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FAQ

When and where were you born?
    Brooklyn Naval Hospital, NY in 1945 during WW II. My dad was in the Navy. Baxter's birthday is the 2nd Friday of January every year.

Where did you grow up?
    Las Cruces, NM.
    
What were your interests and achievements in school?
    FFA president and reporter, senior class president, lettered in wrestling one year.

Did you rodeo at all?
    I rode bulls in high school and college.

What made you decide to become a cowboy?
    You either are one, or you aren't. You never have to decide.

Where did you go to college?
    New Mexico State University and Colorado State University, graduated in 1969.

What was your greatest struggle in college?
    Passing calculus and trigonometry which were required to apply for veterinary school.

How did education play a role in your life?
    Education taught me to read, and taught me how things worked.

How did education have significance later in your life?
    It allowed me to practice veterinary medicine.

What is the most unique animal you have looked at lately?
    A cow that had been snake bite on the tongue.

What is the most thrilling call you had to make as a vet?
    Looking at a cow that might have been rabid or one that might have had anthrax.

Would you suggest becoming a veterinarian to someone just graduating high school?
    It depends on what you find satisfying.

How did you go from veterinarian to poet?
    The last company where I was working as a tech veterinarian changed hands and let me go. I was doing "speaking" on the side and people just kept calling, so here I am.

What inspired you to become a poet?
    Just sort of an accident. I thought I was a song writer.

When did you start writing poems?
    In my mid-thirties.

When were you first published?
    First column was published in July 1980 in the Record Stockman, Denver, Colorado.

Who is your favorite poet? Favorite poem?
    Of the "dead guys" Australian poet A.B. "Banjo" Patterson who wrote "The Man from Snowy River".

Who do you admire - who has inspired you?
    My mother.

Who are some of the most influential people in your life?
    My parents, my Ag teacher (Rupert Mansell), my veterinary mentor Dr. Van Brimhall, my best boss John Basabe, and my entertainment friend and counselor, Red Steagall.

What would be your advise to someone interested in writing?
    Write about what you know.

What is your definition of a cowboy?
    Someone who can replace a uterine prolapse in a range cow in a three section pasture with nothing but a horse and a rope.

Are you married?
    Yes.

Do you have kids?
    Yes.

What are you currently doing?
    I make a living writing my column, making my radio program, through my TV programs, and selling my books, cds, dvds, etc.  I also run a few cows.

Do you have any funny stories or events that have happened to you?
    Yes, my books are full of them!

Do you have any "quirks?"
    I do not like Italian food, brownies or bananas, and I do not accept awards.

What would you say are your top 3 accomplishments?
    I haven't accomplished them yet.

How do you want to be remembered?
    As someone who didn't embarrass his friends.

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Baxter's Proverbs

  • Feb. 11, 2021

    Roadkill coats: "Make it a habit to pick up your rabbit, don't leave him to dry in the sun. For the sake of a garment, recycle your varmint, it's tacky to just hit and run!"

    On Twitter
  • Feb. 11, 2021

    I had a lady ask me what it meant when a cat starts tearin' up the upholstery, sharpens his claws on the Lazy Boy, and all the hair falls off his tail. I said, "Ma'am, that means it's time to get a new cat!"

    On Twitter
  • Feb. 11, 2021

    The vet'inary's laundry can disrupt a married life. It's enough to make you jealous of a truck mechanic's wife!

    On Twitter
  • Feb. 11, 2021

    If one becomes a philosopher by getting a degree in philosophy, what do you call someone with a degree in parasitology...?

    On Twitter
  • Feb. 11, 2021

    One of the greatest feelings in the world is to see a cow loose on the highway...and realize it's not yours!

    On Twitter
  • Feb. 11, 2021


    Excuses to keep an old cow that needs to be culled:

    "She'll be as good as new once the hair grows back."

    "My sister-in-law had a C-Section and we didn't ship her!"

    "I know she's barren, but look at how fat she is."

    On Twitter
  • Feb. 11, 2021

    Because farmers and ranchers choose to work directly with God, we get a closer look at life. We're not insulated from its precarious nature. In return we're exposed to the beautiful sunrise, the smell of rain, the quiet snow and satisfaction of saving a life now and then.

    On Twitter
  • Feb. 11, 2021

    Your dog is so happy to see you whether you're gone 5 minutes or 5 days! Can you think of a single human that is that glad to see you? If you're going to town and forget your keys, when you come back in your dog licks your hand and your spouse says, "I thought you left."

    On Twitter
  • Feb. 11, 2021

    Bad Cow: She'll kick when she can and smash his ol' fingers and never make him a dime. Tear down the corral, get choked in the chute and go out the wrong gate every time!

    On Twitter
  • Feb. 11, 2021

    A genius, smart as a tree full of owls, twenty foot tall with a bulletproof brain, a friend to all of his pals. So just like the story of Jekyll & Hyde, he's a wise man or a clown, a hero of fool, depending on whether the market goes up or down!

    On Twitter

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