Why do people think that cowboys

Question

use cruel,hard handed and abusive tactics when training horses,do people watch too many movies and believe them as fact?or are they just uneducated in the cowboy way of life and living with our friends and work partners.

Answer 1

I thought cow boys were fictional...JK.....Ive never thought that before.

Answer 2

I ride English, and I used to think it was somewhat true.

You see badly run rodeos, where 'cowboys' are hurting horses and calves, and it makes you sick to your stomach. Then you hear stories of them tying horses heads to their side for thirty minutes to loosen them up, using harsh bits, and injecting their tails with alcohol to make them lay down.

It happens in every discipline.

I know more now, but there are many more drugstore cowboys than real horsemen.

Answer 3

Ignorance......

If you stop and think about it, A cowboys number 1 partner is his horse. A true cowboy doesn't beat his horse he respects it as his equal. It is a partnership. Now I am talking about a true working cowboy, not a wanna be with brand new shiny boots thats never seen a pile of horse sh*t. Or a new cowboy hat without a sweat stain. Give me a real cowboy over a city boy anyday.

You told us about the horse waiting to be saddled in the morn......lol.

How about a horse that knows his work is done and takes you straight to the hitchin post and stops right where he should be and turns to look at you as to say...good job ...get off. Mine does this and it puts a smile on my face every time.  

Answer 4

I don't know any cowboys, only country people no one who would intentionally abuse an animal

Answer 5

I totally agree with you. I've read so many questions on here about not using "cowboy methods". People watch way too much tv.

I infact am a "cowgirl" I guess you could say. I ride western, work on a farm, etc. I don't use abusive, cruel ways to handle my horses. But in no right will they get away with something they aren't allowed to do.

Answer 6

they are uneducated of the cowboy way of life

i thinks its just what the old time movies say

-k

Answer 7

when they brand cattle they burn there skin they take really hot metal and hold it on there skin for a min or so and the horses and cattle dont like it it hurts them ive seen it done not in movies thats kinda abuse if it were anything else it would be abuse or crulity

Answer 8

People like to make stereotypes. Cowboys are cruel, hunters are snobs, jumpers can't ride, barrel racers are nuts + run their horses to the grounds.. I could go on and on.

In the end all of these stereotypes are wrong. Yeah I'm sure that there have been cowboys that are cruel to their horses and there have been jumpers that just race around a course and hang on, but for the most part these are just assumptions people come to out of jealousy and ignorance. It runs along the same lines as dumb blondes and angry red heads.

I really wish people would quit stereotyping people. In the end all it does is hurt everybody.

Answer 9

i dont know why but most people!

*hope i helped!

~horse lover~

Answer 10

No,they are not cruel at all, it may seem that way to people that never ride, or as you say go by what they see in movies...

the cowboy on a ranch, he treats all horses as though are royalty.

they do this for a living, and I have seen one of them ever mistreat a horse, while trying to gentle it, or green break it, or a total ride break.

a lot of horses being broke do need a gentle voice and strong hand to break them, and some take longer,.

my brother in Montana, has a horse and cattle ranch, they are not cruel at all when breaking horses, and his cowboys have been with him over 10 yhrs now, all of them..they are terrific at breaking horses, and it sure is fun to watch, oops off he came, right back on, no hard feelings and does be mean to the horse for throwing him.

and the way they break a colt to bridle, then when ready for saddle breaking, man it is something to watch...it is better than sitting in the grandstands at a rodeo.

cowboys are not cruel or abusive while breaking horses...we have a lot of friends with horse ranches in Montana, Wyoming, none are rough on the stock to break them.

like you, can call Bullett, he comes to me, and I bridle him, Bo, my Newfoundland and he are great friends, Bo will hold the bridle loose in his mouth till I get saddled up, and Bullett will let him...

horses are great, and yes, they will put a smile on your face every day, all day long.

Go ole time Cowboys, they are terrific, and the newer version of Cowboys, taint too bad either, their only problem is, they need more lessons on how to gentle break a horse like the old timers do it.

