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Today is a historic day for the SMU Mustangs. At 8 p.m., they will be taking on the Clemson Tigers for their first chance at an ACC conference title. This is huge moment for the program, so the school is pulling out all the stops to celebrate this historic game.

SMU has a real life Shetland pony mascot named Peruna, and for a while, it was uncertain if he would make the trip to Charlotte. But at the last minute, the school announced that they found a way to get their beloved mascot to the game.

However, not everyone was pleased with this development. If you had to take a wild guess at who you think got wildly upset about this development, who would you say got all riled up?

If you guessed PETA, you’re correct.

The organization not only posted a predictable complaint about the horse being at the game, but called for the school to stop having live mascots at all.

The thing that gets me about PETA is that they always act like the slightest inconvenience of animals equates to some unspeakable level of animal cruelty. All the animal does is run across the field before games and between quarters. Would it be a little rough for a pony to do that and deal with thousands of screaming fans for a few hours in an environment its not used to? Sure…if this were a normal pony.

Apparently, sources say that Peruna’s “feisty character and strong personality make him well-suited for the strenuous job.” And it’s not like Peruna is constantly running around throughout the week. Apparently, he “runs free at a secret location when not representing the Mustangs.”

DALLAS, TX – SEPTEMBER 16:Southern Methodist Mustangs mascot Peruna runs across the field during a college football game between Southern Methodist Mustangs and Prairie View Am Panthers on Sept 16, 2023, at Gerald Ford Stadium in Dallas, TX (Photo by Christopher Leduc/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Plus, check out the community note on this tweet: Peruna and his caretakers have literally practiced for circumstances like this all year.

Once again, leave it to PETA to get all worked up about something that isn’t an issue. Let Peruna run free for the ‘Stangs!