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Using the McCarty

Using the McCarty
Horse Training Tips 

USES OF THE MCCARTY


At one time, Congress, Arizona horse trainer,  Twister Heller, used a McCarty (also spelled "mecate") on almost all the horses he trained. The name McCarty refers to a length of rope, from 18 to 30 feet long, used in buckaroo country primarily as a riding rein with an attached lead rope. The rope may be attached to a bosal (hackamore noseband) or to a snaffle bit.  McCartys can be made from many different materials including braided horse hair, coreless rope, spun 3/4' nylon rope, or even soft, supple, braided leather. Twister's fondness for a McCarty came from its many additional uses and the fact that it is easier to hang onto than traditional leather reins. He has quit using a McCarty to a great extent riding in the Arizona desert where everything either bites or sticks, because it can be easily pulled out of your hands by the ubiquitous sticker bush. He was very interested by the idea of a supple leather braided McCarty, because it would be immune to most stickers.

Twister demonstrated using a McCarty to desensitize horses to a rope, using it to "pull around" a green horse to get it used to a bridle, to lounge a horse, and how to lengthen and shorten the rein for corral work or roping. A McCarty can be used for hobbling or for tying a foot up to doctor or shoe. It can be used for lounging or with a second line for ground driving.  McCartys are handy when you are opening or closing gates in pastures.

One unusual thing about the McCarty setup used by Twister is the type of leathers used to attach the rope to the rings of the snaffle bit. Most of the leathers used for this purpose (called slobber leathers) are doubled flat with slits to attach the rope. Since Twister likes to easily be able to adjust length and remove the McCarty rope for additional uses, he has devised slobber leathers that are each one continual band of leather made from a strip of leather about 18" long and 1" wide, riveted in the center after being placed around the snaffle ring. Using these wide open leathers, Twister can quickly insert one end of the McCarty, twist it around, and attach or change the length of his rein.  

Using the mccarty
When using a McCarty two handed, the correct way to adjust your hands comes from sliding a hand either direction from a balanced mid point. The rein part of a McCarty can easily be shortened to be used one handed while roping. Twister demonstrated pulling the rope up in his hand, using his teeth, to shorten the rein. At other times he leaves the rein longer than normal in order to use it to slap a horse back and forth on the neck for quick corral work. While riding Twister will slip the free end of the McCarty through his front chap belt or it may be coiled and tied up with the front left saddle string. When a McCarty is tucked through the chap belt, the rider has the opportunity, should he be unhorsed for any reason, to grab the long lead and keep from being set afoot a long way from home.

A McCarty can also be used to train a colt to drop his nose. Twister tied one end of the McCarty to the right slobber leather, ran the rest between the horse's front legs, behind the right stirrup leather, over the seat of the saddle, behind the left stirrup leather, back between the front legs, and up to the left slobber leather. He adjusted the rope to place a little downward pressure on the horse's mouth and then half-hitched the free end to the saddle horn. The horse was then set free in a round pen for about 15 minutes to learn to drop his head to avoid the pressure. Twister makes sure such sessions are always supervised.

This article by Mike Laughlin first appeared in Western Horseman Magazine May, 1998.

