I have earned the respect and hate of many people and have come to accept the moniker or label of hero and troublemaker, depending on who you are talking to. But no amount of gossip can change the facts. Let me take you behind the scenes if only for a few paragraphs into the fact and fiction, plight and plunder of the animal we know as the horse. The misconception that the common ranch horse is abused, overworked and underfed is just that, a gross misconception. In fact, most real ranch outfits take better care of their horses than they do themselves.
Horses eat first, the cowboy eats second.
This is the cornerstone philosophy of any legitimate ranch. You would never, ever see a buckaroo, wrangler, cowboy or other ranch-related laborer enter the bunkhouse or mess hall before the horses were fed and well taken care of. Certain animal rights groups would paint a picture of drunken cowboys laying in their bunks and horses starving in the corral. The backyard horse is just what it sounds like. Ironically, the most commonly neglected area of the horse is the area the most often goes unreported and unnoticed.