Understanding how to read a cow can be the difference between winning a ranch sorting event and being a participant. Logan Wolfe breaks down the basics of understanding cattle behavior and how you can practice reading a cow at home.
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In this step-by-step video breakdown, Wolfe shows you how to “lock on” to a cow, understand pressure points, and work smarter from the center of the pen—not just faster around the edge.
Use Your Horse’s Ears Like a Sight
One of the simplest and most effective tools Wolfe teaches in this video is the idea of using your horse’s ears as a visual cue for position.
“I think of the horse’s ears as sights,” Wolfe says. “So, it’s like sights on a gun. You always want to be looking through those horse’s ears to make sure your horse is positioned on the cow correctly.”
Why? Because if your horse is looking away while you’re trying to read the cow, you’ll never be synced up.
“You want to make sure that your horse is latched onto the cow just like you are,” he continues, “That way, your horse can work and read the cow like you do.”
▶️ Watch the full video lesson.
Understand the Cow’s Pressure Bubble
Before you can control a cow, you need to know how your position affects its response. Wolfe simplifies this with the concept of the cow’s “bubble.” Basically, each cow maintains an area of personal space around it and, by applying pressure to that space, you can move the cow.
“You can think of cattle as if they have a big bubble around them,” Wolfe explains. “If you push on the back of the bubble, they’re going to kind of push around forward. If you get in front of the bubble, they’re going to stop. And if you kind of push in the middle, it’ll push them away from you.”
Where your horse applies pressure—to the hip, rib, or shoulder—and at what rate determines the cow’s speed and direction. Understanding that bubble is the first step of learning cow control.
▶️ Watch the full video lesson.
Don’t Chase—Control
Many novice riders fall into the trap of riding directly behind the cow. Wolfe warns this gives you almost no say in where the cow goes.
“If I have my sights right here behind the cow, I’m going to be chasing the cow,” he says. “We’re not really controlling where this cow goes. This cow can go anywhere it wants.”
The goal, instead, is to get up along the cow’s side or shoulder and influence its movement forward and outward.
“If I want to control this cow—control where it goes, control the speed—I’m going to get more to the side of it,” Wolfe explains. “I have my sights right on her leg. And when I get closer to the gate, I move my horse’s sights in front. That should turn that cow out of the gate.”
▶️ Watch the full video lesson.
Stay Centered for Maximum Control
In a sorting pen, the rider with the most control often isn’t chasing cows in wide loops, they’re cutting angles from the center. Wolfe teaches riders to move with intention, using the layout of the pen to their advantage.
“This sorting pin is set up in a circle, and you can take the angles to give the advantage to the rider,” he says. “If you’re further to the outside, the less control you have over your cow. So, you want to stay in the center of the sorting pin here to get as much control as possible.”
From this inside track, you can influence direction faster and keep cleaner lines to the gate. It’s a strategic move that separates competitive riders from casual ones.
▶️ Watch the full video lesson.
Think Ahead and Steer with Pressure
To finish a good run, your timing and pressure need to be sharp. Wolfe explains how tiny changes in where your horse is pointed can shape the cow’s next move.
“If I put my sights up here in front, it’s like a wall up here, and that cow’s not going to want to go this way,” Wolfe says. “If I put my horse’s sights over here, that cow’s going to turn back to the left.”
Position your horse’s ears just behind the cow’s shoulder to send it forward to the gate. Need to stop or turn it? Nudge your horse’s nose just ahead of the cow’s line of travel and it will naturally stop or redirect.
“There’s a good combination of making sure you’re far enough behind it to keep your cow going forward, but still far enough forward to keep control of where the cow’s going,” he explains.
▶️ Watch the full video lesson.
Start Slow and Read the Reaction
To really learn cow work, Wolfe encourages practicing slowly and patiently. Use calm cattle or even a friend at first so you can focus on your position, not just the adrenaline of the run.
“What we’re working on here is learning how your position on your horse in relation to the cow will affect the cow,” Wolfe says.
