Buckaroo Texan Blog

  A Ranch roping clinic is coming up on February 26 & 27, 2011 at Elkanah Ranch,  518 FM hwy 107, Gateville, Texas.  Contact Jeff Spooner at 254-383-4651 for more information.   This style of roping is typically used at brandings.  It is a calm, loss stree way of handling cattle.  It is not about speed.  It is about Horsemanship, skill and finesse.  Clinic includes ranch rope with two hondos, dinner each day,numerous basic head and heal shotts, practice on roping dummy, roping from your horse and how to handle the cow after it has been roped.  Sunday afternoon concludes with a small competition with prizes paid out.

The weekend of December 3, 4 and 5^th,    was an exciting, educational and entertaining packed three days.  Buck Brannaman, Martin Black, Doug Jordon and Melanie Taylor all did a terrific job of tying proper horsemanship, that is fitting to the horse, together in their different areas of horse handling expertise.

Buck and Martin started each day with working with 2 colts to get them started over the 3 days.   Buck and Martin each have a different style but you could see how the approach was fitting for the horse they each worked with.  All the horseman repeated many times over the weekend, how there are so many ways to approach the horse and you are not wrong, but it is in your presence, feel and understanding of the horse, if you are to be effective and fitting.  Buck and Martin took turns commenting on what was happening with each colt as they worked along. It was amazing what the colts were doing by day 3.  Again, for a lot of us, this work would take a few weeks or months, depending on our skill level and quality of time spent with the colt. Buck and Martin both commented on how that is all right.  Time is not an issue to the horse, but quality is.

Mid morning,  Martin worked a colt with high energy in a cow working situation he calls the A-pen.  The colt had 6 to 7 rides before this clinic.  Over the 3 days Martin, introduced this colt to a cow and used a little pressure and a lot of relief to teach the horse to look up the cow.  Martin explained about the flight zone and balance point of the cow and horse positions.   The quality of the overall movements and transitions of the colt  really changed over the 3 days as the colt learned the 3 basics in a situation that also taught him to think.  These basics being going, stopping and turning.

First session of the afternoon was jumping with Melaine Taylor.   Melaine had Mindy Bower commenting with her and they had two ladies on jumping horses working jumps as Melaine directed.     Melanie stressed how no matter your specialty, the basic training is the same.  Melaine had the riders remove the martingales, even though they are part of the dress code for show.  She  had the riders warm up with lateral work, then moved on to work over ground poles and jumps.  Over the 3 days the horses improved   in their quality, height and difficulty in the jumps.  It was amazing to see this progress.  Buck restarted the Red dun on day three then switched to the jumping saddle and got the red horse a lot more confident and jumping the jumps a lot more correct, without the need to refuse jumps and balk.   Doug Jordan and Martin Black joined in the fun of jumping their cutting horses and bridle horses as Melanie directed.  It was great fun for the horses to do something challenging and different and really entertaining and heartwarming to see the different disciplines jumping together.

 Doug Jordan had the next session over the 3 days working different levels of horses in training working the herd and cutting.   Doug was letting the horses build  confidence and develop their own thinking to work the cattle.

 The last session of each day,  Buck and Martin, did cattle work with a herd.  They showed different approaches to working the cattle for green horses and starting green horses roping.  They increased the difficulty level of the herd work and roping each day and Martin rode the last calf they tied down, up.   You had to be there to see that, what great fun.  Something the ground crew does in the Great Basin.

There are several ways to box the cow, or get control of a cow when working in an arena.   I will discuss 2 ways of boxing; (1) one is for a trained horse,  the strategy for the show ring and (2) for training a horse to box or hold a cow.

