The Old Time Cowboy Cures that Saved Hundreds of Cowboys... and Bacon Grease is One of Them!

I can't. What is your favorite cooking ingredient? >> I'd have to say bacon >> because you have a cowboy cure that involves bacon grease, right? This one's going to shock you guys. >> Howdy. My name is Kent Rollins. I've been a cowboy and a chuck wagon cook for over 30 years, cooking for ranches all across America. You might have seen me on the Food Network or alongside my beautiful wife Shannon on our YouTube show where we share cowboy cooking from the trail. But now we're going to take you behind the scenes to real campfire conversations. Join us as we share humor, cowboy wisdom, and stories full of history, heart, faith, and of course, a little fire. So grab you a cup of coffee, pull up a chair, and welcome to the podcast. Hey, thank y'all so much for joining us here on this podcast and we just appreciate you taking time out of your busy day to do so. Me and Shan just we just this is the best thing ever to have a podcast. >> It's so nice to just sit and visit with people. >> Oh, it is. It is the best thing ever. But something I think people might not know about what's going on really out there when you're a Chuck Wagon cook is he ain't just a cook. He's a doctor, a dentist, a psychologist. He has so many things he has to do. >> Well, and this goes back to the 1800s cattle drives. So, the Chuck Winn wagon is out there. They're going from Texas to Kansas. They're moving cattle. Um, long hours. And of course, you are in the middle of nowhere. There's the cowboys and the cook are on the wagon. Yeah. >> And so, there's no do, there's no dentist. So what's what's happening? So kind of explain to us what was the job of the cook other than just cooking. >> Well, when people always thought of a chuck wagon cook, most of all, some old grumpy old fell that can't cook worth nothing. You know, he's just mean and grappy all the time. Hey, they might have been that way at one time and I've been out there as long as seven weeks at a time. You can get a little grumpy, but I mean I try to be cheerful every day cuz that helps. First of all, you got cook got to have some personality. You got to make people feel welcome. That's the way I look at it. But I guess beside the most important thing of being a cook. The second was can you care for the people you're feeding? Not just by filling their belly but also taking care of their heart, their soul, and their injuries. So, as a doctor, like what kind of stuff do you think old Cookie would have experienced back in the 1800s? >> A lot of broke bones, a lot of bruises, a lot of cuts and scrapes. Uh, you know, but there was so many things that could happen out there. Snake bite, spider bite, near drowning, you know, drugged by a horse, run over by thousands of head of Longhorn cattle. Well, you know what's kind of interesting is that even though this happened in the 1800s, this is still happening today. And that's what we do when we're cooking on the wagon. So, we're really experiencing the same kind of injuries or ailments that Cookie would have experienced back then, especially if we go on these more remote ranches. >> Oh, yeah. Cuz I mean, you you may be 70 miles from the nearest town and the only doctor they might have there might be a vet clinic, you know. I love a vet clinic. >> Hey, don't knock that because sometimes that's better care and less insurance hassle. >> That's right. It's something you have to sort of get in your mind and I always done it from when I first started. Even when I was guiding hunters, I had some type of first aid kit, something that I could rely on. But there's so many old cures and old things that you can use that are readily accessible in the kitchen, but also on the chuck wagon. Well, and I want to say what's been so interesting is that anytime we post a video um whether it's long form or short form on cowboy cures or oldtime remedies, the videos go viral. It's crazy because I think >> what you've always said like keep it simple like some of that >> just going back to natural remedies >> and especially for us on the wagon and the cook back in the 1800s, you don't have a lot to work with. So you got to get creative, right? >> That's right. That is right. You look around at your surroundings and you think there's not a road anywhere near us. There's not telephone service most of the time, which is a blessing for a lot of it. I always thought, now if something really bad happened to someone here, how are we going to take care of him and can we get them out of here? You know, um we're the first line of defense. We're like the emergency room, you know. Uh that's where it's going to happen. That's where it's going to come to first and then we'll see what's happened. We'll assess the