Answer 11

I guess if they have never worked on a ranch. They can only sit back and judge. That's  o.k. It's hard work and you need a far better horse then one that will jump a 2 foot fence and canter around arena for 15 min. It take a real horse and it takes real cowboys or girl to make a darn good cow horse

Answer 12

I Ride English and Western, I have never thought this except about a few cowboys, There are good and bad people in every discipline, I would not worry about this myth, as there are myths in every discipline.

Hope I helped!

Answer 13

Well back before people like the Dorrance brothers and Ray Hunt, horses were broken the rough way. Throw a saddle on the horse and let er buck. I know a few people now that still think that is the way. Throw a rope around their neck and jerk them around. I argued with my cousin about this on a yearling filly. He was jerking her around with a rope to get her to move. She was so frightened that when she got loose, she ran into the trees and wouldn't come out. I went into the trees and got her out using gentle pressure and release. It took a while to calm her. You can break a horse the rough way, but I don't think it is the best way. I learned as a teenager that you get better results without being rough. Back then most people were breaking horses the rough way. I think the movies project that image and if you see old pictures, horses were being broke like that. There are still people out there who do that, but the majority don't. Most of the people in this country are ignorant of horses and only know what they do from the media. In old westerns you will see horses treated this way, so that is all they know.

Answer 14

i dont believe that, i've seen many cowboys breaking in horses and some of their tactics are top notch. I think it has to do with rodeo's and that, that makes people get ticked off about cowboys, because rodeos are western and most cowboys ride western i think that is the issue but if you ask me i dont believe that at all about cowboys being bad trainers :)

Answer 15

I never thought that way and my first " horse training" came from a cowboy, my dad and my uncle who still farms and ranch.  Here its used as an expression, like they tried to cowboy the horse...Doesnt mean they were cowboys.  People well think what ever they think cant change their minds.  

Answer 16

A-FREAKIN'-MEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!... I hear ya there. I live in the great-over rated-state of Texas, the freaking birth place of the cowboy. Unfortunately there are many people here that believe training a horse involves exactly what your saying your(and me) are against. It's the dammed thought that sense Texas was the birthplace of the cowboy they oughta know everything  about training horses. But what I have learned is that there are toooo many Bubba's here. My grandfather was a true Vaquero(half Spanish half Modoc) and he stressed training a horse not to buck. I believe it has a lot to do with ignorace of the western world.

You might relate to this, a lot of what we learned in history in school is is the most basic and completly off the true facts of the event. Compaired to living in an area where a famous event took place and the true fact is way differnt than what we learned.

I am sure you like me have run into people who are experts at rodeo(they have never seen a rodeo) that say that they wrap barbed wire around the testicals of the bulls and horses.

Problem 1. To acomplish this on a bull you have to have a pair twice as big as the bull's

2. THEY USE MARES AND GELDINGS FOR THE HORSES.

A lot of this obscured thought comes from the east coast(not saying the farming comunitys) big citys who have no idea how freaking big this country is.

I could go on for days. I know I probably didn't answer your question, but like you it is a big pet peeve of mine.

Ps. Some of these people hear an '' Old Cowboy'' use old terms or over simplify something. And with today's gen2 hippie gerneration those over simplified terms seem cruel and mean when the ''Old Cowboy'' actualy assumes a pre knowledge of horses and training. I have heard some of the ''Old Cowboy's'' terms and they seem cuel but I know what they are getting at because I have a pre knowledge of training and riding and '' The true Cowboy Way''. Being a rodeo man yourself you oughta understand.

Edit- Bill. Exactly what I was saying. My grandfather died in 68 at the ripe young age of 92. He used the gentle way with his horses, and so did his father(True Vaquero's). I have learned both methods, but I like breaking gentle, its better on the horse and the body. But what I have learned, every horse and I mean every horse bucks. Its best for them to try it when you first try to get on and they learn its not fun. And the rider isn't going to hurt them. Of course this is after a lot of ground work. When I speak of training and I say I put 90 days on the horse, it means I put 90 days on their backs. That does not count the 90 days of ground work. I learned this from my father and from Bobby Ingersoll.

Answer 17

Not understanding Horses or even dogs for that matter.

God for some reason created them with a herd or pack mentality.

So, that's how you deal with them if you want success.

