UPDATE 1-Build-A-Bear fires COO; declines to say why

(Updates with company comment, NEW YORK in dateline)

NEW YORK, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Stuffed toys retailer Build-A-Bear Workshop Inc (BBW.N) fired its president and chief operating officer Scott Seay, effective Oct. 31, but a company spokeswoman declined to give a reason.

Spokeswoman Jill Saunders said Seay, who joined the company in May 2002, was not entitled to severance pay.

Saunders said Seay's termination, which was revealed in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, was not related to the St. Louis-based company's operations and that there would be no charges tied to Seay's employment termination.

The company's shares closed down 4.2 percent at $4.98 on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Aarthi Sivaraman; Editing by Bernard Orr)