diagnosis. >> And you're tri your triaging. >> Yeah. And I'm trained in stuff like this, you know. >> So, can you give us a little background on your medical knowledge or >> My medical knowledge? Well, uh my dad was a about half veterinarian. >> Okay. >> My mother and my grandmother had all these old recipes that they used on us not just to feed us, but to also cure us from ailments. And I remember so many of the old men, we'd be in a Brandon pin or we'd be somewhere and somebody say, "Oh, I got old arthritis is acting up today, you know, they'll be able to make it. Well, you ought to try this and ought to do this." You know, so if they work so many years, even back in Cookie's time in the 1870s, they still work today. >> Now, you also mentioned that the cook was the dentist, the doctor, and a psychologist. >> Yes, ma'am. >> So, what does that mean for you on the wagon today? Like what do you mean by psychologist? >> Well, I mean I could get out all my diplomas, you know, and show people. It wouldn't take long. First of all, when you think about psychology, let's think about it in this way. You're in a very remote place, especially for some of the younger guys that were out there, 18, 19 years old. uh they were away from family, you know, so they're already under a little bit of stress, you know, about thinking, "Hey, I've never been on this ranch. You know, this is some really rough country. There ain't no cell phone service out here." And I remember, and you you know the young man I'm talking about, Jesse, out there at the bail. And we'd been in there about two weeks. And he he was a very shy young man. And he come in one day and I said, "Jesse, what's troubling you?" "Uh, nothing, Mr. Rollins." I said, 'Oh, I I know people pretty well, Jesse. I said, 'I know something is bothering you.' I said, 'Uh, we feeding you enough, ain't we?' He said, 'Oh, yeah. I said, ' Best food I've ever had in my life.' He got real quiet. He looked around to see if anybody was listening or watching. He said, "I miss home." You know, and that's something that maybe you don't think about as you're get older in life and you've been doing this forever and ever, you know, but I looked at him and I said, "Jesse, it is me and Shan's job to make this your home while you're here. You're our family. We will take care of you." I said, "So, if you got something you need to talk about or you got something you want to visit about, holler at us because right now we're your mom and dad out here. we're your aunt and uncle. We're gonna take care of you while you're here. So, you instill that in their brain right off the bat to let them know, hey, whatever comes along, whatever happens, we're here for you. >> Well, and it's interesting. So, um, everybody, I think when you think of cowboy, it's like rough and gritty and wild and all this adventure and it is and it's very fun, but then, you know, when it comes down to it, it's a lot of time out in the remote. And so when we are in C ranches like that, you really do bond quickly and all these people become family >> um for you know that that time that you're out on the wagon and the wagon becomes such a >> integral part of the ranch works in the spring or the fall because that's where everybody gathers. That's where again you feel like home. We've cooked for I think it >> was on the Bell Ranch was the the youngest crew that I've been around and cooked for and it is different. You know, you get these young guys out there and they're super excited, but when you get into week three and four, it gets hard. And so food has always been a way for us to connect, to make feel people feel comfortable, and to bring home out on a 400,000 acre ranch. >> Yeah. You you got to create that environment that people feel safe in, that they feel comfortable in. And food has brought people together forever, you know. And I've been on them ranches where it's been bitterly cold and fire and food were the two things they look for early in the morning, you know. So, it's it's uh it's a gathering place, it's a kitchen, it's a living room, uh it's Sunday morning church, it's all of it. >> Well, and so I'm really excited to talk about your cowboy cures because at first I'm thinking can't really this is a little bit of a BS, but I have been on the receiving end. you doubting me? >> I I was, but I have been on the receiving end of several of these and I can testify to them. Now, as Kent has mentioned, you are not a medically trained doctor. >> No, ma'am. >> So, these cures we're about to discuss, use at your own discretion. And of course, talk to your actual doctor if things are serious. But we want to go through some of our top >> Wait just a minute. >> What? >> These cures have always worked. I'm not trying to tell these people, "Oh, this is witchcraft." You