If you’ve ever wondered what 14-year-old cowboys do in their free time, it may be shooting armadillos to keep the horse pastures hole free or chasing after the ranch goat “Baaatman” on foot while swinging a rope.
At least, if you’re Dugan Caldwell this might be true. This fun-loving young man is a team roper and budding horse trainer in Wynnewood, Oklahoma. When not riding or roping, Dugan is the drummer at his family’s church, First Baptist of Wynnewood, (a role he has held since he was nine years old) and also plays the guitar. He is active in FFA, shows sheep, likes to fish and hunt, and helps on his grandparents’ cow calf operation.
Both cowboying and music are in his blood–his mom has worked for several different ranches doing everything from assisting performance horse trainers to managing breeding operations. As a child, his mother remembers evenings sitting around playing instruments with her family rather than watching television. Today, when she and Dugan are on stage at their church with the praise and worship band, her husband Tony is bringing the music to life by working the sound system.
His parents introduced Dugan to both these passions at an early age. When Dugan was four years old, they bought him a mare named Precious. He started to get a feel for the saddle on Precious and had a trusted mount to enjoy alongside his family. As he got older, he began riding different horses such as a gelding named Tonto at his grandfather’s ranch.
As his journey of horsemanship has progressed, Dugan has been able to draw on the wisdom of his family, and also relied on insights from family friends and neighbors. Plus, when all else fails, there are always YouTube videos and practices to be enacted with trial and error depending on the needs and quirks of the specific horse.
While Dugan had some experience dragging calves and riding around cattle, he’d never done much roping until a few years ago when Tony and Angie Graves of the neighboring Graves ranch invited him to join their Monday night team roping and bible study. The group of men in this weekly roping began working with Dugan and supplementing the foundation he gained from his grandfather to help him develop his form as a header as well as providing different horses for him to ride. A Palomino named Rescue that belongs to Steve Graves has been his ongoing mount for many of his roping adventures and has recently been complemented by the newest member of the Caldwell family: a bay gelding named Remi.
Two Christmases ago, Dugan’s parents purchased this special gelding from Tony and Angie Graves, who bred and branded him on their ranch. The gift was a complete surprise to Dugan, and has sparked in him a new interest in horse training as he and Remi build their bond in the round pen and arena.
The start of their training journey together had its challenges. Then one day Dugan asserted himself and the dynamic changed. Now, the two have clicked. Remi is a thriving three-year-old, and Dugan can envision a future full of adventures together. Dugan’s willingness to expose Remi to new situations and guide him through them has made a tremendous difference. He’s been able to ride Remi bareback while cracking a bullwhip off his back and haul him to some of the ropings nearby for additional exposure. He hopes to soon be dragging calves off Remi and is excited for them to learn together.
Most importantly, Dugan is enjoying the journey of introducing Remi to the world and in the process is continuing to grow as a roper and a young man. As he said with a grin, if he didn’t team rope, he’d just do something else with a rope like drag calves. For the love of horses and ropes, that kind of enthusiasm is always encouraging to hear, and this well-rounded young man has a bright future ahead in the arena and the community.
