Sideways, a "black and white, long-haired mongrel," appeared on campus in 1945 after being thrown from a car in front of a famous local restaurant. She walked with her head and shoulders about 15 degrees out of phase with her hindquarters because of injuries sustained in the toss (other stories claim she was hit by a car, which caused her to walk sideways). Ever observant, Tech students named her Sideways. During her two year stay, Sideways slept in a different dorm room each night and helped herself to free samples of food from the dining hall. She would follow students to class, sleeping in boring lectures and staying awake in the interesting ones. After accidently eating rat poison on August 14, 1947, Sideways died by the side of the Old Infirmary Building (now the OMED offices).
Stumpy's Bear weighed 400 pounds and went by the name Bruin. The bear was a gift to the team after the 1929 Rose Bowl victory over California. Stumpy was a football player on the Tech football team. The bear used to wander campus, and made his winter residence under the east stands of the stadium. The bear drank beer and Coke. Dean of Students Emeritus George C. Griffin described the bear as "as smart as most Tech students with all the bad habits of modern youth."
The Cats, a bunch of strays that have adopted Tech as their home, wander the streets and basements of our campus today. Seen in large numbers on East Campus and occasionally near the Student Center, they tend to stick to themselves, except for those times when they are hungry. Faithful rat catchers, it's not unusual for them to be fed at night by students in the dorms. Generally, they live in the basements of dorms and instructional buildings alike.