Reveille is known as the First Lady of Aggieland and is Texas A&M’s official mascot. There are many stories as to how the first Reveille came to campus, but the most widely accepted tale has it that Reveille first made her appearance in January 1931. While on their way back to campus from nearby Navasota, a group of cadets hit a small black and white dog with their vehicle. They picked up the dog and brought her back to their dorm to care for her, but since pets weren’t allowed on campus, the dog was carefully hidden. But the injured pup quickly blew her cover; the next morning, when “Reveille” was blown by a bugler to wake the cadets, the dog went wild barking, earning the name we know her by today.

During the following football season, Reveille I was officially named the mascot of Texas A&M when she led the band onto the field. Reveille I died on Jan. 18, 1944, after 13 years as the mascot. She was given a formal military funeral at Kyle Field, including a 21-gun salute. All of the deceased Reveilles, including Reveille I, are buried outside the north end of Kyle Field, where they have a special scoreboard so that they can always watch the Aggies outscore their opponents.

Before naming Reveille II, there were several other unofficial mascots, such as Tripod, Spot, and Ranger. Reveille II, a Shetland Sheepdog donated by a Texas A&M graduate, made her appearance on campus eight years after Reveille I passed away. Reveille III was the first full-blood Rough Collie, and every Reveille since then has belonged to that breed. The most current Reveille is Reveille IX, who was introduced in May 2015. Visit reveille.tamu.edu to learn more about the current First Lady of Aggieland.

Originally Reveille was given free reign of the campus. However, since 1960, she has been cared for by a Mascot Corporal, a sophomore cadet in Company E-2. The Mascot Corporal is chosen from within this unit each spring, and Reveille lives with the cadet for that year; she goes to class with him or her, out on dates, and even home for the holidays. The Mascot Corporal, in turn, escorts her to all of her functions and Aggie engagements.

Miss Rev, as she is affectionately known on campus, is the highest-ranking member in the Corps of Cadets and wears five silver diamonds (the Corps Commander only has four). That means if Miss Rev falls asleep in a cadet’s bed, the cadet must find somewhere else to sleep since she outranks him. Tradition also dictates that if Reveille is in class and barks, the professor should end class because Miss Rev is bored.