“Never kick a cow chip on a hot day”

“Never kick a cow chip on a hot day” appears on the internet on several Texas and cowboy joke websites. Some attribute the quote to Will Rogers, but there no evidence of this. It’s more likely that this “cowboy wisdom” was popularized on internet joke collections in the 1990s.
   
 
Texas Wisdom
Never kick a cow chip on a hot day.
     
Some Texas Wisdom
Never kick a cow chip on a hot day. This is like that “don’t wrestle with a pig” axiom we use when giving media training. You know, the one that ends with “You’ll just get dirty and only the pig will enjoy it”? It’s like lifting the lid of a garbage can. Maybe there’s nothing inside, but maybe it really stinks in there.
   
Google Groups: rec.gardens
From:  Zhanataya
Date:  Tues, Mar 9 1999 12:00 am
(...)
Zhanataya
Never kick a cow chip on a hot day.
 
Google Groups: alt.peepsk
From:  Lady Shar of Camelot
Date:  Sat, Mar 27 1999 12:00 am
 
TEXAN’S GUIDE TO LIFE
1. Don’t squat with your spurs on.
2. Good judgement comes from experience, and alot of that comes from bad judgement.
3. Lettin’ the cat out of the bag is a whole lot easier than puttin’ it back in.
4. Never drop your gun to hug a grizzly. 
5. If you’re riding ahead of the herd, take a look back every now and then to make sure it’s still there.
6. If you get to thinking you’re a person of some influence, try ordering somebody else’s dog around.
7. A good horse never comes in a bad color. 
8. After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so good he started roaring. He kept it up until a hunter came along and shot   him….The moral: When you’re full of bull, keep your mouth shut. 
9. Never kick a cow chip on a hot day.

9 August 2001, Pinedale (WY) Roundup, pg. 2 ad:
“Never kick a cow chip on a hot day”—Will Rogers.