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So as a few of you may know, i got a lovely mare about a month ago. We of course got her vetted before we bought her, and the vet said she was good to go, apart from that she had some issues with her teeth, as the previous owners never got them checked. But she said it was an easy fix and we were willing to go through with it because she is an absolutely incredible horse. Fast forward a week or so, Dentist has been, filed her teeth down, checked for ulcers or any other issues in the mouth, nothing. But for a while now she has had this issue of head tossing. Every time i try and make contact, especially in trot, she tosses her head. In canter its not so bad. We have talked to the vet and dentist and she has no problems whatsoever with her teeth or back or anything, so we have determined its either out of habit (from not having her teeth done for all those years) or just because she is being naughty. Im thinking of trying her in a hackamore bridle to see if that helps. Do you guys have any bit suggestions? We have gone through a few, tried softer ones like a regular snaffle and harder ones like a pelham, but nothing seems to work well. any suggestions? |
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You're likely on the right track by considering hackamores. If her teeth were neglected, she very well could still be expecting pain or discomfort from a bit. |
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It may just be a matter of patience. You're right that she's probably expecting the contact to be painful, so she tosses her head. I personally would keep her in a snaffle and give her time to work out her "new mouth" now that she's been done by the dentist. A hackamore may also be a good idea if her head tossing is really severe or takes more than a few weeks to subside. Do you plan on showing her? If so, is a hackamore allowed in your discipline? |
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thanks for the advice guys <3 My friend has a hackamore that she doesnt use, so ill see if it fits her. And yes i do plan on showing her, she has competed before many times (Showjumping) And a hackamore is allowed. So ill give it a go! thanks guys |
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It could also be related to the mouth anatomy. The style of snaffle etc may not fit. If bit less doesn't work then it may be worth getting a bit fitter out if that's something that's feasible for you. If your sure it's not that or pain then it could simply be pain memory. I would see if she does it bit less but also possibly on the lunge with side reins? |
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Going off of what Kirralee said, are the bits you're using single or double jointed? Double jointed tends to "sit" a little nicer and is typically more comfortable to the horse.
Kirralee said:
It could also be related to the mouth anatomy. The style of snaffle etc may not fit. If bit less doesn't work then it may be worth getting a bit fitter out if that's something that's feasible for you. If your sure it's not that or pain then it could simply be pain memory. I would see if she does it bit less but also possibly on the lunge with side reins?
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thanks for the advice, kiralee! Ironclad We have tried a single jointed snaffle, but like you say it doesnt sit as well. So far we have tried double jointed eggbut, and full cheek as well as just a regular double link snaffle. I think out of all of them the eggbut worked nicest but still had some head stuff going on. Next on the list is a hackamore. |
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Thistleberry Farm said:
thanks for the advice, kiralee! Ironclad We have tried a single jointed snaffle, but like you say it doesnt sit as well. So far we have tried double jointed eggbut, and full cheek as well as just a regular double link snaffle. I think out of all of them the eggbut worked nicest but still had some head stuff going on. Next on the list is a hackamore.
If the hackamore doesn't work you could try a roller snaffle. I know a few people who had horses that were head tossers that stopped once using them. Took a while for them to stop completely due to pain memory/learner behaviour but now 12 months on they are good as gold |
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Ironclad Roan Estate said:
Going off of what Kirralee said, are the bits you're using single or double jointed? Double jointed tends to "sit" a little nicer and is typically more comfortable to the horse.
Kirralee said:
It could also be related to the mouth anatomy. The style of snaffle etc may not fit. If bit less doesn't work then it may be worth getting a bit fitter out if that's something that's feasible for you. If your sure it's not that or pain then it could simply be pain memory. I would see if she does it bit less but also possibly on the lunge with side reins?
I agree. Might be worth trying out different mouth pieces. She could have a low palette. If it's everytime you apply pressure, it could also be a poll problem, might be worth getting a physio or chiropractor out to take a look. Have you tried a hanging cheek snaffle, it's hotly debated in the horse world whether or not its a got a bit of poll pressure, but literally everything is hotly debated in our sport, especially on matters of bitting because no two people ever give you the same answer. From my understanding the bit "hangs" in the mouth when you apply pressure, slightly alleviating tongue and bar pressure, personally, I don't think the hanging cheek applies much more pressure than an egg but or loose ring and I find most horses really like it. Avoid single jointed bits, the nutcracker action isn't liked by many horses. Last thing you wanna do is use anything but a snaffle until you figure out what it is that's causing her to head toss. |
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I love rubber bits, I ride my gelding in either a bosal or a rubber Mullen mouth (the other rubber bits are just metal bits with rubber coating, so that why I went with a Mullen) |
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