LOS ANGELES (CNS) - The co-founder of the Performing Animal Welfare Society, known as PAWS, has joined the list of animal rights organizations paying tribute to longtime supporter and iconic "Price is Right" host Bob Barker.
"Bob is greatly responsible for PAWS' nearly 40 years of success in advocating on behalf of and providing sanctuary to captive wild animals at our 2,300-acre captive wildlife sanctuary in San Andreas, California," Ed Stewart, the group's president, CEO and co-founder said in a statement late Saturday. "I'm writing this while sitting in the pickup truck in which Bob would ride with me during visits to our sanctuary. He loved seeing the animals we care for, including elephants, big cats, and bears rescued or retired from zoos, circuses, and the exotic animal trade."
Barker died of natural causes Saturday morning at his Hollywood Hills home. He was 99.
In addition to his 35-year stint hosting the daytime game show, Barker was known for his prolific philanthropy and activism in support of animal rights.
PAWS was founded in 1984 by Stewart and the late trainer Pat Derby, who worked on such shows as "Lassie," "Flipper" and "Gentle Ben" in the 1960s and 1970s but later criticized the entertainment industry's treatment of performance animals.
"I am fortunate to have fought for animal rights alongside Bob for more than 35 years," Stewart wrote. "We travelled to Alaska; North Carolina; Washington, D.C.; Canada and other places to ensure that animals would be protected. Bob broke down barriers when organizations like ours couldn't get a foot in the door, during an era when animal exploitation went unquestioned.
"Bob was extremely generous with his time, knowledge, and his resources. Who else could make arrangements with the U.S. Air Force to airlift an adult African elephant named Maggie out of Alaska to our sanctuary, and then pick up the tab?"
Stewart recalled Barker's testifying before governing bodies in Sacramento, Anchorage, Los Angeles, Canada, and Washington D.C. and providing funding for the Bob Barker Bear Habitat at the group's ARK 2000 sanctuary.
"He was extremely effective," Stewart said. "The rooms were always packed with people wanting to hear and see Bob Barker.
"News reporters didn't expect the high level of expertise Bob displayed in interviews. He spoke expertly on any animal issue he addressed. He was entertaining, but also one of the toughest negotiators I've ever seen behind closed doors."
Most of all, Stewart said, Barker's activism went far beyond being just for show.
"An authentic animal advocate, Bob left lucrative television jobs such as the Miss America Pageant because the show featured fur coats," Stewart said. "His send-off at the end of every "The Price is Right" show for decades was to spay and neuter your pets. He literally changed the public's perception of pet overpopulation for the benefit of companion animals everywhere.
"There will never be another Bob Barker. Thank you, Bob, for everything you have done for PAWS and for the animals. Rest in peace."