Of all of the animal celebrities at the 2010 Adequan Select World Championship Show – Harley D Zip, Majestic Scotch, Larks Happy Days, Irish Whiskey Mix, just to name a few – there was one other four-legged celebrity that exhibitors and their hangers-on were clamoring to see: Cracky-the-Squirrel.

Cracky-the-Squirrel - Few good luck charms have an entourage. (Scroll down for the Journal's slide show.)

For those of our readers who have yet to hear about Cracky and “his ways,” let us fill you in: Cracky is a 5-inch-tall ceramic squirrel purchased for $1.25 by AQHA Professional Horseman Lainie DeBoer of Forest Lake, Minnesota, and her exhibitors at a Lowe’s in Tulsa, Oklahoma, three years ago. Shortly after Cracky joined the traveling team, things kinda began looking up

“Someone snuck Cracky into someone else’s bag (as a joke) and then we had, like, the best show ever,” Lainie says. “Then, we took him with us to (All American Quarter Horse) Congress, and we had the best Congress ever. Then, we were at the (AQHA World Championship Show) and had a great World. Then, we were all, like, ‘It’s the squirrel!’ ”

From then on, Cracky was part of the crowd. The show photographers even have a special pedestal for Cracky to sit on in all of the “win” photos.

“I have 10 clients that I train, plus I catch-train several others – and come to think of it, I might have gotten those exhibitors because of Cracky,” Lainie says giggling. “They actually asked, ‘Do we get Cracky even if, like, you’re just helping us?’ ”

The chants that the Cracky-addicted exhibitors say prior to entering the arena include:

“Cracky, Cracky, no denial,

Help me make it to the finals.”

“Cracky, Cracky, hear my plea,

Win that pretty globe for me.”

“At this stage, we say, ‘Why not?’ We work really late hours, and we work hard. Why not have a little fun and get caught up in all of this? It just keeps things light.” Lainie says. “I’m a big believer in rituals, so going up to Cracky and petting him as part of your routine – and his paint is getting worn off from all of the rubbing – in getting ready for a class can’t be all that bad.”

In three short years, Cracky has gone from clearance-shelf yard art to horse-show celebrity.

“Strangers drop things off for him,” Lainie says, as she pulls items out of a quilted bag that has Cracky’s name embroidered on the side. “Someone brought him a little scarf so he doesn’t get cold in the winter. One of our clients brings him plastic nuts. He has a ‘bodyguard’ dog. He (Cracky) likes the attention.”

Cracky even has his own Facebook page.

The American Quarter Horse Journal is on-site to bring you full coverage of the 2010 Adequan Select World, including daily slide shows like the one below. (Click on the photo to read the caption.)

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