know, we got the witch doctor cut a head off a prairie dog running around in a circle for 30 minutes and then put it on his head. This stuff works. >> I'm just putting a little legal disclaimer in there. >> But we want to go through our top cowboy cures to get you through any ailment. >> That's right. >> First up, and this one kind of blew my mind and this was probably one of the first. I was like, I don't know about this one, Kent. This is how you tackle a spider bite. >> Spiders are everywhere. They are everywhere >> especially in a teepee >> in in the spring and summer. You know, you see them a little everywhere. I don't pay them no mind much unless it's you get to thinking about, well, that was a stinging scorpion. Uh that's a fiddle back. You know, that's a black widow. And which I know spiders. I know enough about that. I know what that is. I know what that is. Some of them old daddy long legs and them wood spiders. They don't hurt you. They might bite you, but they don't hurt you. But we had come back from a ranch cooking and you were in there on the couch and you was looking at the arch of your foot. >> Mhm. >> And I said, "What's going on there?" "Well, I think I got a spider bite." And it was most of the time if you had a bad spider bite or you thought it was poisonous, always learned this from my mother, you take a felt tip pen and you draw around the bite. That way you know how much is it growing. If it keeps growing outside that circle continually, that was a poisonous spider that just bit you. Know what I mean? Okay. >> Because it's going to make a welp. It's going to swell, but it's spreading. You know, so I told her, I said, I can fix that. And your words were >> it's probably I don't know that we can say it on the podcast. >> What did I say? >> You claimed it was BS. >> Oh, okay. Yeah. >> You know. >> Yeah. And I'm thinking, you got to trust me. I've seen this work so many times because we we had watched it and this was the second day. We' put the circle around. >> It wasn't growing drastically, but it was definitely it was a >> and it was hot. It had some fever in it, you know. >> And a spider got to be really tough to bite on them stinky feet of yours. I mean, my gosh, it's a tough spider. But I convinced her, we will fix this. And it's pretty simple. Run out there to the pickup and there was an old box in there that I kept all the change in. Dig around in it, scooting everything around. Found a penny. Now, this penny needs to be like 1957. >> No. No. I We researched this and found that 1982 or earlier works the best because that's when they have more copper in them. After that, they stopped using >> How many people you seen out there just walking around wearing them copper bracelets? >> Oh, good point. Right. thick. You know, Abraham Lincoln was not only a great president, but he was also a doctor because he's on that penny and he gonna doctor that spider bite. Now, I told her, "All we got to do put that penny directly on the bite and we just put some duct tape around it." >> Yep. >> I told her, I said, "In the morning, it'll be gone >> because the copper is going to pull out the poison." >> Yeah. So, >> but then he told me though, make sure you put Abe Lincoln's head facing down so he can see what he's working with. And that's when I knew like I don't know if this is a legit cure. >> It next morning what happened? >> It was gone. >> Yeah. >> And it was flat and there was no fever in it. So then >> copper draws out poison. >> That was a good one. That one I can personally testify. But then the problem was I was telling my sister this because she had the same problem with a spider bite and she said if I use a quarter would it work faster? >> Then I >> sometimes you got to be smarter than what you're missing. >> Really the point of the copper. But anyway, so that one for sure. >> I've used it many times. Mosquito bites, scorpions, anything like that, you know. >> Although I will say something severe like a brown recluse or a black widow, don't recommend this method. >> Why don't you go see a legit doctor? Just saying. Now, one thing I always think about is toothache. >> You know, those come up out of nowhere and they're miserable. Yeah. So, what do you do? You have you come across that and what do you do for that? >> Yeah, you just knock them in the head and drag them off out of camp. So, you ain't got to listen. No, no, it's uh I've used this on me and I've used it on cowboys, too. And it's pretty simple, you know. Uh uh I could pull a tooth, but >> Have you ever had to pull a tooth? >> No, I've capped some, but I've never pulled none. You know, I think you'd have to either knock him in the head or get him plenty drunk on whiskey to get that done, you know. But this was told to me by an old-timer so many years ago. He