Tucker Hatch: Dogs, Wild Country & Building a Life

Neil and co-host Kyle Johnson interview Tucker Hatch, a young cowboy and friend of Kyle's, about his background, mindset, and experience in big country. Tucker recounts first meeting Kyle in Nevada and discusses overcoming nerves by being proud of who he is and willing to approach strangers. The conversation focuses heavily on working cow dogs—Border Collies and Kelpies—contrasting practical ranch dogs with trial dogs, and explaining how dogs extend a crew's effectiveness when gathering and trailing cattle. Tucker describes leading a crew at age 22 on the 450,000-acre, unfenced Arapaho Ranch, dealing with extremely wild, feral cattle and dangerous bulls, sorting and shipping slick bulls and old steers, and the challenges of management from the office. He explains how cattle are "trained" through regular handling and trailing, then shares his approach to making money riding outside horses while saving, staying debt-free, and aiming to eventually own land.   Topics 01:45 Meeting Kyle First Time 03:29 Making Friends Fast 05:42 Kelpie Power Talk 08:45 Favorite Dogs And Tools 12:08 Dogs On The Job 16:31 Using Dogs With Crews 19:34 Cowboy As Storyteller 22:19 Cow Boss At 22 23:49 Wild Arapaho Ranch 31:46 Culling Feral Bulls 34:45 Training Cattle Year Round 39:52 Better Handling Cattle 41:25 Range Roping Wreck Story 46:48 Horsemanship Life Focus 48:00 Making Money Riding 48:42 Saving and Self Reliance 52:32 Work Ethic and Growth 54:21 Animals Over Drama 56:40 Stay Green Stay Humble 01:00:24 Family Roots and Mom 01:06:50 Five Year Cowboy Plan 01:11:31 Favorite Horse Loss 01:14:46 Getting Horses to Tucker 01:16:56 Closing Reflections