa State Fair.

So “hot” that Andrus has now decided that surprise, surprise – there is room for the big cats, after all.

Apparently Andrus weighed the thought of many angry Tulsans against those of angry PETA fanatics writing e-mails and opted for the safer course of action, one of finding a place for the “big cats”.

Good move on Andrus’ part as the folks at PETA don’t have the power to toss Fairgrounds CEO’s under the bus, Tulsans do, by apply heat to the backsides of County Commissioners…