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Paul, A Coast to Coast Equine Hero

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By Janis Blackwell 

Outside the historic town of Denison, lives a well-built, solid white gelding named Paul. Paul is owned by Joy West. Many people may recognize that name as one of the organizers and the manager of the Christian riding group the Glory Riders. The Glory Riders were formed by Joy and her sister, Jan Lobban, of Nocona, in 1989. Originally, the group rode horses of a variety of colors but soon decided to represent the Lord and the scriptures from Revelation 19 that they portrayed in their arena presentation, they should be riding white horses.

Consequently, they set about to make the change and began looking to buy quality white horses. One of the sisters’ goals was to always ride good looking horses, and they would be a skilled, professional performance the cowboys would not view negatively as just slowing down the rodeo. They accomplished that in spades. Many cowboys would look forward to their performances, stop the preparation for their own events and make their way to the arena to watch them.

Word got out that Joy was looking for good-looking, good-riding white horses. At a rodeo in Oklahoma City in 1994, a friend told her of a team roping horse in Texas that would fit the bill. When Joy contacted the owner, he said that he really didn’t want to sell the horse and wondered why she wanted him. When she explained the mission of the group and that they acted out Revelations 19, the owner said, “Oh, I know about the Glory Riders, and I’ll sell him to you for that reason.”

To read more pick up a copy of the July 2018 NTFR issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.

Abigail West on Paul and ready for a performance. (Photo courtesy of Joy West)

Landry West riding Paul. (Photo courtesy of Joy West)

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Equine

The Danger of Lower Limb Wounds of Horses

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By Garrett Metcalf, DVM

It is common for horse owners to have a horse with a wound or laceration at some point in their life. Sometimes small lacerations can be perceived as benign, inconsequential problems that do not need immediate veterinary attention and are managed by the owners or trainers initially. Unfortunately, these simple-looking wounds can involve very important anatomical structures that can lead to serious infections that can be life-threatening or, at best career-limiting, for the horse.

Large wounds tend to get all the attention from owners or trainers because when they occur they are so obvious and visually appalling that medical attention is sought almost immediately. Those types of large wounds can be devastating, but they often involve the upper body regions of the horse, which heal better and often don’t involve structures such as joints or tendons.

To read more, pick up a copy of the March issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.

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Equine

A Rodeo Photographer’s Journey

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By Phillip Kitts

Have you ever wondered what the rodeo looks like for contract personnel in the winter?
This month we will look at what the winter months look like from the rodeo photographer’s perspective.

To understand the time and demands that go into a career as a rodeo photographer, let’s start at when the season gets busy. Not all rodeo photographers work the same. There are many varieties in their career field. They can vary from the few weekends here and there to the full-timer who travels more than 30 weekends a year.

The full-timer that spends most of their year working usually hits the road in late winter. Yes, the winter months are slower but the photographer who has cemented themselves into the field usually books a few during late winter.

Rolling into the spring it begins to get busy. Depending on the photographer, spring can start with an every other weekend type schedule all the way to every weekend through the summer. In 2023 there were photographers that had 20-plus weeks straight going from rodeo to rodeo.
When late fall rolls in things begin to slow down, even for the go-getter who books everything they can.

To read more, pick up a copy of the March issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.

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Equine

Where Legends are Made

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By Krista Lucas Wynn

The format of the American Rodeo, now known in its entirety as the American Western Weekend, has changed quite a bit throughout the years. The inaugural American Rodeo was held in 2014 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. It is now held at Globe Life Field, across the street, with two full days of reined cow horse, cutting, reining, and rodeo competition.
Rodeo cowboys and cowgirls have been working to qualify for the 2024 event since last January. It is a long road to the American, starting with qualifier events all over the country. If a competitor wins money at a qualifier, they then advance to the regional finals in Las Vegas, Oklahoma City and Lexington, Ky.

Then, the top five from each event move on to the Contender Finals in Abilene, Texas, Feb. 10. There, the field will continue to be narrowed down to five in each event to compete at the American rodeo.

To read more, pick up a copy of the March issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.

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