I spoke with Dr. Baker at the game Saturday. Mike was at the 400 lb mark over the weekend. It was already reported that Mike V's heaviest weight was 375 lbs, Dr. Baker said that Mike IV got up to 525 lbs. Dr. Baker says that Mike is given an ox tail each week to keep his teeth clean. The ox tail comes from a local butcher. He also says that each Saturday after Mike returns to his cage from Tiger Stadium, he is given a 35 lb hog. The hog is killed first and given to Mike with no further preparation (undressed, all internal organs included). The hogs come from the LSU Ag center. I assume Mike will be given a hog each week even after football season. Mike VI has not yet growled inside Tiger Stadium. Rob Craig of "Great Cats of Indiana" was at the La Tech game (he was here for the Florida game also). Rob was flown in by an alumni group for a few days and was presented with a very nice framed photo of Mike.
as someone who has had the honor of watching that cat actually eat, i can say that it really is a sight to see... b/c the blood is fresh, his instincts tell him it's alive, so he really pounces. it's amazing.
I jog on campus sometimes and I was just out there by the vet school taking a break one night and the trainer pulled up as I was coming in, and we talked sports a little while and he just asked me if i wanted to see them feed the tiger.
I guess when LSU plays Ark the Ark fans better not get to close to the cage. He might think their his lunch.
