10/08/2025
โโ๐ ๐จ ๐๐ฆ๐๐๐ช ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐," ๐ค๐๐๐ โ๐ ๐ ๐, "๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐ค ๐จ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ช๐๐ค ๐ค๐ ๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ช ๐๐๐ฃ๐. ๐ฝ๐ ๐ฃ ๐๐ฅ ๐๐๐๐๐ค ๐ ๐ฆ๐ฃ ๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐ค ๐๐๐๐ ๐ค๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ ๐จ๐ ๐ฃ๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐๐."
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Gorgeous George, yes, I named after the wrestler. My dad used to tease all my friends that would come over, by calling them all George. One day on the way to church in Oct 2000, mom and I saw a sign about the River Valley Paint and QH breeders sale going on at Swaims arena. After church we went out there. I asked mom how much money I had in my savings account. I really wanted a paint filly, but settled on a solid paint stud c**t because honestly he's all that I could afford & I wasnt leaving without one. My brothers paint mare Naconi, had a foal the spring before and the filly didn't make it. So George was her replacement. Mom called dad at the house and told him he better get out there to help me pick one out because I was going to come home with something no matter what. I bought George at 4 months old, when I was 15 years old. He was my first horse that I felt I could be proud of, before him my horses had been cheap/crazy/ugly. [sidenote: dad had gotten out of the horse industry years before I got the horse bug] As a yearling he won overall Grand Champion at the county fair, I was so proud, you would have thought he won at the world show. I had never won anything. We'd come a long way from my first horse Chico. And today, we've come even farther since George. George tried to cut his front leg off about 20 times in the first year of life running through fences. We had Dr Moon out more times than I can count. I got pretty good at treating wounds though & he got good at letting me! His worst injury was right before our rodeo trip to Durango and Dodge City, while we were gone he stayed with my Ag teacher. Mrs Turner doctored his leg multiple times a day and he healed up perfectly. He was also my first to raise and train myself and boy did I learn from my mistakes. It was like he had a teenage mother that didn't know what the heck she was doing! He had some quirks, that stayed with him, like barn sour and buddy sour and "we" LOVED to jump creeks & swimming in ponds. We ran everywhere ๐ Because I didnt know better. Those things weren't so helpful when he was toting the kids around later on. I hauled him to school & he was in my senior photo, and later in our engagement photos. I was running him in the 4 Gent position in the Dandie routine as a 3 yr old. And then he did pretty good in the small barrel jackpots for a couple years while I was in college. He went with me to the U of A, and he stayed in Fayetteville. During that time I used him in riding lessons for Laura, and got throughly spoiled by Susan & Mitzie. On our second date in 2006, Brad came over and he rode George and he jumped a creek. That was the first, last and ONLY time he rode George. ๐ In 2009 George was diagnosed with navicular, I rode him a little but mostly he was for all the kids to ride. He was quirky but he was safe. Even mom could ride him ๐คฃ He was a good boy and I dont think he bucked one time in his life. Clara rode him some when she was here. He stayed at Jillโs house as a companion to her mare for a while. Recently, in 2022-2023 I think Belle & Liberty rode him more than he had been ridden in years and he loved it. He spent a summer at their ranch and Bridgette spoiled him rotten with treats, carrots & daily showers with the water hose. And true George fashion he gave Liberty everything he had at the fair in 2023 and won her a saddle for overall high point. That was his last outing. He barely made it through the winter last year despite me doing all the things I knew to do for him. And I made the decision this week to have him put down while he was warm, happy and not in pain. Im so grateful for the memories and friendship Georgie boy.
