Horse Training: Cutting Horses

Most horse owners prefer good cutting horses. In fact, some of them would even make up various reasons to prove that their horse is a good one. It’s hard to tell when a cow horse is a good cutting horse; this usually happens with inexperienced horse owners. To have a little idea about horse training cutting horses, you need to know the common myths about the animal.

1. A colt chases any animal (e.g. dogs) or human that goes into the pasture.

This is not a reliable sign to determine the potential of a good cutting horse. Colts usually are playful and your horse may not be acting as a cutting horse but simply playing or having fun with animals and humans. Humans and other animals (cow not included) look very much different from the cow and besides, colts don’t have riders to command them.

If you train a colt to be a cutting horse, it will immediately learn that cutting is not the same as playing. As a cutting horse, he needs to work. A good cutting horse will work cows with style, proper form, and precision. A horse that aimlessly runs through the pasture is not a good one. Most colts hate working and it is in their age to be playful. Certain horse breeds are inclined to do cutting work and so you need to choose the right colt breed. Take note of the dam and sire of the colt; if they were successful cutters, then the colt may follow the same course.

2. A colt shows no reaction when they see a cattle for the first time.

Although most horses are bothered or frightened to see other animals like cattle, certain horse breeds don’t get frightened easily. However, this is not an indication that it can be trained to be a good cutting horse. In most cases, good cutting horses react aggressively to the first sight of cows or they might be fearful at first, keeping the other animal at a secure distance. Cutting horses should be able to dominate cows or cattle. Millie Montana and Doc N Missy are champions when it comes to horse cutting.

3. The colt is foundation bred.

Certain horse breeds are great cutting horses but this doesn’t mean that they will also do well in competition cutting. A foundation bred horse is not as good as the well-bred cutting horse. Oftentimes, trainers find it hard to train these horses to do well in competitions because they tend to be slow learners and do things their way. They also lack style and athletic ability. It would be best to get a horse with strong bloodlines of cutting horses.

4. The colt will be handled by a great trainer for 6 months.

Horses are different and so is their learning pace. Some horses learn fast while others are slow learners. The length of the training is not an important factor. Cutting horses are trained until they reach the level of being an effective cutter. There are cutting horses that learn for only a year of training. If you want to join cutting competitions, your colt should start training early on.

Cutting horses still need good riders. Even if the horse is experienced and skilled, mistakes can be committed if the rider is inexperienced. Start horse training now so that your cutting horse will learn everything it has to know.