Cutting

History of Cutting

Cutting is an event where a horse and rider are judged on their ability to separate a calf away from a herd of cattle and keep it away for a short period of time. The sport originally evolved from cattle ranches in the West, where it was the cutting horse's job to separate cows from the herd for vaccinating, castrating, and sorting. Eventually competitions arose between the best cutting horses and riders in the area. Rules were added, and in 1946 the National Cutting Horse Association was formed, which today is the governing body of the sport. The horses used are normaly Quarter horses, but other breeds may be used. A horse that instinctively knows how to keep a calf from returning to the herd, and is trained in a manner to be shown competitively, is considered a cutting horse.

Scoring

In cutting, the horse and rider select and separate a calf out of a small group. When the calf tries to return to its herdmates the rider and horse try to keep the calf separated. The contestant has 2 1/2 minutes to show his horse. Typically 2 - 3 cows are cut during a run. A judge awards points to the cutter based on a scale that ranges from 60 to 80, with 70 being considered average.

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Scoring
In cutting, the horse and rider select and separate a calf out of a small group. When the calf tries to return to its herdmates the rider and horse try to keep the calf separated. The contestant has 2 1/2 minutes to show his horse. Typically 2 - 3 cows are cut during a run. A judge awards points to the cutter based on a scale that ranges from 60 to 80, with 70 being considered average.