Obituary: Donald John Messling
Author: Family of Donald John Messling
Donald John Messling
Family of Donald John Messling
October 23, 1940 – November 29, 2025
Donald John Messling, age 85, passed away the evening of November 29, 2025, at home in Toston, MT.
Donald was born on October 23, 1940, in Prairie Du Chien, WI. He was the third child of William and Nellie (Whiteaker) Messling.
His childhood was spent in the hills of southern Wisconsin. He learned to hunt at an early age, which he enjoyed throughout his lifetime. His dog was named Bobbie and they were constant companions as Donald roamed the great outdoors.
In June of 1963, Donald joined the Army (327th Inf, 101st Airborne) because he wanted to jump out of planes. He was a member of an elite marksmanship group, went to Recondo school, then he spent one year in Vietnam, mostly on the front lines. During his time, he earned an Army Medal for Heroism, saving wounded men during heavy fire.
When he got back home, he returned to the dairy farm. He received a Vocational Diploma in Productive Agriculture in 1976. He also went to horseshoeing school.
He got married and had his only daughter, Nevada in 1975.
Donald did a number of jobs, from welding, riding in the stockyards, and guiding hunters on horseback in Idaho.
At his core, Donald was a horseman. He competed in rough stock, roping, and cutting. He went around the country learning everything he could from the best competitors of the day. He started breaking horses and instructing riders. He eventually ended up in Toston, MT. Besides training horses and giving riders lessons, he really loved riding in the mountains with his local ranching friends chasing cattle.
He met Carol Zirkle in 2000 in Toston, and they started the StockHorse training facility, where he focused on teaching horses and riders to work cattle for cutting and other cattle-related events.
Donald is survived by his wife, Carol Zirkle, and his sister, LuLu Belle (Messling) Lechnir. He is preceded in death by his parents, William and Nellie (Whiteaker) Messling, his brother, Roy Messling, and his daughter, Nevada Leigh Messling.
There will be no services.
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