The Way We Were
– And Mean To Be
by Kathryn Hubbell, APR
As I was out walkin’ one mornin’ for pleasure
I spied a cowpuncher a-ridin’ along
His hat was throwed back and his spurs were a-jingling
And as he approached, he was singin’ this song
Whoopie-ti-yi-yo, get along you little dogies
It’s your misfortune and none of my own
Whoopie-ti-yi-yo, get along you little dogies
You know that Wyoming will be your new home.
It would be surprising if most people remembered that old
cow-poke song anymore; it seems to have faded from our collective memory the
same way the Old West seems to have faded, giving way to subdivisions, box
stores, and elegant dude ranches where a horse’s only job is to safely ferry its
rider from barn to trails and back.
Used to be, driving around Montana as I did recently, or
just about anywhere in the West, you’d get a bit delayed because there were
maybe 100 cattle moseying across the road, guided by a few cowboys who looked
like they’d stepped out of a Gene Autry movie. Used to be, horses had work to
do, jobs that were critical to opening and settling the West, and to running its
ranches and farms.
Now you zip alongside pastures at 75 mph, conscious only of
horses standing idly in a field, just sorta’ passing the time of day. If you
know where to drive off the Interstate, beyond the starter mansions and the box
stores, beyond the shopping malls and the pavement, can you still find traces of
the Old West? Can you still find horses working at any of the old, traditional
jobs?
Most certainly. A pretty big chunk of the Old West – 88,000
acres of it, to be precise – can be found just off Interstate 15 near the
southwest Montana town of Dillon, at the La Cense Montana Ranch. At first
glance, La Cense is an ordinary working cattle ranch, the kind that still does
exist in western states. La Cense is, in fact, one of the oldest cattle ranches
in Montana, with a history dating back to 1869.
But as one proceeds up the long, sloping drive between
green fields adjacent to the ranch’s headquarters, there seems to be an
uncommonly large number of horses out there, grazing. La Cense does more than
run cattle: it is now also the home of Registered Quarter Horses superbly
educated in the La Cense Method of Natural Horsemanship, and available for sale
to the recreational rider. In a mixture of high-performance synergy, these
cattle and horses, and the humans who ride and work with them, all help each
other produce a level of excellence you’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else.
At La Cense, everyone gets into the act. The 120 or so
young Registered Quarter Horses each receive over 750 hours of education in La
Cense Natural Horsemanship techniques, using a method developed by La Cense
which builds on the work of many superb horsemen and years of research. Natural
horsemanship involves the art of speaking in the language of the horse, rather
than controlling it through power and force. (The University of Montana-Western,
in Dillon, uses the La Cense Method in its accredited and highly popular Natural
Horsemanship equine studies program, and the method is also recognized by the
French Federation of Equitation.)
But the horses, from the beginning of their stay at the
ranch (they normally arrive as two-year-olds, who have roamed on open ranges
since birth), are exposed to the sites, sounds, and smells of a working ranch,
and are given work to do themselves. They are asked to do traditional jobs, from
helping drive cattle to winter pastures at the lower elevations of the ranch, to
working at branding time, to checking out the back country for a stray calf or
cow.
The synergy and the "looping back" in such a mix is
important. Highly educated horses are more adaptable and more flexible, and
"they love having a job to do," says Horse Program Manager Nathan Day. "Having a
job to do gives them a meaning and a purpose, and we strike a balance between
education and working a job."
At the same time, because they are already so educated in
Natural Horsemanship methods, these young horses do their jobs extraordinarily
well, with a high degree of trust in their riders, and with a flexibility and
responsiveness that might be difficult to find in other horses who have been
raised in a more confining barn-and-pasture environment. As a result, when they
are ready for sale, the La Cense horses are able to adapt to other conditions
and riding disciplines that their new owners might require. They aren’t
necessarily hay-burners, in other words; they are capable of contributing to the
bottom line, whether it be through herding cattle and helping with branding, or
whether their new owners might train them for shows and competitions, to use for
trail rides at a guest ranch, or for other purposes.
That flexibility is also in their breeding. Quarter Horses
have been specifically bred for their strength, intelligence, and short bursts
of speed, qualities which the Lewis & Clark expedition found in the Spanish Barb
horses obtained from the Shoshone tribe 200 years ago, just north of the La
Cense ranch. It is not surprising to see these latter-day descendents – the
American Quarter Horse evolved in part from the ancient Spanish bloodlines - so
well suited for both the wide open spaces and the rugged mountains of the West.
Indeed, it is not surprising to know that the Shoshone and Nez Perce Indians of
the region were known as superb horsemen, treating their animals with respect,
understanding, and a certain amount of reverence.
That reverence for horses, incorporated throughout the La
Cense Method of Natural Horsemanship, has its roots as far back as the ancient
Greeks, in fact. Xenophon, writing in 360 B.C., noted: "For what the horse does
under compulsion… is done without understanding; and there is no beauty in it
either, any more than if one should whip and spur a dancer." 2
For a long time, though, people got away from that
understanding. The movies of the Old West are actually a horror to watch for
anyone who understands natural horsemanship, with their emphasis on "breaking"
and controlling a horse, no matter how harsh the method.
But the nostalgia for the Old West remains in our
sub-conscious, as we long for a past that was part of a slower time, a time more
intimately connected to the earth – and to the horse.
Reaching back into the past for better methods is an
attitude that permeates all of the work at La Cense. La Cense Beef is now making
a name for itself because the cattle are grass finished and raised with
free-range, natural methods on its 122 square miles. The grass, which grows
naturally and in abundance all over the ranch, is a combination of wild hay and
bluebunch wheatgrass, a mix which provides excellent nutrition for the cattle
and a lower fat content in the beef.
But free-ranging cattle such as these need a bit of
"git-a-long, little doggie" help from the ranch’s full-time cowboys as well as
from the horses who are attending classes in partnering with humans. Actually,
it’s more than just a bit. Sometimes, depending upon the need and the season,
the cattle are moved once a week, says Day.
When he is not giving Natural Horsemanship lessons to
students at the ranch or at UM-Western, Day might encourage them to take part in
moving the cattle – a good exercise all around. The work, he says, "helps the
horses mature; they have an understanding of a job and responsibility, the same
as a young kid on a farm would have." The human students, many of whom are from
Europe, also experience a real working ranch first-hand, learning that the ways
of the true Old West are ways of respect for the land, for the animals, and for
each other – values passed on to a new generation.
The process of purchasing a La Cense Registered Quarter
Horse is akin to a cowboy’s slow, deliberate way of talking: there’s not much
wasted in the process, but it may take a while to get things goin’. Here’s how
you can get started:
Contact LaCense Ranch (406) 683-8777, check out our web
site
at www.lacensemontana.com or write to La Cense Montana at
4600 Carrigan Lane, Dillon, MT 59725. You’ll find you’re being interviewed
pretty extensively. We want to know as much about you and your riding background
and experience as possible, so we can start figuring out just the right horse
for you.
1 See: http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/five/songs.htm
2 See: http://www.worlddressage.com/historyquotes.htm
