Can't reach or catch something? Call a cowboy.

Did you know that the second Triceratops ever found was by a cowboy near Douglas, Wyoming? He saw it sticking out of an embankment high above him. He lassoed the horns and pulled the skull down.

Then there is the story of a cowboy at a Walmart, on horseback, who saw a shoplifter trying to run away. Yeah, he lassoed him. 

Recently a cowboy was called to rescue a calf that had wandered into dangerous waters.

The calf had wandered onto a lake that was not completely frozen over. The ice was too thin to walk across to bring him in. Good thing the cowboy brought a lasso.

Cowboy boots come in handy when standing in half-frozen water.

This old cowboy is good. Though he takes two misses before he lands the shot. But that's still really good under the circumstances.

You never know when you might need to call a cowboy.

Several have started a business of capturing runaway cattle on highways and in neighborhoods.

Yeah, that's actually a business they run.

You've seen viral videos of cowboys chasing cows, horses, and other livestock down the freeway and roping them in.

Animals can get loose when a trailer overturns or if there is a hole in the fence in their pasture.

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Either way, we now have a big animal on an interstate and nobody can catch it.

Sometimes these animals get loose and are out there for weeks before local officials can corner them.

If they can't catch the animal, local police will call in cowboys to assist.

But what if the animal got loose in an area that doesn't have any cowboys?

They might have to call in cowboys from out of state.

That's how wrangling loose interstate animals has become a profession.

This group of cowboys in the view below travels the nation as ropers for hire.

The highway rustlers load up their horses and drive cross country to where the beast was last seen.

Not long after we see them on the local news.

The leader of these animal chasers for hire goes by the nickname "Littlejohn."

“We help catch cows all the time and, you know, you might get a few Facebook likes or comments or stuff, and it’s turned into thousands and thousands. We’re just humble country people, you know,” he explained.

When it comes to the horses who make it all possible, Littlejohn said they are like family “Because we can’t do our jobs without them. You just can’t.”

In many cases, the local police don't even bother stopping traffic while these guys ride out after the animal. Things seem to work out fine.

They are usually called to more populated that don't have livestock.

If an animal gets loose in Wyoming, for example, there are cowboys everywhere that can handle it.

These animals can be quite clever and elusive.

So why not get paid a few bucks to drive cross country and handle what those city folks can't?

These boys are not getting rich off of this.

But it sure is fun.

Painful To Watch, Chugwater Rodeo Rider Caught Under Hoof

Harding ridding at the 2021 Chugwater Chili Cookoff in Chugwater Wyoming

Wyoming's High Jumping Rodeo Horses

Horses have different ideas on how to get a cowboy off their back.

The most common way they try is actually the least effective way.

But it is so much fun to watch.

Gallery Credit: Glenn Woods