Working Ranch Horse

Much of Nebraska's horse industry is centered on ranching. These horses are often more adaptive to ranch skills than show ring competition. The Working Ranch Horse Program was developed to provide an opportunity for youth to focus on and receive recognition for horsemanship skills developed through ranch work.

Purpose of Class

1. Develop life skills, such as leadership, initiative, self-reliance, sportsmanship, respect, responsibility, appreciation, patience, understanding, safety, a love for animals, a humane attitude toward them, and other desirable character traits.
2. Provide opportunities for youth to learn and receive recognition for horsemanship skills developed through ranch work.
3. Challenge youth to do additional activities with their horses.
4. Allow youth to exhibit those horses whose strengths are more suited for ranch work and other activities that involve cattle handling. 5 Teach youth the proper ways to handle cattle with minimal stress, and to eliminate injuries, bruising, etc., of the cattle. This will promote quality assurance of the final product that goes to the consumer.
5. Enhance the career possibilities for youth wishing to work in a cattle handling position.
6. Challenge the participants to learn new life skills. These might include quick thinking, decision making, patience, understanding cattle and horse behavior, reaction times, proper attitude, anger management, sportsmanship, etc.
7. Teach participants to develop an attitude of teamwork between horse and rider.
8. Provide an avenue for participants to have fun, while training, preparing, and exhibiting their horses.

Note: Each class has a SUGGESTED Horsemanship Level Requirement. Each show committee can determine the minimum Horsemanship Level of the exhibitor, number of pattern obstacles, and type of cattle used. The exhibitor must be Level III to participate at the State 4-H Horse Show.

Tack and Attire

1. Refer to Western performance or timed event tack and attire requirements pages 17-26.
2. The 4-H armband is required.
3. Two hands can be used on the reins, regardless of bit or reins used.
4. At the judge's discretion, more credit may be given for the use of split reins and no tie-down.

Optional: Closed reins, chaps, protective boots, splint boots, skid boots or leg wraps, martingales/tie downs.

Prohibited: Unorthodox or severe mouthpieces, draw reins, cavesson nosebands, crops, quirts, whips, bats, or over and under ropes on the saddle horn. No ropes can be carried or used during the class.

CLASSES - RANCH HORSE ROPING

Dummy Roping (Level I)

Participants will rope the dummy steer from horseback. Each participant will be allowed 5 throws at the head and 5 throws at the heels.

Participants will be judged on the way they handle and position their horse (up to 5 points possible), on the way they handle the rope, etc. (up to 5 points possible) and for the catches made on the roping dummy according to the following system:

Ranch Roping (Level II)

Participants will enter a pen (approximately 1/3 of the arena) where 5 head of cattle will be waiting. Ropers will work with a helper or hazer. When the judge/timer drops the flag, the roper will rope as many head of cattle as they can within a 3-minute time limit. A legal catch will consist of any catch that goes over the head or horns.

Roper will only use one rope for this class. Ropers are required to use a breakaway hondo, and the free end of the rope is to be dallied to the saddle horn until the hondo breaks. At that point, the roper will recoil the rope and rope another animal.

The roper will be judged and given points in the following areas:

Advanced Ranch Roping (Level III)

The basic rules for the Ranch Roping class apply; however, the time limit will be shortened to 2 minutes, and the first minute will be catching the head and the second minute will be catching heels. The roper may change ropes between the head and the heels, if desired. The only change in scoring for the heels is that one heel will be worth 10 points and both heels worth 20.

WORKING RANCH HORSE

Class Procedure

Exhibitors will work individually. A course involving 4-7 obstacles will be designed and a diagram of the course will be posted. The exhibitor must move an animal through the obstacles as directed in the course pattern. If the exhibitor cannot­ complete an obstacle, they must move to the next obstacle in the pattern and may not return to the previously attempted obstacle. Exhibitors will be scored a maximum of 30 points for each obstacle completed. Animals will be drawn for the exhibitor. Animal will be sorted into the arena, and time will start when the animal enters the arena, or when the horse begins sorting the designated animal out of a group. Time will stop when the final obstacle has been completed.

