BROKE.

Reiner broke, dead broke, cutter broke, unbroke, fancy broke, ranch broke, kid broke, rope broke…

Across the board, everyone in the horse industry is after one thing: a broke horse. Whether they’re buying one that’s already broke, sending one off to be broke, or complaining they’re not broke enough, the term can be heard on the regular in every barn. In different disciplines, it can mean different things, but in its purest form “broke” means able to do the job. You’ll hear people wanting a horse “reiner broke” or “cutter broke” and what they’re referring to is the training that horse has gone through to become capable of performing moves required in the reining or cutting pen- the skills needed to complete those jobs.

            When we’re starting a colt the first stage of broke-ness or job we’re after is getting them rideable: go forward when asked, stop when asked, and change direction as needed. A horseman I respect a lot told me his idea of how broke a horse should be at the end of 30/60 days. He asked a simple question: If that pasture of cows down there gets out can you lope that colt down there and close the gate? Sounds simple enough, but his point was can you use that colt to do a job? Not about how low his head is loping circles in an arena, but if sh*t hits the fan have you made them an asset or a disadvantage? I try to stay mindful of this in those first couple of months because if I am able to go do a job then it means I have their participation and their mind and from there it’s easy to develop those fancy maneuvers we all know and love.

After that, it’s up to the rider’s individual needs. The reiners want them to plant their butt but continue to pedal their front feet forward, the cutters want them to plant their butt and stop hard. Western pleasure riders want their nose on the ground, but barrel racers need more elevation in the front end. All of these horses are trained for their specific disciplines and once proficient are considered broke for that task. I have a true appreciation for the all-around horse, or the ones that are able to transition into second careers successfully because those horses have to be fundamentally broke, no steps skipped, and have the mental capacity to be able to go and accomplish a multitude of tasks, even if some of the maneuvers contradict from one job to the next. Just because that ranch horse doesn’t slide as far as the reiner bred to do it doesn’t mean they are not broke. If you pick up the reins on that ranch gelding and he respects and responds to your cues then he is still broke. That is the kind of broke I want, I could care less if they can slide twenty feet or lope around with their head between their knees if I pick up the reins or ask something of them and they resist those skills are useless. In the same way, you can’t discredit the cutters for not stopping like the reiners when they are not supposed to. If one slid like a reiner in the cutting pen they would never be able to do their job and hold a cow. You have to judge a horse’s training based on their given job after a certain point. You also have to take into account the caliber of rider, generally the more broke a horse, the less skilled of rider required. Meaning as the horse understands their job better the skill level of the rider needed to complete the job declines. Where young horses (say under 5 years of age) will require a more experienced rider to teach and build confidence in what the job is, an older horse has the maturity and confidence to compensate for inaccurate cues that come from a novice rider.

So, what it comes down to is broke can mean a hundred different things depending on what you are looking for but at its core, a broke horse is one that can go out and do their job the first time asked.