Bit suggestions sought...

[lorilu]

Back in December I finally found a wonderful trail horse. Lusitano, 14 yo, very sound of mind and body.
And he seems to have quite a few buttons - dressage buttons !!
SO of course I am exploring the possibilities, probably going into the western dressage direction.
BEFORE I START - TEETH WERE CHECKED AT PPE, IN FACT MY DENTIST IS RECHECKING IN 10 DAYS, HE HAS BEEN SEEN BY MY CHIRO/ACCUPUNCTURIST, FOLLOW UP MONDAY.
Here is the problem: Apparently he was ruined as a youth by a "German " dressage trainer back in his home state (out west), and he became a very bad boy, rebelling at contact by violently throwing his head and,as I understand it,standing up tall...... Not much was done with him until last year, when he went to a home who worked cows with him, trail rode, competed extreme trail, etc etc..... He was ridden Californio style, big bit, no contact, romel reins, totally off the seat. Very cool!!

So we have been searching for a bit he will accept that is legal. Bean snaffle - throws head, doesnt stop. French link the same. Pellam with bean - better. Then a local trainer suggested a flat, three-piece with roller, mik-mar pellam. We ride with four reins, but 90% of the time off the snaffle position. HE LOVES IT. Actually beginning to lean on the bit rather than hide from it. He reaches for it. His body relaxes.
http://www.mikmar.com/bit-pages/pelham- ... inted.html
But it is an illegal bit.

So, tried a short shank lower port correction bit, since it only "breaks" in the same fashion as the MM. He is totally intimidated. Then, a short shank with a fat copper roller bean - not any better.

Back to the MM this week, and within two rides, again, fabulous.....I think he likes the stability and weight of it.

SO I am seeking suggestions.
Our plan at this time is to keep him in the bit for a while, and maybe try something else later on after he is more comfortable with contact. But what to try?

Right now I am not comfortable going bitless, so please offer other suggestions.

TIA!!

[Chisamba]

Well my rule of thumb is fussy head, less joints, so my suggestion would be a mullen mouth. Get a curved one that allows tongue room. Try to borrow one of you can to see if he likes it.

[lorilu]

Thanks, Chisamba.

[orono]

If the curb isn't used/needed then the rest of the bit resembles a double jointed baucher. Maybe give one of those a try too. But I am also a fan of less joints..I usually ride in a single jointed, but occasionally a mullen.

[Chisamba]

But a curb is legal in western dressage, no?

[Chisamba]

ps: usually a head flipping horse does so because they do not tolerate the bit on the bars of the mouth. or conversely, hate pressure on the tongue, the main differences between bits are if the put the pressure on the tongue or the bars. work out which your horse prefers, and then look for bits that fit his mouth but still go toward what he prefers.

[lorilu]

Thanks. I had thought about a baucher......
Yes curbs are legal.
And it seems to me that the bit he likes puts a lot of pressure on both the bars and tongue - it is actually quite heavy.....
A question though about non-jointed bits - I have heard, and read, that non-jointed bits such as a mullen or a traditional western curb gives a horse conflicting signals when used two handed (ie, not neck reining). Any comments?

[Chisamba]

the mullen definitely does not give conflicting signals when used two handed, it is designed to be used two handed , this is the bit in case you are not sure what i am talking about:



that might have a bit more curve to it than mine. now as for a curb bit being used two handed, you will get conflicting opinions, but please remember that a weymouth is always commonly two handed, (albeit with a snaffle too)

[pawsplus]

Another suggestion would be a Myler comfort snaffle. It's legal, and it's sort of a combo between a jointed snaffle and a Mullen. Like a Mullen, it's very stable. But you can use each side more independently (and, really, even more so than a regular jointed snaffle, because moving one side does not affect the other as much). I really like them, and I find that both sensitive horses and those who like to lean on bits like them too, inexplicably.

http://www.statelinetack.com/item/myler ... e/E013178/

[redsoxluvr]

What about a Baucher? They are USDF legal.

I had a quarter horse that had a completely destroyed mouth. I started out in a fat snaffle thinking that I was going to rehab his mouth that way. Unfortunately, he nearly took me out a number of times and was completely unsafe to ride in company. (Think 17+ hands of over-muscled, hormone charged nightmare with no steering or brakes.) His favorite thing to do was pin his chin to his chest and totally take over at Warp 10 .

I had to have some modicum of control, so I switched to a pelham with two reins. When he was naughty, I used both the snaffle and curb reins. Eventually, I tied the curb rein up and only rode him off the snaffle. I still had problems from time to time, as I think he had scarring on his bars and tongue from his previous life. Finally, I put him in a simple Baucher snaffle and he was 1000% happier. I guess he was more comfortable with the action of the Baucher instead of any other snaffle. It works more on the poll than the bars.

As always, YMMV.

[lorilu]

Thanks everyone.
After a while in the mikmar, we'll experiment with the mullen and a boucher. I'll come back here and let everyone know how it goes.

Thanks so much!!

[Kyra's Mom]

Yes...I would just ride him in the Mikmar for a good while then do some experimentation.

I have one with a funky mouth full of redundant flabby cheek tissue. I CANNOT ride her in a jointed bit. She immediately sucks it back in her teeth and in chewing on it, pinches the crap out of her cheeks.

Her "magic" bit was a PeeWee bit. Not legal at all. Oh well, I rode her in it for a year. This was after 2 years of fighting, fussing, experimenting with different bits and even going bit less. My credit card was fatigued . Once I found the PeeWee...it was like magic and I am not one to believe in such things. So, I shelved my showing aspirations...that would have just magnified the problems we were already having, especially the tension. She debuted at 8yo . In her thus far short show career, she did very well. I was just ready to make the leap to 2nd level then my body threw in the towel and we haven't made it back into the show ring with no fault on her part. Since I am not showing right now, she is back in the PeeWee and doing much improved in her tendencies to grind and gnash.

I have a Glory mouthpiece bit which is a Mullen mouth that is a Boucher configuration that is legal. The Glory mouthpiece is popular in driving. I think I got about the last Boucher type made. I have not been able to find one for several years (was looking for the Pony size which is a bit smaller diameter). If I can ever get back to the type of riding I want to do, this is the bit I will show her in.

Good luck.
Susan

[jeniferkey]

I had switched to a mullen mouth pelham for the jumping phases with Mairen and was riding some of our dressage in it using mostly the snaffle. He was doing so well I found a mullen boucher that he seems to really like. I had to get it off ebay from England, but he goes so nicely in it.

[heddylamar]

My retiree came to us with the same habit. Once we found a somewhat acceptable bit (thick rubber snaffle), the biggest difference maker was providing consistent, soft hands until she learned to trust again.

The moment she grabbed the bit and began rooting and swinging, I let the reins slide and pushed her forward and slowly regathered light contact. Over 6 months or so the frequency decreased, and from there we quickly moved onto working with contact, etc.

[lorilu]

soft consistent hands - that is the plan. It has now at the point that he doesn't toss his head BUT you can tell he still considers it. A stern "DON'T DO IT!!" voice stops it. However, I don't let the reins slide - when he throws his head, he comes really close to MY head - (short coupled with a short upright neck), so he doesn't get to pull the reins and do that.