1.  SHOW RING STRAGEGY

Boxing the cow is a term that is common in the Working Ranch Horse event, Stock Horse events, Ranch Horse Versatility Classes and Stock Horse classes in Futurities.  The judge is looking for you and your horse to step up to the cow that has been turned into the arena and for the horse rider to take control of the cow at one end of the arena.   You get control of the cow and hold the cow at one end of the arena before taking the cow to other places in the arena, according to the type of class and the directions given by the Judge.   Ideally, when the cow enters the arena, after you have informed the gateman that you are ready for the cow, you will be at a distance from the gate and have your horse moving towards the cow.  The cow will see your movement and know you are there.  A cow does not always recognize a stationary object as something to be concerned about.  If you are stationary when the cow is turned into the arena the cow may not see you and ignore you when you do go to moving.    The horse rider should approach the cow with confident offense.   You will walk up to the cow and mirror the cow as it moves.  The horses’ head is positioned at the  cows’ shoulder to be in a neutral position.  When the cow takes off you will keep your horse in this position, but then take over the cow, by getting your horses’ head even with the cow’s head.  Most  cows will   duck their head slightly to prepare to turn and go the other way.   By keeping you eye on the cow, you are reading the cow and will be ready for any move the cow makes.  In the show ring you will stay right with the cow.   Point your horses’ head to a stopped cow and walk towards the cow’s head to get the cow to move.   By keeping you eyes on the cow and not your horse, will keep your position in the saddle to move with your horse any direction the cow goes.  Your horse will mirror the cow to show it has control of the cow and will keep the cow at one end of the arena no matter how hard, or how quick the cow moves or changes direction.     When you have shown that your horse has control of the cow, you will then be ready to move your horse behind the cow and follow the cow like a trailer hooked to the cow and push the cow to another area of the arena.   The boxing part of a cow working event lets you read the cow, lets you see how the cow responds to the pressure of your horse, will help you determine how much speed and turn this cow will have for the rest of your class.

2. TRAINNING A HORSE TO BOX THE COW

To train the horse to box a cow, you first have to be sure your horse is comfortable around cattle.  You need to ride your horse quietly around cattle until you feel that the horse is relaxed and attentive.  Depending on the horse, this may take a couple minutes to several sessions over several days to accomplish.

TRACKING CATTLE:  Follow a single cow around a pen or arena to help you and your horse to get used to the movement of a cow.  Follow at a far distance at first and get closer and closer as the cow slows down.  Anytime your horse has his ears forward and is looking at the cow, this is a horse try.  Sit very still in the saddle and go with you horse and be sure you have no pressure on the horse with your hands or legs.   When your horse is hooked on the cow (looking at the cow and following quietly) several times, reward the horse try by stopping and letting your horse rest.   Following cattle is also known as tracking.  The horse gets behind the cow and follows at a set distance as the same speed as the cow. 

TIGHTEN A HERD:  Put a small group of cattle in a round pen or small arena and practice pushing the cattle into a tight herd.  Walking your horse around and around the cattle teaches the cattle to honor your horse and look for the herd as a safe place to rest.   You watch for any cattle looking to walk or trot away from the herd. As you walk behind any cattle looking away from the herd, your goal is to turn them back into the herd.  Two track your horse away from the herd a step or two as you come behind a cow looking out of the herd and then walk towards the head of any of the cattle trying to leave.  This will make them turn and head back into the herd.  Keep your horse walking around the herd until the cattle will stay in a fairly tight group or herd in the center of your working area.  This is a good way to help you learn to “read” cattle.  Watch the body language of the cattle as you go around and around.  When you and horse are comfortable folding cattle into the herd, you can speed up into a trot around the herd.  It helps with the settling of the cattle and builds confidence in your horse.  Be sure to make your circle large enough that trotting does not disturb the cattle.

1. CUTTING OUT A COW:  When the cattle will stay in a herd, you can then enter the herd.  Ride through the cattle to split the herd into halves or thirds.  This splitting the herd will put the horse ride in position to drive a cow out of the herd.   After you have driven a cow out, keep you eye on the cow at all times and watch its movement.   Use your horse to step towards the cow to drive it away from the herd and encourage the cow to stay at a good distance from the herd by keeping you horse parallel to the cow on one side and parallel to the herd on the other side. 

BOXING THE COW:  This is where actual boxing the cow starts to take place.   You will use  two tracking away from the cow to keep your horse parallel and not too close to the cow.  When the cow stops, ride your horse past the cow, one step at a time until the cow turns away from you and looks to find the herd.  Let the cow draw the horse.  It the horse does not respond within a second, use your outside leg and inside rein to bring your horse back towards the cow to catch up with the cow.  After several repetitions of this, the horse will start to turn on his own and will not want to go past the cow.  He will start to develop a stop when the cow stops and wait for the cow to turn. The stop and turn by the horse on his own is what you are looking for to take to the show ring.  To help develop a good turn on your horse, you will back the horse a few steps, rock his weight onto his rear end, and then ask him to roll back over his hind legs so he is in proper position to beat the cow.   Most horses develop and realize how their position can stop and control the cow rather quickly, if the rider is aware of how to let the horse learn this maneuver.  Using a herd will let you cut and box a cow several times in working session.  Whenever you horse gives you a few good horse trys, be sure to reward you horse and take a break.