said he got kicked in the face, you know, broke a tooth out and it got hurt and he didn't have time to go to the doctor and then it got a cavity and then it just got worse. And he told me, he said, "But Kenn," he said, "I I remember what my great grandma had told him." Well, that would have had to been back in the 1860s7s for this old fella. He said, "Simple." He said, "You take a brown paper sack, tear you off just to a little square piece." He said, "Get you a match. Strike it." He said, "Just let it burn till it burns out." He said, "Then you just crumble it on that newspaper right there. Just them ashes." He said, "Then crumble you up a put that on there." He said, "About three or four drops of whiskey. Don't throw that matchick away cuz we going to need it. You wad this up. Make sure it's plenty wet with that whiskey. Put it back there on that tooth. Take that matchick that you still have and tamp it in there. Now, let's think about this for a minute. Okay. Antiseptic >> is the whiskey. >> Yes. Pain. >> Aspirin. >> Antibiotic. >> Oh, the charcoal or >> Yeah, but what what what does a match have in it that's got that charcoal that's going to make it strike? That's going to sulfur. >> Oh. >> So, it'll get you by. You're going to have to repack it. You can't just think, well, it's going to last a week. You know, we do this two to three times a week for somebody. And >> if you if you don't have aspirin, you can grind Tylenol, you know, something like that. But >> you learn to get by with what you got to try to We may not cure it automatically, but if you can make it bearable, >> make it bearable until you can get to town. Yeah. >> And get it fixed. Well, that that reminds me of a story that you always tell about um who was it that broke their tooth >> and it was coal and you had to fix that. >> He's out there in New Mexico. Uh he got kicked in the front teeth right above the gun line, you know, and it's like 9°. He's covered with blood right here on comes in there, you know, and he said, "Golly, Kenn," he said, "I got kicked right there." He said, "Cold airs like to wear me out." He said, "They told me you could fix this." And I said, "Well, I don't know if I can fix it, but I think I can make it better." At that time, it would have probably been my first dental procedure. >> Did you tell him that? >> Not until, you know, he's 19 years old. He don't need to know too much. And uh so I sit him down there, cut me a green stick, pine stick about like that. Shoved it back there in his jaw. Cuz that's the same thing you'd do if you was working on a horse's teeth. You put something in there to where you can't bite it down, bite your finger off, you know? I'm thinking of my health right now. So I go over at that one drawer. Every kitchen has a junk drawer in it, right? You know where you got everything, >> right? >> Go to digging through there. There they are. Two tubes. They froze solid cuz it's cold. Bring them over, put them in some water on the old Bertha, let them thaw out. So, pulled them up there by the fire getting close. And I was looking at them. I mean, there was a little bit sticking out there enough you could see, you know, tooth. >> Yeah. Two of them, you know. >> And um I told him, I said, "We need to cap them teeth. That way when you're breathing in that air, them nerves ain't feeling it. And same thing a dentist would have done, but he'd had more stuff to work with, you know. >> And a degree. >> A degree. We had a degree. It was nine degrees that morning. And uh so I take them two tubes, put them on piece of cardboard right there, and squish them out, mix them up. JB Weld. Okay. >> JB Weld. Now, okay. So, I'm not familiar with JBL Weld. What is that? It is a sort of like a cement glue that you mix together that's going to make an adhesive that's going to bond to anything it sticks to. >> So, it's like a quick fix weld of Okay, gotcha. >> And that kid, he's looking over at it like I don't know if this old man knows what he's talking about, you know? And I'm stirring it up with that matchick just as good as I can. I ain't got no paintbrush, none of that. I didn't even have a Q-tip at the time. That's what really bothered me. But I take that mastic, get me a knife, and I go to beaten on it to flatten it out to where it's like a brush. Okay. >> Okay. >> JB weld is red because it's gray. One's white, one's black. You mix them together, it turns gray. >> Okay. >> And then you just paint them on them teeth. You just cap it. And I told him, I said, "We got to let that dry for a minute." Kept that stick back there in his jaw. About five minutes went by. I told him, I said, "Take that out of there. Don't be drinking no water. Don't drink no alcohol. Let that stuff set up good. >> He walked out from under the fly of the wagon and he went