A cutting horse is said to possess an innate ability to anticipate or read a cow's intended moves; an ability commonly referred to as having cow sense or cow smarts. Competitive cutting horses are well-trained and conditioned athletes with skills honed to constrain the movement of a cow and prevent it from returning to the herd. Such horses are able to stop and turn instantaneously, in sync with a cow's every move. The harder a cow tries to get back the herd, the more instinct, skill and athleticism are required of the horse to stay head to head with the cow, and the higher the competition score. A common analogy is a basketball point guard holding off a defender. American Quarter Horses and other horse breeds with Quarter Horse ancestry, such as American Paint Horses are the most popular choices for the sport, although other breeds with stock horse type are also used, particularly in breed-specific competition. History The sport evolved from tasks performed by horses on cattle ranches in the American West. Ranch horses worked herds of cattle and often had to separate specific individuals from the herd for branding and various treatments such as vaccinating, castrating and deworming. Early cutting competitions were held among local ranchers and cowboys to determine who had the best cutting horse. In 1898, the first cutting horse competition known to be advertised to the public was held in Haskell, Texas. On March 14, 1908, the Old North Side Coliseum, now known as the Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas, hosted the first indoor cutting horse contest which grew into the Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock Show. In 1918, the Fort Worth Stock Show hosted the world's first indoor rodeo, and added a cutting horse exhibition in 1919, held in connection with the rodeo. With the growth of cutting horse contests, a group of cutting horse owners decided to establish a universal set of rules and regulations, and founded the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) in 1946. Cattle A variety of cattle breeds are used for cutting horse competition but the preferred types are young steers and heifers ranging in size from . The most popular breeds among cutters include Angus, Hereford, or crossbreeds of those types, as well as other breeds of beef cattle, such as Charolais and Brahman, or various crosses of those breeds. The ability of a competitor to pick the