Why did Gus make these decisions?

I do not have an answer to question one. I have often wondered the same thing. Maybe it has to do with Gus being a retired lawman. It would be unethical to shoot someone in the back, even a criminal.


In the book it explains that Gus kills his horse so he will have something to hide behind. He stabbed it in the neck so it would spill much blood on the ground while dying. Horses are spooked by the smell of blood. When the chasing horses got near enough to smell the blood they would get all skittish and this would give Gus an opportunity to shoot several of the pursuers as they fight to get their horses under control.


It took Gus a long time to set up the shot that hits Dog Face. He did not have time to set up another shot. The men ran in and quickly grabbed him and drug him back to a safe distance.

Wow ... I learn somethin' new everyday!
I didn't know that about horses! Makes things much clearer ...
Thanx!

(I surely need to read the book someday)

Gus regrets that he didn't shoot Blue Duck in the creek. But, as Call said, it was pretty risky. Gus was not in the best position. Blue Duck was very dangerous; and it could have gone badly. And, I guess, just thinking about it from McMurtry's possible point of view -- he had more to write about Blue Duck.

Gus killed the horse, with regret, to use him for cover. They were on the plains. Gus had no place to hide except a very short little arroyo. I daresay many a horse during those years met a similar fate when their riders needed them. At that point, the horse was more valuable dead than alive.

I'm guessing Gus needed more time to set up a long-range shot like that; and by then, the guys were back out of range. Gus did get them, quickly and neatly, later on in Blue Duck's camp; at short range with his pistol.

In the novel it is stated by Gus that the reason he did not shoot blue duck when he had the advantage was because he did not know who he was. By the time Mr duck had told him, Gus told call that he no longer had the advantage making it a more risky situation to make a move. He claimed he would have killed him but may have also been wounded himself, and did not care to travel to Montana with a wound.

To respond to the question of why he left newt to guard Lorena, that was explained in the novel by the fact that deets had tracked blue duck a long ways from both Lorena and the cow camp before he lost his trail. They were more worried about duck stealing horses than Lorena and increased the guard on the horses. Gus also later blames the fact that he had spent too much time drinking whiskey and had been idle for too long as the reason he didn't really believe blue duck would go after Lorie. Hope that helps