and he turned around. He smiled with them teeth gone. You could just see that gray, you know, and he said, "My God, it worked." He said, "It's not hurting." >> Nice. >> I said, "Good." I said, "But you got to remember one thing." I said, "I'm not a dentist. I'm not going to send you a bill. You didn't have to wait in line, and I don't take insurance." I said, "We'll give you my phone number." I said, "You let me know how you're doing six, seven weeks down the road." I should have never given him my phone number. >> Oh, why? >> He called and he said, "You know, Kent, I had to go to the dentist up there at Albuquerque and uh he wasn't too proud of you." >> He said he couldn't hardly grind that stuff off there. >> Oh gosh. >> He said they finally got them pulled out. He said, "Now I got me some implants." But he said he did tell me to tell you this quick fix, great fix in a short amount of time. You done some good. But he said please don't go into the dental business, you know. But again, 60 miles from somewhere, you know, >> and it wasn't life-threatening, but it was sure painful. >> Oh, yeah. It is is not pleasant. >> Now, the next one we're going into is probably a most requested by cowboys who aren't even sick. Yeah. >> And this would be your famous hot totty. >> Yeah. >> So, what does a hot totty cure and what is your secret recipe? >> Hot totty really is for just an old dry hacking cough. >> Okay. >> You know, sure it's going to make you sleep a little better maybe, but we had this old fell in camp. He'd come up there. He was partners with the guy that was running the cattle on the ranch. They had some stuff together. and he come in at supper, you know, and I'm thinking, be glad, you know, when supper's over, he can get over in his house and cough all he wants. Well, he wasn't far enough away from him. I could hear him all night, you know. And then I'm I begin to feel a little empathy for him, you know. So the next morning he come in there and I said, "U that cough is bad." He said, "I hope he didn't keep you awake, Kent." I said, "Well, we don't worry about that, but I said, "We need to work on that cough." I said, "It's pretty windy today." I said, 'Most coughs are caused like that, old dry hacking cough, allergies, something like that, you know. And so got over it and I told him, I'm going to fix you hot totty. There's always coffee on Bertha and especially in the winter time. There's two pots up there. >> And Bertha is our good old trusty wood. >> Oh yeah. And she was putting out some rays of love that morning she was. So I pour about I'd say a four of a cup of coffee in that cup. And I go over there and always keep available in the winter time. I have lemons in a nice chest. Oh. >> Because lemon not only is an antiseptic, but it's good to clean cutting boards, but it's also a great antibiotic. >> Lemons are great. Yeah. >> So, take one of them lemons, roll them around their own chuck box a little, squish all that juice in that coffee. Honey, honey is great. Honey has so many great properties for healing people. And it's better if the honey is like local to your area so your bees have the right zip code. Uh they know what's happening. >> Okay. >> So put a little honey in there. Stir all that up. Then whiskey. >> Classic cowboy ingredient. >> You if it's a four of a cup of coffee and a little bit of the other stuff and then rest is whiskey. Stir it up really well. I usually sometimes if it's really really cold, I'll put this back in a little pot and heat it really well, you know. But that old coffee was good and hot. I give it to him. Uh he drank it that day at lunch when he come in. There was no coffin. There was no coffin at night. But there was this that night. Every cowboy that come through that door. And I'm I said, "No, you ain't getting no hot toddy. You don't need one of them." You know, >> but there's there's so much you can do with the ingredients you have on hand. Yeah. You know, for for the same dry hacking cough, there were so many times that I would just take a white onion, cut it in half, quarter it, throw it in a pot, fill water right above it, garlic cloves, uh little bit of cinnamon, let it boil till the onion nearly falls apart. >> Okay? >> And then you just let it cool a minute, put your head over that, put a cup towel over your head, and you breathe that in for about 15 minutes. Just deep, slow breathing. Uh it's good for sinus infections, it's good for coughs. Uh >> you've used that a lot. >> Oh yeah, I've seen it work so many times. >> Um onions are another great ingredient especially when you were growing up. A pus. >> Yeah. >> Um did you do that on your feet? >> You could do it on your feet or anything that was really sore, you know, like you have bruises somewhere, put an onion. But you could put an