Scoring will be based on the rider's skill, the horse's ability, and degree of difficulty of the animal drawn for the contestant. Although there is a maximum time limit, these classes are NOT timed events!Scoring will not be based on time used to complete the pattern.

Obstacles may include:

1. Sorting a designated animal out of a group
2. Driving the animal through an alleyway
3. Penning the animal
4. Circling the animal at a designated location in the arena
5. Holding the animal at a designated location in the arena 
6. Circling the animal in the middle of the arena
7. Turning the animal back along a fence
8. Weaving the animal through markers or barrels 
9. Putting the animal back into catch pen.

Suggested Time Limit: 2-4 minutes, depending on pattern course obstacles of seven or less. An announcement can be made to alert the exhibitor when time limit is nearing completion. Participants can accumulate points until the time limit runs out. When the time has elapsed, a whistle or announcement will be made, ending the run. The time limit is critical for the well-being of the cattle. This is NOT to be judged as a timed event. The judge has the discretion of blowing the whistle at any time if they believe the horse or the cattle are being mistreated.

Scoring System

The entry will be judged on:

1. The horsemanship ability of the rider (how they sit the saddle; how they handle the reins, the horse, and the animal; their ability to out-think the animal; their position in relation to the animal they are working; and their decision-making at each obstacle).
2. The horse's athletic ability, cow sense, responsiveness to the rider's commands, and overall temperament, behavior, and performance.
3. The degree of difficulty (disposition) of the animal to be handled through the course.

Scoring emphasis should be based on the horse maintaining control of the animal at all times, responsiveness to the rider's commands, exhibiting superior cow sense and natural cow working ability without excessive yelling, reining or spurring.

Scoring Point System

The judge will assign a score of 1-10 points in each of the 3 categories — Rider, Horse, Animal — for each obstacle or maneuver. 

The exhibitor with the highest total score will be determined the winner. In the event of a tie, the entry with the highest animal degree of difficulty score will be declared the winner.

The characteristics of a good working ranch horse are:

1. Good manners and temperament
2. Agile, athletic, smooth, having its feet under it at all times
3. A soft mouth, responding to a light rein, especially when turning
4. Head should be maintained in its natural position
5. Horse should show expression (appear to be interested and enjoying what it's doing)
6. Horse showing willingness to work
7. Ability to move cow in a precise pattern with little wasted motion
8. Work at reasonable speed and still be under control of the rider.

Penalties

The exhibitor shall be penalized for:

10 Point Penalties

• Horse turning away from the cow (turning horse's tail to cow)
• Horse biting or striking the animal in a severe manner
• Deliberate spurring or slapping with the reins in front of the cinch

Other Faults

• Hanging up or refusing to turn on the fence
• Exhausting or overworking the animal
• Running past the animal excessively, when trying to get the animal to turn
• Horse out of position
• Exaggerated opening of horse's mouth Hard or heavy mouth Lugging on the bridle
• Horse failing to watch the animal
• Nervous throwing of the head
• Dropping a rein
• Halting, hesitating, setting up (scotching) in anticipation of stops or turns when being asked to move forward freely

Disqualifications (No Score)

• Running over or knocking the animal down
• Excessive roughness
• Pushing the animal over or through the fence
• Fall of exhibitor
• Fall of horse Any horse that is out of control while working the animal, thus endangering the rider or the animal being worked

At the judge's discretion, a new animal may be awarded, based on the following criteria:

1. The animal won't leave the end of the arena.
2. The animal is blind, lame or sick.
3. The animal won't yield to the horse.
4. The animal is unmanageable.
5. The animal leaves the arena of its own free will (wild, fence-jumper, without being worked by the horse and rider).