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  • Home
    • Web Site Design >
      • Privacy Policy
    • Links
  • Gear
    • Pistol River Saddlery
    • Cowboy Gear - Tips and Tricks: >
      • Three-Way Hobbling
      • Piggin' String
      • Stirrup Hobbles
      • Tying Your Rope Up
      • Buckaroo Scarf Knot
      • Cowboy Night Latch
      • Cut-away saddle pad
      • Center-firing your Cinch
      • Pack Saddle Latigo Safety Knot
      • Quick Keeper
      • Tire Changer Aid
      • Safety Tie-Up
      • No Roll Saddle Stand
    • Saddle Makers >
      • Wade Saddle History
      • Don Howe Working Cowboy Saddle Maker
      • Hamley and Co.
      • Bill Maupin
    • Spurs >
      • E.F. Blanchard Spurs >
        • How to tell authentic Blanchard spurs.
        • More Blanchard Spurs
      • Garcia Bits and Spurs
      • Amozoc Spurs
      • Prison Made Spurs
      • Adolph Bayers Spurs
  • Arts
    • Poetry >
      • Cowboy Poetry by Gary Vorhes
      • Charlotte Thompson Poetry
      • Mike Meaux Poetry
      • Audrey Hankins Poetry
      • Carole Jarvis Poetry
    • Rodeo Photos
    • Cowboy Photos
    • Horse Photos
    • Cattle Photos
    • Gear Photos
    • Dogs and Animals Photos
    • Reminders of the Past Photos
    • Windmill Photos
    • People Photos
    • Ready to Rodeo
    • Books by Dale Woolley
  • Horses
    • Diamond Z English Shire Horses
    • 5 Tips for Traveling
    • Harnessing A Team
    • The Dameles and the Curly Horse
    • Rounding Up Wild Horses
    • Extreme Horse Camping
    • First Pull on the Latigo
    • Twister Heller Starts a Colt
    • Cowboy Martingale
    • Cowboy Training Halter
    • Cowboy & Colt Clinic
    • Using the McCarty
    • Teach a Horse to Stand
    • Cowboy Draw Reins
    • War Knots >
      • Tying War Knots
    • Tail Knot for Pack Horses
    • Cavvy Marks
    • Deworming Your Horse
    • Safe Fall Trail Riding
    • Horse Remedies
    • Hormone Implant
    • How to buy a mule
  • Brands
    • Brands II
  • Chuckwagon
    • Dutch Ovens
    • Recipes
    • Sourdough >
      • Grant's Sourdough
    • Cowboy Coffee
  • Articles
    • Grubbing Hoe Ranch
    • Trevor and Emily Fuhriman
    • Land of Extremes
    • Jersey Valley Cattle Co
    • Diamond Tail Ranch
    • Gang Ranch of British Columbia
    • TS Ranch of Nevada
    • When the TS Ran a Wagon
    • IL Ranch
    • Basque Ranching
    • Crystal Rose Cow Dog College
    • Wyoming Honor Farm Inmate/Wild-Horse Program
    • Cowboy Etiquette
    • Arizona Trigger
    • Longhorn Cattle
  • Stories
    • For the Love of a Horse
    • Breakheart Station Master
    • Freighters Outbound
    • DK Cowboy Stories: A Prophet With Antlers
    • Ben's Trail
    • Spendin’ Time at Cow Camps
    • Slewfoot The Black Bear
    • Orphan Boy
    • Mooney's Stories - The Circle A Ranch of Nevada >
      • Cotton the Horse
      • Wigwam, the Wrangle Horse
      • Spanish Ranch 1
      • Spanish Ranch 2
      • Spanish Ranch 3
      • Spanish Ranch 4
      • Miss Beymer’s Boyfriend by Bill Mooney
      • Recollections by Bill Mooney
      • Branding out of a Rodear on the Spanish Ranch, Part 1
      • Branding out of a Rodear on the Spanish Ranch, Part 2
      • C Ranch
    • Wild Horse Casey >
      • ​A Dirty Ole Mustanger Like Me
    • Hero Cattle Dogs
    • Ranching Traditions
    • Life Lessons
    • Dave’s Summer Adventure
    • Fire-Proofing the Range
    • Cowboy Superstitions
    • Cowboy Humor
    • Portrait of a Cowboy >
      • Cowboy Obstricition
    • Tons of Silver
  • History
    • Fort Worth Stockyards
    • Horseshoe Ranch
    • Andrae - Marvel Nevada Oral Histories
    • Texas 6666 Ranch Historical Photos
    • Gerlach Cattle Company 1906
    • Cattle Roundup Photos
    • Cowboy Historic Photos
    • Sheepcamp
    • Comstock Lode
    • Pony Express
    • Horn Iron
    • Historic Sites
  • Cowboy Profiles
    • Victoria Jackson
    • Flying M Ranch Women's Team
    • In the Big Nevada Desert
    • Mike Laughlin, Cowboy
    • Bob Tanner
    • Bill Kane
    • Wally Blossom
    • Ian Tyson The Legend
    • Allie Bear
    • Marge Prunty
    • Bryan Neubert Cowboy Clinician
    • Rex Blackwell
    • Wiley Carroll - Legendary Hunter
  • Glossary
    • Horse Terms
    • Cattle Terms
    • The People & The Land
    • Saddles and Gear
    • Personal Gear
  • Cowboys of the World
    • Cowboys of the Dark Continent
    • Scrubber Running
    • The Day it Nearly All Ended
    • The Goring
    • Horse Breaking
    • Honduras
    • Mexico