Ranch Boots

If you are buying a boot for groundwork such as walking fence, loading hay, and doing chores around the ranch you will want a shorter heel than your riding boots and a sole of synthetic materials. Leather soles get slick and are hard to walk on, and leather does not hold up as well as manmade materials to the manure and mud of the cow lot. The leather in a boot is important. Mule hide is soft but durable. Oil tanned cow-hide is good in a work boot and can be treated with neats foot oil instead of polish. When you’re oiling up your saddle and tack you can give your boots a quick swipe both to keep the leather soft and to give it a water proofing. In a boot purchase I always look for a one piece back strap from the heel cap to the top of the boot, as I tie my boots very snug. Having a snug fit puts extra tension on the back of the boot, and I will always pull apart a two piece back strap in about six months of use. The boots in this photo are not a good representation of proper boots maintenance.
Read less