onion in a sock, put it on, you know, your feet stunk anyway most time, you know, for our our line of work. But the onion would be black the next morning. Now you take that same onion, you cut it in half. You lay it out there in a just a bowl in your bedroom and just let it sit. It will eventually turn black from the things that it is collecting. And I haven't researched this fully, but a lot of old women would tell me we keep one in our bedroom all the times in the winter because it helps with mold, mildew. >> Hey K, what is your favorite cooking ingredient? I'd have to say bacon. >> Great answer because this one's going to shock you guys because you have a cowboy cure that involves bacon grease, right? >> Yeah. Or just bacon fat. >> Okay. So, what is it? >> And this is old-timers used this way back in the Civil War. You know, this has been been around a long time. I'm surprised the medical people in the world today don't have bacon in a first aid kit because it would work wonders. It would. But uh had an old fell come into camp, good friend of mine, and uh he sort of put it off a day or two. But I noticed one day when he come in, his old elbow was all bloody, you know, and uh he come in that night at suffering. He said, "Boy, Kenn," he said, "I jobbed an old mosqu thorn way up in there." And some of them old mosqu thorns, you've seen them, you know, they three or four inches. >> Yeah. They got a little poison in them, you know. >> Yeah. >> And it went through We'll get medical on you. Okay. right below the electronon process. That is a bone in your elbow and you can feel it right in here and it just you couldn't even see it. It had broke. He tried to get it with a pocket knife to see your own elbow. >> Kept breaking. Yeah. >> And it's broke off under there and that thing is I mean it's swollen. He said you're going to have to get that out for me. And I at the time and I did carry ace promisine which is a drug that we used on cattle or horses to numb pain. You give them something like if you was going to do a C-section on a cow or something like that. And he said, "Ah, just go ahead, Ken. I don't need none of that." Well, I told him, I said, "As swollen as that is right now, Tom," I said, "We're just going to put a pus on it tonight and let it go to work." I said, "We're going to soften that thing up." Most of you would be thinking, "We'll just cover that up with Neosporin and a band-aid to make it soft to where you can get it." >> This is beyond the band-aid point, though, right? >> Oh, yes. >> And uh so I went over at the ice chest, pulled out a package of bacon. There's always a fatty end, you know, and I just cut off about four pieces right there, just old solid white fat. And I just laid it on there, taped it up, then covered it with a cloth. Tom said, "Is that bacon fat?" I said, "Yeah." He said, "I ain't going to let the dog sleep with me tonight." I said, "No, it'd probably be better that he sleep outside." So the next morning when he come in there, I said, "How your arm?" He said, "I think it does actually feel a little better." >> So we took it off and the swelling had went down a little bit. It was so much softer in there >> and I could see just a little. Now I do have a really good scalpel. I do have me a really good pair of forceps. And I told him, I said, "We're going to dab a little alcohol on there," which was pure alcohol. Then we were we were sophisticated and we cleaned it. And he's just sitting there with that lid on the chuck. I mean, just with his arm on the chuck box lid, which is the table that folds down from the chuckway. >> This was your working surface. >> And he's just sitting there with it propped up there like that. And I make me a little bitty cut. He don't flinch. He don't moan. He don't groan. He don't do nothing. And I can see that splinter. I can see the head of that old mosqu thorn. So I get them forceps and I reach in there far as I can. Tom never moves a muscle. And I get a hole. I was shocked, folks, at how big this thing was. >> Did you get it on the first try? >> Because I knew if I broke it off again, we'd just have to keep repeating this process. So I got hold of it with them for it. It was probably I'd say that long. >> How long? Like about >> I'd say an inch. good edge. Okay. But it was, you know, this thick where it broke off straight from the bridge. We could have just taped that up, you know, >> but I told Tom, I said, "It'd be a good time to practice a little sewing." >> That's what anybody likes to hear. Yeah. >> When they're at the doctor's practice. >> He said, "How big is it?" And I said, "Well, tell you what, we'll just put some butterfly bandages on." But I told him I said to you many years ago and there was an old man told me this that a cook on the wagon sewed up a guy that had