Characters from Rosie’s Wild Ride

Meet the Real-Life Characters from "Rosie's Wild Ride"

Rosie & Oakley

Meet the real life Rosie and Oakley. Oakley is 5 1/2 years old and Rosie is 7 years old! Rosie is a type of draft horse called a Clydesdale. Clydesdale are on of the biggest breeds of horses in the world and are famous as the “Budweiser Clydesdales.” They usually pull wagons or carts and are known for their strength.

Rosie was born in Yukon, Oklahoma at Express Ranches. Oakley’s Dad, Ty, wanted to find a gentle horse for me and our kids to ride. He also wanted to experiment and see if he could turn a plow horse into a cow horse! We bought Rosie when she was 4 years old and Ty trained her to be a ranch horse. At first she was very unsure of the cows but she is very smart and after 30 days of training Ty took her to her first branding and she helped work the cows and calves!

She is very slow, sweet, gentle, reliable, dependable and is such a wonderful horse for the kids and I to keep us safe. She does not like to go fast and she prefers to stand still, walk or trot.

Thumbs

Thumbs is a rescue cat our ranch manager’s wife brought over one day. He is 7 years old. He has always been a tough ranch cat and he thinks he is the boss of all the animals.

He makes us laugh at his grouchiness. He always hisses, swats and chases off the other animals and always stands his ground. He will not share his food bowl and refuses to snuggle with the other cats or animals even on a cold winter night.

He has three extra toes on each paw, hence the name “Thumbs.” He also has a nub for a tail. His tail got caught in the fan belt under the truck and we had to have it amputated. He meows and wants attention but when you go to pet him after a couple of seconds he tries to bite you. We love him just the same though and the ranch wouldn’t be the same without his grouchy self!

Pete

Pete is the best dog I’ve ever had or been around. He showed up at the ranch two years ago on a cold March night. Our other two dogs started barking and woke us up. Ty went out to see what the commotion was all about and saw this big, stray dog. We didn’t want him to hurt any of our other ranch animals so Ty tried to run him out and told him to “Get out of here.” Ty was walking back to the house and the dog tucked his tail, lowered his head and followed him back to the house. We felt sorry for him so we put him in a pen with a bed, food and water.

Oakley and I went to check on him the next morning and he didn’t look scary but he looked sad and sweet. I decided to let him out and if he chased any of our cats or chickens or showed any aggression then we would give him to a friend or take him to the shelter. I let him out and he didn’t bother one animal. We took him on a walk and Oakley named him Pete and she told her Daddy we now had three dogs. His pads on his paws had been rubbed raw and he was so skinny. No on claimed him and he did not have a microchip so he became a part of our family. We don’t know how old he is.

At first Ty said no dogs in the house but Oakley slowly worked that. Then Ty said no dogs in the bed so Oakley made them a pallet on the floor and now he snuggles right up in bed with Oakley.

He is a black mouth cur which is the same type of dog as “Ol’ Yeller’ and their stories are so similar! He is so sensitive but ferocious, he knows no quit, he won’t back down from a fight but he is also very gentle, great with kids, loyal and he is very in-tune with our emotions.

Inspiration and Themes of the Book

This book was inspired by a real life situation. A phrase came from Oakley’s 4 year old mouth that really touched me. On this day she had never mounted Rosie by herself but today she decided to try. Excitement filled her eyes. I asked “Oakley, do you think you can get on that big girl all by yourself?” She simply said “What if I can?” No hesitation, no doubt, no fear, no “what if I can’t?” Aren’t so many of use afraid to try and fail instead of being curious about succeeding?

This book shares themes on dreaming big, finding a mindset of self-belief instead of self-doubt, and finding strength and your unique talents in your differences.

About Me, the Author

Hey ya’ll! I’m Paige and I grew up in the small town of Lancaster, SC where my family has lived for many generations. In kindergarten I decided I wanted to be a veterinarian one day because I loved animals so much. Growing up my life revolved around family, horseback riding, church, friends, swimming, soccer, school and playing outdoors.

I graduated from Clemson University Calhoun Honors College with a degree in Animal Science/Equine Business. I started working as a veterinary technician and a promotional model while trying to decide the best career path for me. I didn’t want to devote the time and money into attending vet school because I also wanted to be a stay-at-home Mama one day like my Mama. I applied for the position as NASCAR’s Miss Sprint Cup and got the job! I traveled the country and fell in love with broadcast journalism.

After this job I was cast on numerous television shows and modeled for Wrangler, Bass Pro Shops and other large companies. In 2014 I started working for RIDETV, an equine based television network. I moved to Texas and shortly afterwards I met my now husband, Ty Murray. I started work as the Fox Sports sideline reporter for a rodeo association and continued to travel the country.

Ty and I got married and I moved to Stephenville, TX to live on the TY Ranch, a cow/calf operation. I started rescuing and adding animals to my funny farm. I became a step-mom to Kase and then gave birth to my daughter Oakley in 2018. Being a mama is the honor of a lifetime and filled me with more purpose and love than I’ve ever felt!

We spend our days exploring the ranch, riding horses and taking care of our animals. I have always loved to write and a desire was in my heart to write and tell the stories of all the lessons growing up on a ranch is teaching our kids. Becoming and author is undoubtedly one of my biggest accomplishments and dreams! I’m so thankful to share life on the ranch with ya’ll!