nab / CC

Bob Barker never imagined that he'd be writing a blog post for CNN at the age of 85—but he's determined to help free a group of bears who are languishing in desolate concrete pits on an Indian reservation in Cherokee, North Carolina. Bob met with the Tribal Council in July to plead for the bears' release, and he has now turned to the blogosphere to get others involved:

I told Chief Hicks that I'm not an expert on bears. I'm an expert on giving away refrigerators. But I can tell you that these bears are not properly housed or fed. Cherokee has a rich cultural history and much to be proud of. The cruel bear displays are a glaring blemish on the area, and I hope that the members of the Tribal Council for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians will open their hearts and do the right thing by shutting them down.

. . .
Until then, my heart and my conscience won't allow me to do anything but ask people to stay away from Cherokee and voice their support for allowing the bears to retire to a sanctuary.

Please join Bob by contacting Principal Chief Michell Hicks of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and urging him to close Cherokee's bear pits immediately.

Posted by Liz Graffeo

popsense / CC

My most beloved game show host—no, not that one—Bob Barker has once again stepped up to the mic to speak up for animals.

Yesterday, Bob met with Principal Chief Michell Hicks and members of the Tribal Council for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians to plead for compassion for captive bears in Cherokee, North Carolina, who languish in desolate concrete pits and cages in roadside zoos. After Bob saw firsthand the deplorable conditions at one of these tourist traps (he was denied entry to the other two), he urged Principal Chief Hicks to release the miserable bears to a sanctuary in California.

Although no promises were made at yesterday's meeting, PETA won't rest until the black bears are retired to sanctuaries. After all, according to Cherokee legend, black bears are the keepers of dreams. No doubt all of these imprisoned bears are dreaming of their own freedom.

Posted by Karin Bennett

peoplequiz / CC

We all know what a friend beloved TV host Bob Barker is to animals. From ending every episode of The Price Is Right with a plea to spay and neuter animal companions to keeping the showcases fur-free, he's never been afraid to speak up for animals.

Not to get all "the price is wrong" on you or anything, but in Cherokee, North Carolina, there are three "tourist attractions" that keep bears in grossly inhumane conditions. The neurotic, hungry bears are confined to desolate concrete pits in which they pace back and forth, walk in endless circles, cry and whimper, fight with one another, and beg tourists to toss them a morsel of food.

What do these tourist traps have to do with Bob Barker? As a compassionate person of Native American descent (he spent much of his youth at the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota), Bob has requested a meeting with the principal chief of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation to discuss an end to the town's displays of bears in pits and cages.

As he wrote to Principal Chief Hicks, "Cherokee has so much to offer, such as its beautiful mountains, museums, cultural and historical exhibits, Native American shops, friendly residents, and casino. The caged bears may have been a big attraction at one time but are now seen as an embarrassment to the community and should be permanently closed down."

To join Bob in asking that the cruel bear pits be closed down, please send a respectful letter to Principal Chief Hicks letting him know that bears should be respected, not left in a pit to languish.

Posted by Amanda Schinke

nab / CC

Bob Barker was famous for reminding The Price Is Right viewers about the importance of having companion animals spayed or neutered and keeping fur off the show, among other kind things. This week, he's speaking up for deer—in particular, two does and their fawns who live in Great Falls, Virginia.

The deer have been using an ancestral woods path (which now goes through a small development) to reach what remains of the woods, where they sleep at night. Until, that is, one neighbor got all up in arms over some flowers that the deer allegedly had a nibble on (flowers, really?) and got a "nuisance kill" permit from the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) to abate the "nuisance."

The neighbor has hired a bow hunter in full regalia, who has set up a tree stand and even deployed a decoy, a lure, to attract the deer to where he can shoot them. There are easy and simple things you can do to live in harmony with wildlife, of course, but it takes a heart.

Props to the other neighbors who are fighting back hard to have the permit revoked and were able to contact Bob Barker—not by some spectacular third degree of separation miracle, by the way: One of the neighbors operated on Mr. Barker when he fell ill in Washington. Mr. Barker shot off a letter to the DGIF, which you can read here

Like many neighborhoods, this community is experiencing wildlife up close because, sadly, these wonderful, capable, now almost homeless animals are being forced to search for food, shelter, and some plain old stimulation—in part because trees are being chopped down faster than you can yell timber just to make room for more strip malls, grocery stores, and, yes, even more Wal-Marts. Jump on over to HelpingAnimals.com for handy tips on how to humanely handle wildlife.

Posted by Jennifer Cierlitsky

The mandatory spay/neuter ordinance, which I was talking up this week on the blog, passed today at the Van Nuys City Council meeting with a 10-1 vote! There is still one more vote to take place next week which will finalize it, but the decision will be made based on simple majority. According to my colleagues in LA who were at the meeting, there were hundreds of people in attendance, including Bob Barker who spoke on the importance of spaying and neutering. Boo-ya!

A huge thank you to everyone who has helped push this historic bill into law.

News1130/Creative Commons

Apparently, the time is right for Bob Barker to step down from his throne as the king of daytime TV. The long-time host of The Price is Right has taped his final episode, which is scheduled to air on June 15. Nobody can argue that Barker’s career isn't impressive—50 years on TV, 35 years as the host of The Price is Right, the longest running television show in world history, 17 Emmy Awards (and he’s nominated for two more this year), need I say more?

But in addition to his amazing TV career, Barker has also been a long-time animal advocate. For years he has offered grants to spay and neuter clinics in all 50 states, he’s pushed all sorts of animal-friendly legislation including the current spay/neuter bill in California, since 2001

LC Shelter/Creative Commons

his foundation has given $8 million in grants to law schools to push along the field of animal law and of course, who can forget the way he’s ended his show every day for years on end: “Help control the pet population. Have your pet spayed or neutered.” He is the guardian of one dog and two rabbits—all rescues, of course—and his backyard has long been a safe haven for wildlife. He is also a long-time vegetarian, and the folks in our Communications department report that he’s doing surprisingly well in the World’s Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrity contest . . .

He was always busy working behind the scenes as well. While I was researching this entry, I ran across this Forbes article that explains how Barker was able to influence the show’s prizes and advertising over the years. Because he is a vegetarian, they don’t advertise meat products on the show, and at his request, they also stopped giving away fur coats as prizes. Snap!

Given the scope of his animal work over the years, I’m slightly ashamed to admit that being the sports junkie that I am, my fondest Bob Barker moment will always be him kicking Adam Sandler’s ass in the classic “The price is wrong, bitch” scene in Happy Gilmore.

AllMoviePhoto/Creative Commons

Seriously though, I think this quote from MSNBC speaks volumes to what matters most to the man: “I think I would like to be remembered as a man who loved living things and did everything he could do to make it better for animals,” Barker said. “And when he had time, he did a lot of television shows, too.”

From all of us at PETA, cheers to you Bob Barker. Thank you for everything you’ve done throughout your career to help animals, and we can’t wait to see what’s next.