Baxter the Bobcat

When I saw the “Pets and wildlife that matter to Hurst” theme for a mural contest, I knew I had to at least try to submit an entry for, quite possibly, Hurst’s MVP(et).

He’s actually much more than a pet; he spends his days serving hundreds of people, big and small, during his 9-5 job and I don’t know a happier, more helpful soul.

An English Creme Retriever, Baxter was born on November 18, 2021. Soon, he began to show signs of being very special and was handpicked to begin comfort dog training. But not for the typical reasons or in the typical settings. Baxter was going to go where very few puppies had gone before: school.

As an HEB ISD parent going on 10 years now, we’ve had more positive experiences with our three boys at Bell Manor Elementary than I can name. Much of its success lies in the incredible leadership of Principal Keri McCarty, though.

She has brought energy, ownership, fun, clarity, and excellence to her 800 or so students and their caregivers. And no matter if it’s pouring buckets or hotter than the surface of the sun, you’ll find her at the head of the drop off line making sure the first face students see is a welcoming, smiling one. So it shouldn’t have come as any surprise when we started hearing whispers that Keri was doing the unthinkable.

I frankly thought the rumors were false. No way could something that wonderful be true. But on the first day of school as I dropped off the boys and saw a white, wagging fluff ball addition to the carline, I was never happier to have been so wrong.

Keri and our speech therapist, McKayla Morton had seen a specific need in Bell Manor and thought they had a unique solution, but one difficult to achieve. They did research then wrote and proposed a grant for one of the very first school comfort dogs in the nation. Amazingly, it was accepted and Baxter began his training.

To witness first hand, though, a comfort dog in an elementary environment has been incredible. Baxter does more in a day than most adults accomplish in a month and is always happy while he works. He wears many hats and is ready to help wherever he can.

You can find him in the drop off line on the first week of school providing a happy, disarming presence to anxious kindergarteners. He’s often in the PALS classroom helping special needs  students learn on their communication devices.

He shows up ready to help with a hug after a tornado drill, a paw-five during a pep-rally, show off his halloween costume, share his birthday treats, and provide a calming presence to any staff or student having a rough day.

When I had a meeting at the school last week and was filling out some paperwork, I felt a warm thump on my foot only to look under the table to see Baxter already fast asleep on my boot. (I stalled as long as I could on those forms…)

It’s not as easy as he makes it look, though, and some days are harder than others. He has his hair and ears pulled and tugged, is awoken from hard earned naps to help deescalate  a tantrum, and is sometimes called off campus for big, heavy things. That happened recently when we parents were all alerted to a bomb threat at Central Jr. High. Once the kids were securely evacuated, we were directed to the Pat May Center to pick them up. It was cold, the line was 2+ hrs long, and parents were feeling all kinds of things from anxiety to anger as we waited and waited to wrap huge hugs around our too-cool teens. I was amazed at how well the staff and police lead us through that process, but emotions were high.

McKayla had gotten word of the incident, grabbed Baxter, and they raced across Pennington parking lot. As a psychiatric nurse, we were taught how animals can often bridge the various gaps made my trauma, fear, anxiety, disability, injury, or accident in ways no human can tread.

That was Baxter in-action that scary day as he singled-handedly worked the anxious crowd and helped calm parents, students, and staff with a wagging tail, wide smile, and big love. You could feel the mood ease in the room because of his singular ability to defuse tension as I believe only he could.

Baxter does so much for our school and community and cares very little about thanks. He’s happy to curl up on his little blue couch with a half-chewed stuffy until he’s called upon again. But oh, how I’d love to see him get a little recognition he deserves. one as one very “good boy” whose care touches more lives than he could ever know.