got cut by an old barbwire fence where he just run plum through a horse and just run through it and just laid that open right here something >> like his whole forearm was open >> and he cleaned it and he sewed it up. >> You know what he used for three horseair that was soaked in whiskey. >> Oh >> that way it's antibiotic now. >> Okay. When I sew today, if I have to sew somebody up, I just use wax dental thread, you know. I I'll just It ties easy. It stays tight. And uh >> So when what? Tell me exact like expand on this dental floss sewing. When did you have to do this? >> Well, I I have sewed a few folks up in Have you really? >> Yeah. But it just be like places on top the skin or maybe on the side of a foot. >> And you used like a regular needle? >> No. No. I got a good I mean, my dad worked at the vet clinic. Remember, I'm stocked. I It's not one of them big old hook carpet needles that's this long. You know, you run it through one leg and hit the other leg. >> It's It's tiny. >> And sure, you use >> anything like an ambisol, anything like that's going to deaden skin just a little, take ice to it, you know? >> Okay. >> And it doesn't have to be that deep. And, you know, and just come across through the other side of the skin. >> Pull it. Pull it again three times. Then it's every one of one stitch, two stitch, three stitch, four stitch. >> That's so interesting about the the horseair. Again, like use what you have on hand. >> And back then, even in, you know, 1870s and 80s, you were on a cattle drive and you went through a town, there might not even be a doctor in town, you know, and these places didn't have nobody. >> No. Everybody kind of had to have a little medical experience back then. Um, which it's so funny because you've mentioned the vet hospital or using um horse hair or um different horse or cattle medicine. >> Yeah. >> Um and one that I've always found really interesting was horse linament. >> Yes. And everybody in the kind of cowboy ranch agricultural world will swear by using some sort of a horse linament for aches and pains or um >> you don't cook with it. >> You don't cook with it. But what's so funny too is if you look on the bottle, some of them will say don't use on humans. And I always think well that's exactly what you want to do cuz you know it's going to work. Then >> there is horse linament that you use on raceh horses. any kind of horse you got, you know, sore muscles, tendons, something like that. >> There's one that you found somewhat I mean, you you've used hormon forever. I mean, and especially you've always said um when you were rodeoing really hard. Yeah. >> You used one. Um but recently you came across one that we did a video on. It kind of went viral. And then also we've had a ton of people comment to us. They're like, "We tried this and my arthritis in my hands is nearly gone." Or, "My back was hurting. I fell and I put this on it and I'm shocked about it." So, um, it's called Vetricin. Um, and this one actually is is good because horse and riders. >> Horse and rider. So, now we're we're technically safe. But what So, what is it doing and why is it different than like an icy hot? Well, I think first of all, they put so much stuff in the ones for human consumption, not eating, but doctrine wise, uh, that they've done away with some of the better properties in there that's going to work. You know, there's there's probably some capsin in these that's going to give you the heat, but there's also some stuff in there, menthol and everything else that's going to help with a cooling process after that. And what we're trying to do is reduce inflammation, you know, okay, >> and help relieve a little pain. Now the two I've used for years and absorbing Jr. was one of the first come out many years ago as a horse linament, you know, but also used on people uh was beagle oil, but it when I first started using it, when I was rodeoing, riding bulls so much, pulled a lot of muscles, get run over, thrashed, uh a guy told me that rodeoed with me, he said, "You take a half a cup of that, pour it in hot bath water, so hot you can't understand it." And he said, "Soak for about 20, 30 minutes." He said, uh, it be even though you ain't got a whirlpool tub, you'll feel like you just been through a really good one. >> And it did work. >> Oh, may make you weak in a way. You know, it just relaxes all your muscles. Don't go to sleep in there and get it in your ears. You know, you don't walk good for a couple years. But, uh, it's the veterin I found out too really works well. But I can remember a kid coming into camp. One of the first times we was at the bolo crouton, had some broke ribs from a horse wreck, you know. Yeah. >> Had a little beagle oil and there's not a lot you can do for a broke rib. You know, sure you don't want it