Cowboy life has a meaning more than just about tending horses, cowboy hats, or women; it’s a feisty attitude embodying the spirit of integrity and determination.
But, if “howdy” or “yee-haw” is the only greeting cowboy sayings you’ve heard of, it’s time for you to upgrade your understanding of the cowboy ways. Whether funny or serious, all cowboy sayings draw a clear picture of the cowboy way of life and the value of a horse for all cowboys.
If you have a thing for cowboys, horses, or western life, you will also like these country girl quotes and country quotes.
Best Cowboy Quotes
There is something in cowboy quotes that touches your heart and mind.
A cowboy is not just an average person, he is a gentleman who has his heart in the right place and knows how to do his job with all sincerity. We’ve specially rounded up the best cowboy quotes from writers, including Missy Lyons, John Wayne, Nathanael West, and Will Rogers. These cowboy boot quotes have wise words that will tell you something more about cowboys, their job, as well as their love for horses.
- “Let him ride a horse. He’s a cowboy ain’t he?” – Nathanael West.
- “That was the trouble with explaining with words. If you explained with gunpowder, people listened.” – Dean F. Wilson.
- “I’m really a-howling!” – Jack Schaefer.
- “Training horses, heck riding horses, isn’t easy. Failing is part of the process. It’s how you brush yourself off and get back in the saddle that counts the most. There’s beauty in the breakdown. Everything is about balance.” – Carly Kade.
- “There is no better place to heal a broken heart than on the back of a horse.” – Missy Lyons.
- “Courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway!” – John Wayne.
- “When you’re a cowboy, life isn’t all about horses and rodeo’s. It’s about mud and dirt, and cowboy boots.” – Cowboy Proverb.
- “A true cowboy knows love, pain, and shame but never cares about fame.” – Cowboy Proverb.
- “I think I was probably a cowboy in a past life.” – Gin Wigmore.
- “Funny how women are ashamed of their inner fairy whereas men are forever proudly displaying their inner cowboy or fireman.” – Dawn French.
- “Champions arise through a combination of luck, hard work, and heartache.” – Carly Kade.
- “I would like to be remembered, well…the Mexicans have a phrase, “Feo fuerte y formal”. Which means he was ugly, strong and had dignity.” – John Wayne.
- “Every woman wants a cowboy.” – B.J. Daniels.
- “Bonner and Casey lived in different worlds. City and country.” – Cat Johnson.
- “It ain’t where, it’s how you live. We weren’t raised to take, but we were raised to give the shirt off our back to anyone in need.” – Brantley Gilbert.
- “Cowboy is a breed tougher than nails and strong as steel.” – Cowboy Proverb.
- “You can take the boy out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the boy.” -Arthur Baer.
- “Take my man, stay away from my horse.” -Cowboy Proverb.
- “Rope’em, tie’em, hold’em down and ride’em! Giddy up Cowboy.” – Cowboy Proverb.
- “True cowboys are the ones who aren’t afraid to get dirty.” – Lane Frost.
- “Cowboys are born, they ain’t made!” – Cowboy Proverb.
- “A cowboy is a gentleman with or without his hat and boots.” – Cowboy Proverb.
- “If you’re going to wear a cowboy hat, you’re going to have to go all the way. You should have livestock around you, settle all of your disputes with a pistol, and ride a horse absolutely everywhere.” – Tom Segura.
- “I want to be a Cowboy for life.” – Amari Cooper.
- “There never was a horse that couldn’t be rode; never was a cowboy who couldn’t be throwed.” – Cowboy saying.
- “The cowboy has been called America’s folk hero.” – Charles W. Harris.
- “Whoever said a horse was dumb, was dumb.” – Will Rogers.
- “It ain’t dying I’m talking about, it’s living. I doubt it matters where you die, but it matters where you live.” – Robert Duvall as Gus McCrae, ‘Lonesome Dove’.
- “That’ll be the day.” – John Wayne.
- “Never slap a man who’s chewing tobacco.” – Will Rogers.
