Cowboy Proverbs: 10 Life Lessons from the Saddle

Howdy. Chip Schweiger, here. 

Welcome to another edition of Way Out West. 

The podcast that takes you on a journey through the stories of the American West, brings you the very best cowboy wisdom, and celebrates the cowboys and cowgirls—who are feeding a nation. 

Out here, a man learns real quick that the West doesn’t hand out easy lessons. You get schooled by busted knuckles, broncs that’ll plant you in the dirt, and nights when the fire won’t catch, no matter how hard you try. Wisdom doesn’t come gently out here — it comes with dust in your teeth and sweat in your eyes.

So today on the show, we’re talking about the kind of sayings cowboys carried with ’em — rough-cut bits of truth, hammered out by hard work and harder living.

These aren’t polished words out of some fancy book. They’re trail-tested. They’re campfire-proven. And if you let ’em, they’ll ride right alongside you in your own life.

After the episode, check out the show notes at WayOutWestPod.com/Cowboy-proverbs

Hi there and welcome back.

Let me set the scene for you.

You step into an old horse barn that hasn’t seen much life in years. Dust hangs in the air like smoke, sunlight cutting through the cracks in the boards. The smell of leather, hay, and old wood wraps around you. You push aside a busted saddle, a stack of feed sacks, and there it is — something tucked away where no one’s bothered to look.

An old book. Leather cover cracked, pages yellowed, corners chewed on like a mouse had a go at it. No title on the spine. Just the weight of years.

You pick it up, brush the dust off, and flip it open. And inside — scratched in ink, smudged with sweat and campfire smoke — are the sayings of cowboys long gone. Bits of truth they carried with ’em, written down not for show, but to remember.

Now, cowboys don’t usually call it wisdom. They call it common sense. Or maybe just “the way things are.” But you and I both know, it runs deeper than that. Today, I’m bringing you a handful of cowboy proverbs—little sayings, old bits of range philosophy. I’ve numbered ‘em and named ‘em like they’ve come out of some dusty old ledger nobody’s ever seen.

So kick off your boots and let’s dive in.

Proverb No. 27: The Empty Saddle Rides the Longest

Out on the trail, if a horse comes back without its rider, everyone feels it. A cowboy knows you’re only here for a spell. So ride well, do right by folks, because one day all that’s left of you is an empty saddle. And believe me—people remember the way you rode.

Proverb No. 81: Don’t Rope What You Can’t Hold

Cowboys learn this the hard way. You throw a loop on something too big—a wild steer, or worse, a bad idea—you’ll get dragged. Life’s the same. Don’t bite off more than you can chew, and don’t tie yourself to trouble you can’t handle.

Proverb No. 14: Coffee’s Stronger Than Excuses

On the trail, nobody wants to hear why you didn’t get your work done. But everybody wants coffee. Do your job first, gripe later, and if you’re still tired, well, pour another cup. Excuses don’t keep a herd moving—strong coffee and steady hands do.

Proverb No. 52: Keep Your Cinch Tight, but Your Words Tighter

Your saddle slipping in the middle of a ride is dangerous, but breaking your word is worse. A cowboy’s reputation isn’t built on fancy gear or tall talk—it’s built on being a man folks can count on.

Proverb No. 103: Never Argue with a Mule or a Fool

Both will out-stubborn you. A cowboy learns real quick you can’t make a mule move if it doesn’t want to. Same goes for folks dead set in their ways. Save your breath. Your energy’s better spent fixing fence than fussing with fools.

Proverb No. 66: Ride a Horse, Don’t Wear One Out

There’s a difference between working something and running it ragged. Cowboys know you treat your horse right, because it’s the only thing standing between you and a long walk home. Same goes for people—don’t use ‘em up. Respect ‘em, and they’ll carry you farther.

Proverb No. 8: Even the Stars Need Darkness

A night on the open range teaches you this. The stars don’t shine without a black sky behind ‘em. Cowboys understand hardship is what makes the good times stand out. You can’t have light without a little dark.

Proverb No. 39: Don’t Drink from a Muddy Watering Hole

That one’s not just about water. It’s about what you fill your mind with. Cowboys stay wary of gossip, lies, or bitterness. You drink from that long enough, it’ll make you sick. Better to ride a little farther for clean water.

Proverb No. 77: Always Leave the Gate the Way You Found It

Simple courtesy. You find a gate open, you leave it open. You find it shut, you latch it back. Cowboys know it’s about respecting the next person who comes along. In life, it’s just the same—don’t make another man’s work harder than it already is.

And Proverb No. 90: Wind Talks, but Fence Posts Stay Put

There’s always noise—rumors, bluster, storms rolling in. But a cowboy trusts the solid things. A good horse. A sound fence post. A friend who doesn’t bend with every breeze. The world’s full of talkers, but it’s the steady things that hold it together.

Closing

So there you have it—ten cowboy proverbs, numbered and named, as if they were plucked out of some secret cowboy almanac. They’re simple. They’re short. But they carry more truth than most folks want to admit.

Cowboys never saw themselves as philosophers. But when you boil it down, living by these kinds of sayings is what kept ‘em honest, kept ‘em alive, and gave ‘em a reputation that still rides tall today.

Well, before we finish up for this week, we’ve got one more thing.

Buster the Bull & Cowboy Glossary Term of the Week

Yep, that distinctive call from Buster the Bull means it’s time for the cowboy glossary term of the week. And this week’s term is “Drag Rider.”

On a cattle drive, not every cowboy had the glory job up front. Somebody had to ride drag — way in the back, pushing the herd along. It was the dustiest, dirtiest, hardest job on the drive. The drag rider was usually a greenhorn cutting his teeth, or sometimes an old hand tough enough to take it.

But here’s the thing: without the drag, the herd wouldn’t move right. The front of the herd formation might set the pace, but it’s the drag that kept the stragglers in line. Cowboys used to say riding drag built grit — because if you could handle that dust day after day, you could handle just about anything.

So next time you hear “drag rider,” know it wasn’t an insult. It was a rite of passage, and one of the toughest jobs on the trail.

Thanks for Listening

And with that, we close the chapter on another tale from Way Out West. Thanks for joining me today. 

If you enjoyed this ride through cowboy wisdom, share it with a friend, and maybe even try living by one of these proverbs this week. 

Until next time, this is Chip Schweiger reminding you to ride steady, keep your words tight, and don’t drink from a muddy watering hole.

We’ll see y’all down the road.