bits...

Question

-------------------------------------------
The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
hi

i have a 10 yr old mare who i have had for a few years. She was sort of given to my mum and i(i am 14 and live with my mum and dad on a 3500 acre sheep and cattle farm) by 1 of mums relatives to use for mustering. she was always very touchy and jumpy (she hadnt been worked much all her life and ended up being turned out at the back of their property) BUT has drastically changed and gotten really quiet with heaps of work, i took her to a local low-key pony club camp last year and we did really well, i mean she still jumps at stuff every now and then(she has a small bit of arab in her) but is now heaps better than when we got her!!! about a year after we got her we found out she had a tooth broken off causing the 1 above it to grow longer down into its place and not wear off. we got this filed down so its not a problem anymore. she was always a bit hard in the mouth and head up and stuck her nose out. i might add that we use a running martingale to help stop her putting it up too high. now with her tooth problem out of the way she still puts her head up a bit although we have been working on getting her to put it lower and normally is fairly good and doesnt pull much but when we are doing something fast or jumping she pulls a fair bit and is hardish to slow down and stop. 1 of the parents at pony club suggested we try a french link bit, a bit with apple flavouring or a sweet iron bit to help accept the bit better and salivitate better as well.

i wondered what your opinion on this was and what you suggest we do to help this???

she was only broken o bush standards- kick/squeeze(mostly kick) to go, pull with the reins to slow down/stop, pull left rein to go left, pull right rein to go right. from a halt pull with both reins go go backwards. between the both of us we have got her so that she understands proper leg aids, seat and all that so she goes what YOU would call fairly normal aids. but all in all she is heapsbetter than when we got her and would like to improve that further. at the moment we are working on getting her to collect up and lower her head and neck and bring her nose in so shes in a better position and on the bit.

thankyou soooooo much for reading this (i know its fairly long but i also know that without knowing much about the horse its hard to suggest anything) and taking the time to reply back to me, it means alot.
         from kylie
-----Answer-----
Hi Kylie!

Awww...you are so cute:-)  You did not write too much and in fact, explained your issue with your mare far better than most adults who ask me questions!

It sounds like to me that your mare has gaps in her education ~ which you already said you knew.  It also sounds like you have done good things with her, she is amenable to training and is not doing anything dangerous.  You just want to improve her...an excellent idea!

I have owned and trained many Arabs and Arab crosses over the years and it is a natural tendency for them to be high-headed.  What your mare needs is bit acceptance and maybe a bit that allows you to communicate better with her.  I just love, love, love Myler bits.  They are readily available online, just do an Internet search on Myler Bits.

I cannot say which one you need specifically, without riding your mare.  But, they fully explain what each one does and you can easily begin with a Level One Comfort snaffle with D-ring cheekpieces and hooks to secure the headstall and reins.  You may have to upgrade to another bit eventually but, that is a good place to start.

Also, I would put her on an extensive longeing program to get her to accept the bit and go into a natural frame that is not fighting you.

Using a surcingle with side reins with a rubber donut in them will help you to explain to her where you want her to put her head.  She may fight them, or act huffy about them but, she will fall in line eventually.  Do not make them too tight in the beginning to force her head down.  It should be a gradual thing to get her head where you want it.

Once she is going well you can also work on having her extend and collect at all three gaits on the longeline on voice command.  That will transfer to when you are in the saddle.

You can also ride her in draw reins to help her remember what she learned on the longeline.  Draw reins are very helpful but, tricky.  You have to remember they are a training aid and therefore, a temporary measure.  You have to have excellent hands so you know when to pick them up to get her attention and when to reward her and drop them when she is doing what you want.

I get the feeling you are in Australia or the like.  I can recommend several online tack stores where you can purchase these items.  "Big Dee's" and "State Line Tack" should have everything I mentioned including Myler bits.

Your mare is more than halfway to where you want her and these last few things you want her to know are within reach and should not take long to accomplish.  You mentioned a Pony Club....they should have someone knowledgeable to help you out with these training devices.

You are well on your way to being a responsible horsewoman at such a young age ~ Well Done!

Good luck and remember to always wear a ASTM/SEI approved helmet!

Solange


-----question-----

hi solange!!

thankyou 4 answering my question!!

i forgot to mention that i am currently using a correctly fitted and sized(qualified pony club tack check people said it was too) eggbutt snaffle.

also first thing before we even tried to correct her head and neck position too much we did lunge her with side reins to help her get the feel of it and get comfortable.

then we used draw reins as the next step with a person on her trying to get her to do it. when she started to get better at it i started only really using them to get her to get into a better position at the start of a ride and gradually release the pressure of the draw reins and just use the normal reins. i did this because i know a lot of people dont like to use them because their horses get dependant on you using the draw reins to get them into the correct position and on the bit properly and if they go for a ride without them they wont do it. i did it because i didnt want her to get the same dependance on them.

then i started riding without the draw reins at all. i still lunge her with the side reins occasionally and ride with the draw reins occasionally too.

as i said the pony club i go to is only a small bush 1 where we have 2 weeklong camps a year and a blanch trophy day. most of the kids there are like me. their horses are only trained to bush standards and the instructors are a lot better than us but nothing like what you would see in sydney or somewhere like that. the parent that suggested the other bit has about the best knowledge at that sort of thing than any of the other instructors (he is also an instructor).

yes i am proud to be 1 of the only people in our area that ride with a helmet almost all of the time. most of them only wear them at pony club because its the policy-wear a helmet or dont ride.

as i said she has a bit of arab, welsh pony, australian stock horse and many other breeds. she's got the arab characteristics of- if anything is out of place(even a stalk of grass) she notices it, if she can smell some feral pigs or goats she starts to snort coz she breathing in so hard taking in the smell, she's gotta smell everything, when she gets excited she has a small bit of the high tail and head carriage. but not that much like a purebreed.   

you keep suggesting myler bits and have looked on their website already but i just wanted to ask you what it is about them that you really like and recommend  to everyone??

once again thankyou for your time reading and answering my questions!!!!

Answer
Hi Kylie!

I like to recommend Myler bits because they communicate very well with the horse.  Mr. Myler actually did an amazing job improving on the idea of bits.

I met him at a lecture he was giving and he is an excellent horseman with solid ideas.

His system of three levels works well.... and the ability to special order anything you want for any size horse is
an added bonus.

I own 5 different Myler bits and while they are more expensive, they are well worth it when you are training or adjusting.

They have a book and a video you can purchase that clearly explains their system, which is a big help for someone who has never used one.  Or, does not understand the way bits work, period.

One of my pet peeves is that riders just throw anything in a horse's mouth and expect the horse to "know" what to do.

All tack is important and the right tack can make the biggest difference.  Having the correct bit for the correct situation is of the utmost importance.

I am happy to hear you always wear an approved helmet and you just keep right on doing that!

Good luck with the Myler bits and please feel free to ask me anything else!  I am very pleased that you are so serious and conscientious with your riding partner....and trust me, she appreciates it too!

Solange