Originally posted by

G. Stubbs

Now, would someone PLEASE stand up and demand that we get away from the Collie breed??!? The last four have shown that they were not very smart or stable. How about selecting a healthy stray from the Animal Shelter--much more in the spirit of the original Rev. Or at least a breed better suited to being a working dog.
But it won't happen. Too many people make too much money selling collie images with our ATM on them.

Rev's behavior problems have little to do with her breed. In my lifetime I have owned 2 collies and they are among the smartest, kindest, and sweetest dogs I have ever encountered. Our dog was trained so that she would not leave our yard, even if we weren't there to supervise her. She knew where the boundaries of our front yard were and she did not cross them, this is just one of many examples of her intelligence. The problem with Rev is that she is loyal like every other dog on the planet. "Dogs are man's best friend" did not get coined without reason. The ideal situation for a dog is that she be tied to one person or one family. Changing masters every 12 months is hard on a dog; think of children in foster care, it is the same thing. Dogs are just like people, they want families and constant companionship. Any breed of dog put in Rev's position would have the same issues. Really a collie is one of the better suited breeds for this job because collies tend to be much calmer and more laid back than most other popular breeds like labs (especially young labs), terriers, spaniels, and even retrievers. The reason Rev barks at football games is because she is a sheep dog and when a sheep dog sees a bunch of seemingly unruly creatures (football players in uniform in the middle of a game probably don't look like humans to Rev) milling about in a large open field she's bound to start barking and nipping at people (that is, after all, how a sheep dog herds sheep). In her regular environment Rev has very few problems with barking and biting (how many of us have actually had class dismissed because of her non-stop barking).

Originally posted by

Rebecca Duvall

G. Stubbs,
Agreed. I hereby nominate my dog, Jenny, as the new Rev. She loves babies and little children, she comes when called, only barks when there are cats around and/or meter readers, is an excellent hunting dog, and she looks good too.

It makes me laugh when I see her (Reveille) on campus, because I always see her with a muzzle. Poor thing.

Two words: legal liability. All university animal mascots have muzzles on when in public, no matter what kind of animal it is. Even sweet Jenny would be required to wear a muzzle when walking across campus in the care of a cadet or other university representative.

Originally posted by

Slash '84

Skidboot is gone, but David Hartwig should come to campus to demonstrate what a mascot is capable of being to A&M. Skidboot was a remarkable dog which looked very much like Rev I as seen in "We've Never Been Licked". I have grown weary over the years of TV coverage of an Aggie mascot that does nothing but bark constantly for no reason at all. If that is what you want, I volunteer my neighbors dog.
For those not familiar with Skidboot, google him and watch the Texas Country Reporter video. David Hartwig should at least be considered for a visit by E2 in order to learn how to raise Rev VIII with a bit more success than we've had with recent Revs. He's only a few hours up the road and would be a great road trip. I don't know anything about his business, but just maybe he will talk to us for the fun of it.
Let's do it right this time, Ags.

From firsthand experience, I can tell you that Skidboot was an excellent dog. David Hartwig shod my horses for years and Skidboot accompanied him most of the time before he passed. He does not run a dog training business, he runs (or used to) a horse shoeing business. As far as I know he doesn't take outside clients and mainly just breeds dogs now and does shows with them. Also, David claims he never trained Skidboot.

Reveille VII did an excellent job. People look down on her but you must remember what she has done positively for this school. She has stood at almost every home game right there with the twelfth man. She has served as the face of our school at Aggie Mom's Clubs and other events. And so much more! She may not be your "ideal" mascot but she is just an animal. It is hard to tell when a dog is just a puppy if she will be the right one for the job. While Skidboot made thousands of public appearances in his life, he never had to deal with the crowds in such an intimidating manor. Aggie's pride themselves on Kyle Field being such a powerhouse of school spirit and we revel in our bands excellence. That is very intimidating to a dog. Skidboot dealt with much more manageable and subdued crowds such as Jay Leno, Animal Planet, and the State Fair of Texas were crowds were much quieter and not in as close quarters.

I am not trying to look down on David, he is EXCELLENT at what he does. I just would like to point out that this isn't as simple as many would like to make it. I know the E-2 boys will do a very will thought out and excellent job selecting our next mascot. They love Reveille VII, the tradition of Reveille, and this university so much that they dedicated four years of their lives towards taking care of her. They want what is best for the university as a whole.

Thanks and Gig 'Em.

Originally posted by

Andy Luten '05

Any of you "the way it used to be people" really want us to use the scientific process of hitting a dog on the road to select our next mascot?

Like it or not, Reveille is an American Collie now. That's the way it will most likely be for a long time.

Only if the students ALLOW it to be so. The students of A&M should remember, they pay for just about everything that goes on on at A&M. If the students rise up in masses and more than 50% of the student body want another dog for a mascot, then it will have to be so. If noone reacts or creates a reaction, then the administration will take the silence of the student body as a "nod yes" for another collie.