My training is in the Buckaroo Way and I offer consultation services to those who believe in partnership of horse and rider.  

 Honoring the horse and horsemanship through the western buckaroo way.

When we talk about the try in a horse, we are looking for a response to a request we have made.  A change in the horse, where he is looking, where his ears are pointed can be a response to an idea.  We are asking the horse to let an idea we have become his idea.  You have to ask, not make the horse.  The horse learns by searching for the answer and when he has a thought or movement in the direction we want we have to recognize that change with a release.  We need to break down our big picture and look for a subtle response and build on that  “TRY“  
1.  As a student of the buckaroo way do you read to find answers and then do what you have read?  This is recognizing the try in yourself.  When you and your horse have an area where you don’t seem to communicate, then you need to stop and think about that situation and try to figure out what is going on or maybe what is not going on.
2.  Do you watch good horse and rider partners and then go and practice to learn what you have seen? 
3.  Do you give your horse the chance to learn what you want him to do?
4.  Are you consistent with how you handle your horse every day, every moment you are around him, so he knows what he can expect from you and is comfortable around you?

Students of the buckaroo way know signs of a  horse try can be very very subtle.  Paying attention to this small detail every second you are around your horse, until you don’t have to think about it, will pay big dividends for your horse and rider relationship.

You will know you are developing the horse and rider partnership you seek when you are in the saddle and ready to head to the right and you notice the horse has his right ear tipped back at you, he is feeling of you and knows which way you are asking him to go before you ask.
As Ray Hunt would say “Practice does not make perfect, Perfect practice makes perfect”.

Jeannie

If you would like help in developing the try in you and your horse contact me.   My training is in the Buckaroo Way and I offer consultation services to those who believe in partnership of horse and rider.

 If you are a serious student of the horse or just like to watch this magnificent animal at work and play with his rider you don’t want to miss the 4 day clinic coming up March 26, 27, 28 & 29, 2010.  The place is Belton, Texas at the Bell County Expo Center.  
 Each day will start with Horsemanship One, promptly at 9:00am until noon.  This class covers basic manuvers every horse should know.  The skill and precision level of these basic manuvers determines how well each horse rider team can then achieve  more advanced levels of manuvers.  Each afternoon of the 4 day clinic will be Beginning Ranch Roping.  The horse riders will be learning ranch roping  skills and putting all their basics together and doing real ranch work with  60 foot  ranch ropes, learning herd work and working in pairs and teams to tie and doctor cattle, like western buckaroos.
 Buck’s clinics are intense study sessions with a lot of material to cover and get a good grasp of for you to then take home and work on.  I have been riding with Buck Brannaman for 14 years and it never ceases to amaze me the advances all  the participants and their horses make over the four days. 
This will be the 10th year I have sponsored Buck Brannaman in Texas.  It is always such an honor to have him come be with us for 4 days every year, he gives us inspiration, challenges and useful information that we will be able to use for the rest of our lives.  He gives us knowledge so that the lives of the horses we work with in the future can be better.  For more information on the clinic give me a call -evenings are best- 325-396-2461 or send me an email. 
Buck Brannaman is from Sheridan, WY and is world -renowned for his clinics, teaching horsemanship in the traditional vaquero style.  His type of horsemanship helps horse riders of all disciplines — barrel racers, ropers, trail riders, dressage riders, buckaroo ranch riders, endurance riders and others.  He helps you really dig inside yourself to find your core skills and develop them in a way that is fitting to the horse.  He bases his clinics on principles of communication and understanding, and living life so you aren’t at war with your horse or with other people.  Buck was the recipient of an honorary doctorate degree from Montana State University in May 2006. Buck is the author of several books, including “The Faraway Horses,” and “Believe: A Horseman’s Journey,” both written with William Reynolds.

My training is in the Buckaroo Way and I offer consultation services to those who believe in partnership of horse and rider.

Jeannie