to puncture a lung, something like that. They used to say, "Well, we're going to wrap them." No, you can't wrap them. It'll cause pneumonia, you know. >> Oh, >> but to get some of the swelling and the pain that he was really dealing with from them ribs, we take that beal and rub on there really well, let it dry just a minute, and then we wrap his torso here with saran wrap, which is going to make it sweat. But I told him, I said, "We can't leave this on any longer than 30 minutes where it'll blister the snot out every >> Well, and that's So with the Beagle oil, that's great for like the water because it's a really thin Yeah. >> consistency. And the Vetricin is more like a gel. >> Yeah. >> Um that you can put on topically. So that really works. Like I said, >> I use it every day. >> Do you really? >> Oh, yeah. Every day. I'm all for the old cures, the old remedies. You know, I think mother nature has provided so many of them for us. I'm not a doctor. I'm not a dentist. I'm a pretty good psychologist. >> You know what I think we've kind of ended up doing too is not relying on our bodies to fix the situation. Like just let your body do its thing. However, the body needs a little help sometimes. We don't want to disrupt the the process and we don't want to give it too much shock, but just a little bit of a natural boost. Yeah. >> And I think that's kind of what why these work. We're using mother nature. we're using like tried and trueue for some of these maybe hundreds I don't know thousand years. Um so those are the things that have been tested and and work. >> Yeah. I mean I'm surprised every time we like you said we do one for YouTube the people that will even have more oldtime cures. You know >> that's what I would love to know. If anybody wants to comment, please let us know. Is there an old time cure or natural remedy that you have used that have had success with? because we always love sharing this type of content. So, please let us know. >> You know, Shen was we take care of each other, me and you, and even when we're on a ranch, we take care of what's around us, >> right? >> You know, not only the people, but really the country in which we're in >> and the livestock >> and the livestock. Look around wherever you're at today and know that that person sitting beside you or that person across person across from you on a bus or maybe you're on a subway. I don't know. But think about if something happens, I need to look out for that guy. Let's have each other's back and always give them a pat on the back at a boy, but have their heart too. That's what's going to count. Take care of them. >> And just some simple cowboy cures can get you through life. >> Get us through. bring us together and an easy way for us to take care of one another. >> Yep. >> We hope you all enjoyed this podcast. Kent, I love hearing all the little behind the scenes stories. >> Thank you, sweetheart. >> Um, we are going to keep these stories rolling every week. So, be sure to join us on YouTube. You can see us here talking in our studio, but take us with you on your favorite podcast platform. We're on Apple. We're on Spotify. Anywhere that you find a podcast, we're with you. Join us weekly. And uh we can't wait to hear some more stories as we go. >> It'll be a good time every day. I promise you. Remember, life is simple. Don't complicate it with anything else. And a big thank you to all the servicemen and women and all the veterans that have been out there keeping us free, keeping us safe. We commend you all. Y'all take care of us and we're going to take care of y'all. Pioneer.

I've been a chuckwagon cook for over thirty years, and out on those remote ranches, I'm not just the cook - I'm the doctor, dentist, and psychologist too. In this episode, Shannon and I share some of our favorite cowboy cures: how a pre-1982 penny helps a spider bite, why bacon grease belongs in every first aid kit, and the hot toddy recipe that's been quieting coughs since the cattle drive days. These old-time remedies have worked for generations, and we've got the stories to prove it. Disclaimer: We're not medical professionals - always consult a doctor for real medical concerns. Check out our BEST SELLING cookbooks. Get your copy here: https://www.kentrollins.com/shop Also available at bookstores nationwide, and Amazon www.amazon.com/shop/cowboykentrollins --------------------------------- Connect with us! https://facebook.com/cowboykentrollins https://instagram.com/cowboykentrollins https://twitter.com/Kent_Rollins --------------------------------- Kent Rollins Cowboy Cooking, Cast Iron, Outdoor Cooking, Grilling, Dutch Oven Cooking Note: Some of the above links are affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, we may receive a commission for your click through and purchase.