Don’t know if either fact went into the marching band’s decision to create an arboreal mascot, but the campus is adjacent to the city of Palo Alto (Spanish for “Tall Piece of Wood”), and the basketball teams play at Maples Pavilion. Here is some background from, ironically enough, a publication of one of the Pac-10 rivals of “The Farm”:
http://www.dailybruin.ucla.edu/db/issues/97/10.31/sports.tree.html
Seems like the recurring themes for those teams still with live mascots is that the animals are domesticated in the first place.
My high school team was the Colts. We had a real live colt at every football game.
I was in the marching band. Before every game, we would make a tunnel in front of the field house, and the colt would lead the football players through the tunnel and onto the football field.
I was the first flute, which means I stood at the very end of the tunnel, and on the side where the whole ensemble would turn to run to their warmup area.
I was always convinced that I was going to die under the hooves of that stupid horse, which would always cut that corner as close as it could.
The horse never hit me, but I invariably got slammed by at least one football player.
I wouldn’t dream of making any perception/ IQ comparisons based on that experience. I’m just saying.
<insert Michigan St. cheerleader joke here>
Wouldn’t an “Aggie” mascot have to be a guy in a plastic bubble representing a huge marble?
Before or after the game? 
:: rimshot ::
Years and years ago the Air Force Academy brought their falcon to a football game at the University of Iowa, then the State University of Iowa. The bird was brought out at halftime for an exhibit of falconry. When released by the cadet handler the bird circled high above the stadium and then flew straight north never to be seen again. For all anyone knows the bird’s decedents are flapping around on the Mississippi River bluffs around Dubuque. This is true, I was there.
Incidentally, one of the delights of college football is seeing the buffalo drag a dozen strapping undergrads up and down the field at Colorado games.
EJ’sGirl, Ralphie lives near me and she is extremely well taken care of. And from the looks of things, tht’s not going to change anytime soon.
Good point. Are there any other examples of schools that gave up having live animal mascot, especially non-domesticated ones such as WSU’s cougar?
Is the Washington Redskins mascot domesticated yet?