I thought it was ridiculous that my Horse acted happy when He did something right when he was getting saddle broke.

My lovely wife did all the training, I was just an observer and rider of my horse.

It was like a light came on !!!

My Horse " Needed" someone to be in charge or he would get upset at the prospect of trying to figure it all out correctly !

If the rider input I give him is not clear, he has anxiety.

Many Cowboys realize that they are looked upon to be in charge thus setting the rules.

What folks don't realize is that animals and Humans were designed to have rules so that we would see the benefit of behaving.

Animals especially Horses just accept it more easily because they experience the benefit of knowing who is in charge and what is expected of them !

I have learned, Don't frustrate your Horse, Dog, Child, Wife or Cat.

Be a man, Love your Herd, Pack or Family !

It's not Heavy Handed when it's done like Jesus trained you to do it !

If you really blow it your cat will mark up all your tools in the Garage !

EDIT: My Horse comes when I call Him !

Answer 18

I would rather have a "cowboy" work with my horse than a so-called suburban "horse trainer".  I went and seen clinton anderson, he used to work on ranches and does he beat his horse? no?  I would love to meet a cowboy :)  I live in michigan, cowboys here, lol!  I was in Texas for 2 months and let me tell you, no "cowboy" here in michigan can look that good in a pair of levis!  Just ignore what people say.

Answer 19

I only thought cowboys were hot...but they can chain me to the stable door and whip me anytime they like....LOL

joking people, just joking

Answer 20

Wonder how many of them ever had to 'walk home' without their horse?

My grandfather would have blistered my backside!  Then make me walk home without a horse.  A true cowboy knows that is one of the ultimate punishments that can be dished out.

Many simply have NO knowledge of what a true cowboy horseman is.  Only the 'sensationalized' clips that are shown on the media and youtube.  Or the rowdy drinking and fighting young uns after a rodeo.

I'll continue with my grandfather's 'cowboy way.'  It's good.  And I didn't have to spend money on 'specialized equipment' like a carrot stick.

Answer 21

The reality is that some are abusive, and some are not abusive.  Cowboys is not a personality trait...it is a category with all kinds of sub-categories.  I've known lots of cowboys over the years....some were the most abusive sob's I ever met.  Some were kind and gentle and wouldn't hurt a flea....and there were lots of variations in between.

The vaqueros didn't believe in roping cattle...in fact they were horrified by it and thought it was abusive.  When they came to Califonia from south america, the cattlemen from Texas did not adapt the vaquero methods because the vaqueros spent literally years to train each horse to perfection...that wouldn't have gotten the job done on the huge cattle ranches in Texas.Only a handful of vaquero methods made it onto the Texas cattle operations...cattle are an industry and things had to get done on a schedule.

  Many cowboys are highly educated horsemen to be admired and respected for their skills and methods.

The problem is stereotyping, and where in this world is there not stereotyping.  The vaqueros were true horsemen...and their name means cowboy....but they didn't rope cows. So, what makes a person a cowboy?  I think today if you ride western, half the world thinks you're a cowboy.  I don't believe all people believe that all cowboys use cruel and abusive methods....and if you want to educate people you have to give them something to learn from, or how will they know?

EDIT....I think worker is on to something!

Answer 22

Wow! I never thought that, just the opposite in fact.

However, television does seem to portray them as gruff alot of the time......but almost always, always good looking. ;)

Answer 23

Same reason why they think that all cowboys are uneducated, dirty, smoke-less spitting hicks that talk with a long drawn out twang. Hollywood either goes to two extremes- making cowboys seem so romantic because just "one" woman can tame him cause cowboys are like wild horses and when they meet this woman she makes him into a man OR they make them hard hitting I'm gonna pistol whip you off your horse while I've got my little stock pony racing a train John Wayne types.

Bad trainers come in any discipline. There's a reason why most good cowboys have nice, silent mounts that are able to by tied where ever they may go, and that's good training. If you go to any rodeo, you'll look at the team ropers, penners, tie down, and sorting horses and see them standing side by side quietly tied. These horse's didn't get that way because of harsh training- they got this way because of diligence, repetitous hours on hours training.