Wranglers needed at Historic Guest Ranch near Mauston, Wisconsin ~ 2025 season

Woodside Ranch, Resort, and Conference Center

Email

[email protected]

Location

Mauston, WI

Job Type

Full Time or Seasonal

Salary

Starting at $13/hour

Date Posted

January 25, 2025

Housing Offered

Maybe

Experience

0-2 yrs

How to Apply

https://gowoodside.com/

Via Email

Woodside Ranch hires wranglers who have a solid equestrian/riding background.

About the Ranch

Woodside Ranch is an historic guest ranch located 5 miles east of Mauston, Wisconsin on State Road 82E. The ranch has provided a relaxing, family oriented get-away to thousands of guests from all walks of life for over 100 years. Rustic Cabins are nestled on over 1,000 acres with wooded walking and riding trails, a small lake for boating and catch-and-release fishing, a petting farm that delights young and old alike, trail and wagon rides, and a wide array of scheduled and independent activities for guests.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate can work well with others and has great communication skills as they will be working with the public. The job may include working with animals, but we want our guests to have the best experience, so being able to talk and hold conversations is a must.

Our best employees love the outdoors, enjoy meeting new people, and have no problem putting in long hours and helping out wherever and whenever needed. We live and work together closely for the season so keeping drama to a minimum is key. Enjoying your work and having fun while doing it is important because we spend a lot of time working.

Because of the level of riding and horsemanship at Woodside, applicants should have excellent horsemanship and riding skills. Woodside attracts many experienced riders from around the world as well as novice riders so our barn staff must be able to have the confidence to take out very experienced horsemen and women as well as instruct novice riders on riding and horsemanship skills.

Anyone employed at the ranch must first go through a background check.

Criteria:

Wranglers must be 18 years of age or older
Wranglers must be intermediate/advanced rider
Wrangler must be able to saddle horses and lift western saddles
Wranglers must be able to lift 50lb+ bales of hay
Wranglers will receive 1-2 days off each week (depending on how busy we are)
Wranglers must wear appropriate western attire
Wranglers must have strong communication skills
Wranglers must be safety conscious
Wranglers must be self-motivated, hardworking, and congenial

Responsibilities:

Wranglers are responsible for the care and safety of our horses (approx. 60 head). This includes but not limited to: wrangling, feeding, doctoring, saddling horses, and cleaning pens.
Wranglers groom and tack horses to be used each day
Wrangler will coach and instruct the guests on proper horsemanship
Wranglers are responsible for conducting safe trail rides
Wranglers help maintain and repair tack
Wranglers clean barn and hitching area daily
Wranglers assist in feeding other ranch animals (bison, cows, goats, llamas, and alpaca.)
Wranglers may be asked to help in other departments as needed.
Other duties may include fixing fences, trail clearing/maintenance, etc.
It is important for wranglers to work in a team environment, be able to think for themselves, and handle emergency situations.
Individuals with knowledge of basic veterinary care and horse shoeing skills are encouraged to apply.
The ability to remain flexible to a changing schedule is important while working at Woodside Ranch.
While Woodside Ranch provides its wranglers with ranch horses to ride, wranglers have the option to bring one personal horse with a minimal board fee. Horse will go out with the rest of the herd.
Most evenings except Tuesday wranglers are free and not required to entertain guests. (Tuesdays we ask that wranglers help with the gymkhanas during the summer months)

Room and Board

Room and board is available if not from the area with a small fee paid through automatic payroll deduction. Some rooms are shared, and some are private, depending on housing available. We have two old farmhouses available, both with full kitchen that is shared with other residents of the home and washer/dryer. Wi-fi available in both but not the best connection due to our remote area.

Employee Perks

Ranch employees are paid an hourly wage plus tips from guests and day riders.
Pay period is every two weeks.
Employees get a discount at our Carnage Country store and anything up at our Trading Post bar.
The respectful use of amenities such as the swimming area and volleyball and tennis courts.
We are a part of the Wisconsin Dells Visitors Bureau and working for the ranch, you have access to free/discounted access to a large number of attractions and restaurants in the Dells.

Getting Here and Getting Around

For those staff members who have vehicles, you are free to come and go as you please and there are designated parking areas at the barn for employees.

If you do not have transportation while here, there are always employees that are happy to bring you along to get to work and grocery shopping.

For fun

Staff members are encouraged to participate in activates including horseback riding, archery, dance night, fishing, swimming, movie and bonfire night and any other activities with the guests during your time off. Just remember that even off the clock, if you are on property, you are representing the ranch and to behave accordingly.
The ranch has a small lake that you can row out and fish on or kayak. You can hike our property or drive to other areas in Wisconsin.

There are plenty of opportunities to explore the area. We are only about 20-25 minutes away from the Dells and there are a lot of activities to experience around there.