Meet 'Doc': Buffalo calf now in training as new live WT Thunder mascot
CANYON — A special new Buff has joined the West Texas A&M University herd, the university announced Wednesday.
The WT Herdsmen have begun training Thunder XV — nicknamed “Doc” — while Thunder XIV continues his duties as the university’s live buffalo mascot, WT said.
“‘Mater,’ as we’ve nicknamed our current Thunder, is still a pretty sweet guy, but he weighs 1,340 pounds and is continuing to grow,” said Dr. Kelly Jones, clinical assistant professor of agriculture and adviser of the Herdsmen, Thunder’s student handlers. “At some point, it becomes a safety issue, so we put out feelers for any orphaned calves that we could adopt.”
Dr. Charles “Doc” Addington, a bison producer in Brownwood, offered one of his calves that had been abandoned by its mother, and the young calf — nicknamed both in honor of his previous owner and for a character in the Pixar film “Cars,” like its predecessor — arrived at the Thunder Lodge pen in late April. “The plan is to let him grow over the next 12 to 18 months and slowly start phasing him in,” Jones said. “Bringing him to events while he’s young helps with his training, because he’s exposed to lots of people and noises.”
WT said Thunder, one of only two live buffalo mascots in the United States, is run onto First United Field by the Herdsmen during WT football games at Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium and also makes a variety of other community appearances.
WT's first live mascots were purchased in 1922 from Col. Charles and Mary Ann Goodnight. The buffalo “Charlie” was mounted for posterity and donated to Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum. The live mascot program was revived in the 1970s, when the Herdsmen were formed. Today, the Herdsman organization is made up of 12 young men and women who serve as ambassadors for WT’s Paul Engler College of Agriculture and for the University at large.
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Meet 'Doc': Buffalo calf now in training to be next WT Thunder mascot
