About Carla Jo Payne

Longhorns have been part of Carla’s life for more than 20 years. She is the breeder of famed longhorn Boomerang CP, whose females have brought in six-figure prices. And Carla knows her cattle. She’s a well-known longhorn show judge across the Southwest.

Carla’s West Texas upbringing instilled in her a love of the country and animals, especially horses. Her mama said the only time she cried was when they took her off her horse. No wonder she was a rodeo queen when she grew up! She got her pilot’s license at 16, then married a pilot.

In the rolling hills between Decatur and Gainesville, Carla found a ranch where she could nurture her passions of longhorns, flying and hunting. She shares her home with her Cessna 185 airplane, as her living space is carved out of her airplane hangar. Her hangar-home is filled with trophies for longhorn show cattle and airplane restoration. But the first things you notice are her big game trophies from hunting adventures. While her Australian shepherd dog, Shock, is good company, it’s that grizzly bear bagged in Alaska that scares the varmints away.