- “Could I be jealous of the way he was touching my horse? Yep…I was.” – Carly Kade.
- “You’re gonna have to hold on tight, because this rodeo is just getting started.” – Joya Ryan.
- “You can’t cover up the swagger of a cowboy.” – Jaycee Ford.
- “Howdy, ma’am. You always talk to yourself? Velia glanced up into bright eyes, as blue as the flame on a cigarette lighter, belonging to a man standing in front of her desk wearing a cowboy hat tipped back on his head.” – Mary J. McCoy-Dressel.
- “It’s been a childhood dream of mine to be a Cowboy, honestly.” – Matt Cassel.
Famous Cowboy Quotes
Cowboys are gentlemen who never quit and famous cowboy quotes and sayings give you more meaning to what this life is truly about.
Cowboy life is much more than just about the horses, saddle, cowboy hat, money, or women. The thing is, sometimes there’s trouble and sometimes it’s all funny and meaningless. That’s why we’ve come up with this list of famous cowboy quotes that will take you into the life and the mind of a cowboy through words. Check out our list of famous cowboy quotes from the likes of John Wyne, Missy Lyons, Richard Kadrey, Roy Rogers, William James, George Strait, Willie Nelson, and much more.
- “Courage is being scared to death…and saddling up anyway.” – John Wayne.
- “I used to go to a dude ranch which is when you spend your holiday on a ranch so I became a bit of cowboy.” – Bud Lucky.
- “When in Texas, do as the Texas do: Drive trucks, wear cowboy boots, and two-step!” – Kaitlyn Bristowe.
- “I just fell in love with the cowboy way of life.” – Donald Cerrone.
- “Put ‘Cowboy’ on every card. I’d be ready to go.” – Donald Cerrone.
- “I have horses, I drive a truck, and I wear cowboy boots. First I’m a Texan.” – Henry Thomas.
- “We have a sense that we should be like the mythical cowboy…able to take on and conquer anything and live in the world without the need for other people.” – Morrie Schwartz.
- “When you stop fighting, that’s death.” – John Wayne.
- “Now you are thinking like a thief. Fewer guns and more exits. We’ll cure your cowboy ways yet.” – Richard Kadrey.
- “And my heart is sinking like a setting sun, setting on the things I wish I’d done. Oh the last goodbye’s the hardest one to say, and this is where the cowboy rides away.” – George Strait.
- “When you’re young and fall off a horse, you may break something, when you’re my age and you fall off, you splatter.” – Roy Rogers.
- “A cowboy is a man with guts and a horse.” – William James.
- “I’m from Texas, and one of the reasons I like Texas is because there’s no one in control.” – Willie Nelson.
- “When my time comes, just skin me and put me up there on Trigger, just as though nothing had ever changed.” – Roy Rogers.
- “Never kick a cow chip on a hot day.” – Will Rogers.
- “You can tell a true cowboy by the type of horse that he rides.” – Cowboy saying.
- “The horse is a mirror to your soul. And sometimes you might not like what you see in the mirror.” – Buck Brannaman.
- “Real cowboys never run, they just ride away.” – Cowboy saying.
- “When in doubt, let your horse do the thinkin’.” – Cowboy saying.
- “No hour of life is wasted that is spent in the saddle.” – Winston Churchill.
- “You know horses are smarter than people. You never heard of a horse going broke betting on people.” – Will Rogers.
- “Behind every successful rancher is a wife who works in town.” – Cowboy saying.
- “Always drink upstream from the herd.” – Will Rogers.
- “You see, in this world, there’s two kinds of people, my friend – those with loaded guns, and those who dig. You dig.” – Clint Eastwood.
- “Well, there are some things a man can’t just run away from.” – John Wayne.
- “To sit on a ranch horse that’s been broken in, it’s like getting in a Porsche.” – Sam Shepard.
- “I tried being reasonable, I didn’t like it.” – Clint Eastwood.
