A cutting horse is a

stock horse A stock horse is a horse of a type that is well suited for working with livestock, particularly cattle. The related cow pony or cow horse is a historic phrase, still used colloquially today, referring to a particularly small agile cattle-herdin ...

, typically an

American Quarter Horse The American Quarter Horse, or Quarter Horse, is an American breed of horse that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name is derived from its ability to outrun other horse breeds in races of a quarter mile or less; some have been clocked at s ...

, bred and trained for

cutting Cutting is the separation or opening of a physical object, into two or more portions, through the application of an acutely directed force. Implements commonly used for wikt:cut, cutting are the knife and saw, or in medicine and science the scal ...

, a modern equestrian competition requiring a horse and rider to separate a single cow from a herd of cattle and prevent it from getting back to the herd. One of the desired qualities in a cutting horse is "cow sense," described as an innate ability to read a cow, eye to eye, in anticipation of each move. The cutting horse has its roots in the historic cattle ranching industry, where horses with specialized cattle-handling skills were crucial for the work of the

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...

History

Cattle

ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...

ing in the

Southwestern US The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, N ...

was first introduced by early settlers in the 17th century. By late 19th century, cattle trading was an industry; thereby making cutting horses an indispensable tool of the trade. Large herds of cattle grazed freely on the open ranges, and any strays that wandered off would typically join the herds of other cattle ranchers. As a result, cattle roundups became an annual or semi-annual routine. Cowhands kept a

remuda A remuda is a herd of horses that ranch hands select their mounts from. The word is of Spanish (language), Spanish derivation, for 'remount' i.e. "change of horses" and is commonly used in the American West. The person in charge of the remuda is ge ...

of horses whenever they traveled, with some horses having specialized skills to ensure they had the right horse for assorted herding jobs. Horses that showed a unique awareness of cattle, a kind of wariness with ears perked and eyes focused on the herd, were the elite members of the remuda. Horses with this "cow sense" helped separate one or more cows from a herd, allowing cowboys to finish their work quicker and easier. Ranch hands held informal competitions to see who had the best horse, which also added a measure of fun to the work. Over time, many large cattle operations were either sold to developers or divided into smaller farms and ranches. Mechanical devices, such as

squeeze chute A cattle crush (in UK, New Zealand, Ireland, Botswana and Australia), squeeze chute ( North America), cattle chute ( North America), standing stock, or simply stock (North America, Ireland) is a strongly built stall or cage for holding cattl ...

s, eliminated the need for cowboys on cutting horses to separate a single cow from the herd for routine maintenance such as deworming, spraying, and annual vaccinations. Motorized vehicles, such as ATVs, trucks and in some cases helicopters, replaced horses for overseeing and rounding up cattle. In many situations, modern equipment can locate and move a herd of cattle much faster using fewer ranch hands. Large ranches in the 21st century have come to depend less on stock horses for cattle roundups and routine livestock handling; however, some ranches continue to use horses for various reasons.

Competition

Like other ranch disciplines, such as roping,

reining Reining is a western riding competition for horses where the riders guide the horses through a precise pattern of circles, spins, and stops. All work is done at the lope (a version of the horse gait more commonly known worldwide as the canter), o ...

, and various other Western stock horse events, cutting evolved during the 20th century from being a ranch necessity to a sporting event held in horse show arenas. The 1919

Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock Show The Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo (formally the Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show) is the oldest continuously running livestock show and rodeo. It has been held annually in Fort Worth, Texas since 1896, traditionally in mid-January throu ...

in Fort Worth, Texas marked a milestone as the first recorded cutting horse exhibition. Cutting was established as a competitive annual event the following year. In 1946, the

National Cutting Horse Association The National Cutting Horse Association (or NCHA) is a non-profit equestrian organization headquartered in the US. Their primary purpose is to promote and sponsor cutting events.Dublin, Texas Dublin is a city located in southwestern Erath County in Central Texas, United States. Its population was 3,654 at the 2010 census, down from 3,754 at the 2000 census. The town is the former home of the world's oldest Dr Pepper bottling plant ( ...

References

{{Reflist Cutting (sport) American Quarter Horses