Care continues on the Carr ranch
Whether they were born on the Pete Carr Pro Rodeo ranch or acquired in some other form, the team is always looking to have the best animal athletes in ProRodeo.
“ You’ ve always got to be looking to replace your weakest one with one better, whether it’ s bulls or horses,” said Billy Jones, the operations manager for the livestock firm.“ I want the animals to be built well, look like an athlete and look like they’ re going to buck. Whether they’ re bulls or horses, you want them to have a good confirmation.”
A horse typically reaches its athletic peak at about 10 years old, but there are some animals that excel into their old age. Big Tex bucked at the National Finals Rodeo at age 22; he had made 17 straight trips to ProRodeo’ s marquee championship.
It’ s hard to tell when it’ s time for athletes of that caliber to retire. Not every quarterback can play at a top level into his 40s. Not every bucking horse in their 20s can still help cowboys win NFR go-rounds.
“ We make the decision to retire these horses based on how they’ re getting along and how they look physically,” Jones said.“ Dirty Jacket still looks good. If I drove you out to the pasture and you saw Dirty Jacket, you’ d never guess that he’ s as old as he is.”
“ Like everybody else, it depends on how your body holds up. Dirty Jacket takes care of himself and doesn’ t do anything to put him in danger.”
Dirty Jacket, the 2014-15 Bareback Horse of the Year, was inducted into the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame alongside Pete Carr and the Parker County Sheriff’ s Posse Frontier Days and Rodeo. He has bucked at a dozen NFRs. His place in the hearts of those that care for him has solidified.
Mares are typically retired from bucking well before the geldings. The firm needs those ladies to spend their lives raising babies. Riverboat Annie last bucked at the NFR in 2013, and she’ s still raising colts in her 20s.
“ When you start breeding a mare after they get to a certain age, it takes a little bit out of them,” Jones said.“ As far as our bulls, if they haven’ t been to the PBR Finals or the NFR, I will sell them for breed bulls or something like that. For those that are our regular rodeo bulls, I’ ll sell them to somebody else when I see them slipping.”
There are some phenomenal athletes that never get the chance to retire. Deuces Night was just 8 years old when she was lost to colic. Outa Sight was 13. Jones was planning for Big Tex to be in the draw for a rodeo when he found the 24-year-old horse dead in the pasture.
Special animals, though, have a special place on the Carr ranch. They’ ll get their fill of good grain and lush grass as long as they can have it.
“ Real Deal and Big Tex are buried here,” Jones said.“ Dirty Jacket and Good Time Charlie are never going anywhere. There will be a select few of those that will live here until they die.”
It is, after all, their home.
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