August 3, 2018
Spotted Demon sits in the Number Two spot in the PBR rankings going into the second half of the Unleash the Beast 2018 season. But he hasn’t been sitting idle during PBR’s summer break. In fact, he’s been racking up the numbers in the PRCA.
“He’s been out 4 times in the PRCA this summer ,” said Julio Moreno who co-owns Spotted Demon with Dallas Schott. “He’s scored three 47’s and a 48.”
Those scores would be impressive for any bucking bull. But they are even more incredible when you add in the fact that Spotted Demon is 10 years old.
“I got this bull when he was 6,” Moreno told us. “I’d had the wreck with Roy 4 years ago and Dallas Schott asked me if I was interested in some bulls.”
(Moreno’s bull Roy was a superstar with a PBR Championship Round average of over 45 points. Roy broke both front legs in a PBR event in 2016 and had to be put down. Even with the broken legs, the bull’s heart gave him the determination and strength to earn his highest score ever of 46.5.)
One of those bulls Schott offered was Spotted Demon. And he didn’t buck to Moreno’s liking.
“That bull needed to lose some weight. He moved like he was wearing tight fitting jeans,” laughed Moreno. “And he loved to eat.”
In order to get Spotted Demon to a weight that Moreno felt would allow the bull to reach his full potential, it was important to regulate his diet, feeding schedule and food amounts.
“I put him on my feed program – feed with vitamin supplements,” said Moreno. “I fed him in the morning by 8 and by 5 in the afternoon. I kept him on that schedule and I fed him limited amounts. It took the weight off. But it made him mad. He’s a talker. He’ll let you know how he feels.”
The results were dramatic. In 2014, Spotted Demon’s Pro Bull Stats (PBS) were 40.792. Then he got into Moreno’s program. In 2015, Spotted Demon’s PBS jumped to an eye opening 44.219. And this bull just keeps getting better with age. His average score for the 2018 season is his best ever at 45.04.
“I told Dallas,” Moreno related a conversation he had while watching Spotted Demon in Salinas, “that bull is not old. He thinks he’s young.”
According to Moreno, Spotted Demon bucks like a 6 year old and he attributes it to the way he feeds him.
“I feed good hay and supplements. And I feed at the same time every day. It may be hot, but I don’t feed him after 6 p.m. If he doesn’t get fed on time, he gets miserable.”
On the day of competition, Spotted Demon doesn’t get fed until after he’s done working. And he doesn’t like it.
“If you walk by , he’ll let you know he’s mad. He stares at you and he’s got scary eyes,” said Moreno. “He’s a man that wants to have his groceries on time.”
But, in spite of his bad mood about his feeding schedule, Spotted Demon is good in the chute.
“He’s a bull the riders want to get on. He makes me think of Bushwacker. He comes out and bucks. He kicks way up and he’s STRONG,” said Moreno proudly of his contender for the 2018 PBR World Champion Bull title. “His best trip is to the right, but he went left in Salinas and was named Bull of the Event. Which ever way he goes, he stays that way.”
The riders may like to get on Spotted Demon, but they don’t have a lot of success. In 60 outs, there have only been 3 rides on the bull – all of them round winners.
And Spotted Demon knows he’s good. He’s a proud bull.
“I walk him up and down the alley way in one of my buildings,” Moreno told about his routine with his bull. “It’s about 2 football fields long and we do it 2 times. That bull hollers at the other bulls and struts his stuff. He has a proud attitude.”
Moreno told us that even with all that attitude, Spotted Demon doesn’t create problems with his herd mates.
“He’s quiet with other bulls. He gets along with them in the pens.”
When approaching the subject of how long Spotted Demon will stay in the game, Moreno has no doubt that Spotted Demon will let him know when he wants to retire.
“He will tell me. There are some days he just doesn’t feel like working hard and I can see it when he gets on the truck. He’s like a kid that doesn’t want to go to school. So he will let me know when he’s done for good.”
Moreno will accept Spotted Demon’s decision when the day comes. But he hopes that before then, Spotted Demon can pull off the near impossible – winning the title of World Champion Bucking Bull at the age of 10.
by Terry Lidral
for Bucking Stock Talk Magazine
Author: Terry Lidral
Terry Lidral is a western writer/journalist who lives in Idaho. She is the publisher and editor of the online magazine Bucking Stock Talk and the online magazine Western Living Journal. Her publishing credits include Storyteller for Real American Cowboy Magazine, writing feature articles for Humps N Horns Magazine as well as a wide variety of national and international web sites, historical magazines and news publications. She is known for her "up close and personal" profiles of celebrities and industry moguls such as NPR's Tom Bodett; PBR's Wiley Petersen and D.H. Page, PRCA's Sammy Andrews, Cindy Rosser and Julio Moreno to name a few. She has been applauded for her way of making a personal connection between her readers and her subjects. She indulges in her love of rodeo by serving as an associate board member for the Caldwell Night Rodeo. She is also an accomplished trainer and handler in dog agility. Her shelties Amelie and Milo are titled in NADAC, USDAA and AKC.
Nice to see a tremendous bull getting his due (not to mention the breeder)! Really enjoyable article!