- “I’ve often said there is nothing better for the inside of the man, than the outside of the horse.” -Ronald Reagan.
- “A horse doesn’t care how much you know until he knows how much you care. Put your hand on your horse and your heart in your hand.” – Pat Parelli.
- “When you have to shoot, shoot, don’t talk.” – Eli Wallach.
- “When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.” – Dalai Lama.
- “Lettin’ the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier than puttin’ it back.” – Will Rogers.
- “Some cowboys have too much tumbleweed in their blood to settle down.” – Cowboy saying.
- “Ride e’m cowboy, don’t let them throw ya down..You can’t make no money if ya hit the ground, Ride e’m cowboy, don’t let them throw ya down, You’re the toughest cowboy in town.” – Juice Newton.
- “Cowboys work hard, play well, love soft, and are a hell of a lot better than any other boy I’ve ever seen.” – Olivia Flannery.
- “Generally, you ain’t learnin’ nothin’ when your mouth’s a-jawin’.” – Cowboy saying.
- “Cowboys don’t walk round callin’ themselves cowboys.” – Cowboy saying.
- “If it ain’t dirty, it ain’t fun.” – Cowboy saying.
- “Cowboys don’t go around breaking hearts.” – Missy Lyons.
- “Don’t squat with your spurs on.” – Cowboy saying.
- “Learn this well, the last ride is never the last ride. And the end is not the end.” – Richard Rowland.
- “Talk slowly, think quickly.” – Cowboy saying.
- “The cowboy must never shoot first, hit a smaller man or take unfair advantage.” – Cowboy saying.
- “He’s all hat and no cattle.” – Cowboy saying.
- “Where the leather is scarred, there is a great story to tell.” – Jimmy Tart.
- “When I grew up, I only had two dreams. One was to be a cowboy and another was to be in the military. I grew up extremely patriotic and riding horses.” – Chris Kyle.
- “I loved cowboy movies when I was a kid. When I was five years old, I was already wearing a cowboy hat and suit. When I grew up, I knew John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, Kirk Douglas and so on.” – Jackie Chan.
- “A man’s got to do what a man’s got to do.” – John Wayne.
- “I’m an old-time cowboy. I’m an outlaw.” – Mike Hughes.
Funny Cowboy Quotes
Some cowboy quotes and sayings are amusing and funny and make a fool of the quintessential cowboy figure, horse, and rancher situation. Here are some funny cowboy quotes and sayings that will surely make you laugh at places.
- “It is easier to get an actor to be a cowboy than to get a cowboy to be an actor.” – John Ford.
- “The only good reason to ride a bull is to meet a nurse.” – Cowboy saying.
- “Any cowboy can carry a tune. The trouble comes when he tries to unload it.” – Cowboy saying.
- “The quickest way to double your money is to fold it over and put it back into your pocket.” – Will Rogers.
- “There are two theories to arguin’ with a woman. Neither one works.” – Will Rogers.
- “No man should have cowboys boots in his wardrobe. That’s fair enough, isn’t it? Unless you’re a cowboy, of course.” – Paul Weller.
- “From an early age children play ‘cowboys and Indians’, Nobody ever plays ‘UN peacekeeping force’.” – A.J. Beirens.
- “If cowboys picked wives like they pick horses, they would have lifelong mates.” – Cowboy Proverb.
- “I’m a cowboy who never saw a cow.” – Johnny Mercer.
- “Cowboys and men are two totally different breeds.” – Cowboy Proverb.
- “Cowboys ride horses. Shouldn’t they be called horseboys?” – Unknown.*
- “Asking to borrow someone’s saddle is like asking to borrow someone’s girlfriend, you just don’t do that.” – Cowboy Proverb.
- “Never approach a bull from the front, a horse from the rear or a fool from any direction.” – Cowboy saying.
- “The horse stopped with a jerk—and the jerk fell off!” – Cowboy saying.
- “We all got pieces of crazy in us, some bigger pieces than others.” – Cowboy saying.
