[KimRL]

Hey everybody!
I had posted a question earlier regarding if a Myler Bit was legal in the showring (it has a Level 1 Comfort Snaffle mouthpiece with 5 1/2 inch Western shanks). Many graciously replied that it should be legal.

My next question comes from the fact that I am now wondering if this bit is the correct bit that I need to be using with this horse. He has had a lot of training put on him but due to the circumstances with the previous owner, we are unsure how much training he had. He is 10 years old.

I am definitely sure that he was used in hunt seat classes as his carriage and ground traveling stride seem to favor that discipline. However, he does have a nice smooth jog and lope and am wanting to show him in Western Pleasure classes. He does achieve proper headset when riding him in this Myler bit and using direct reining technique.

However, I do believe it is required that he be ridden one handed in WP classes and I am having a harder time achieving a proper headset using only one hand on the reins. I put him in a medium port curb bit tonight and seemed to actually get a lot less response in regards to headset than I had assumed I would get.

Does anyone have any suggestions? I am a little confused in what to try next in order to get more response on a looser rein. Does he need a low port bit that would provide more tongue pressure to bring him more into the bridle or should I just use the Myler bit that I have been using and hope to get a correct headset when the judge is looking???

Below is a picture of the Myler bit I have been using:


Below is a similiar that I tried on him tonight that did not achieve much response:


Hope this all was not too confusing. Thanks so much for your insights and opinions.
Kim

[doublebarr]

Originally Posted by KimRL

Hey everybody!
My next question comes from the fact that I am now wondering if this bit is the correct bit that I need to be using with this horse. He has had a lot of training put on him but due to the circumstances with the previous owner, we are unsure how much training he had. He is 10 years old.

I am definitely sure that he was used in hunt seat classes as his carriage and ground traveling stride seem to favor that discipline. However, he does have a nice smooth jog and lope and am wanting to show him in Western Pleasure classes. He does achieve proper headset when riding him in this Myler bit and using direct reining technique.

However, I do believe it is required that he be ridden one handed in WP classes and I am having a harder time achieving a proper headset using only one hand on the reins. I put him in a medium port curb bit tonight and seemed to actually get a lot less response in regards to headset than I had assumed I would get.

Does anyone have any suggestions? I am a little confused in what to try next in order to get more response on a looser rein. Does he need a low port bit that would provide more tongue pressure to bring him more into the bridle or should I just use the Myler bit that I have been using and hope to get a correct headset when the judge is looking???

When we work on head set we actually start from the snaffle. Of course, as I've posted before, all our training work is done in a snaffle once we finish the bare bone basics in the sidepull. (I put about 60 days of light training, driving, then learning to carry a rider and moving when asked as late 2 year olds then back to the pasture till next year.) When we get back on them in the 2nd year of training we start looking for beginning refinement. We go to the snaffle and begin working on collection and carriage. I want him very light on the snaffle. To work on the headset I will lightly put tension on the reins apply slight leg pressure (not enough to ask him to move but so he feels you are asking for something) and as soon as he drops his head even a fraction and softens, release pressure. Once he has this down we will work on it while moving. We do this throughout the training sessions. By the end of the summer a little leg and touch of the reins will have him bringing his head back into position. I do not want the head to be at his knees, I just want him to soften and relax his poll and level out the topline.

Since your boy is 10 and has supposedly been through some training, I would suggest you pop a snaffle in and try the squeese/ask method and see what happens. He may just need a refresher if the training was there. If not, you will be better off in the end if you teach this lesson now. Then, once you put the curb back in, you won't have to use directional control, just legs and a very soft tightening of reins to bring the head back to you.

However, a WP headset, done correctly, needs correct muscle conditioning done over time. If he does not carry himself up through the back and collected, then the headset will not be correct. You may still get his head down, but it will affect his overall carriage.

Do you have access to a WP trainer in your area? That would be a really good place to start with your boy and let someone "see" what he is doing and they will be better able to tell you what to work on.

[oldhag]

That's good advice very kindly put by doublebarr.

I'm not as tactful. I don't mean to be nasty, but it sometimes comes over rather blunt.

It's training and equestrian tact which affect the horses carriage. NOT THE BIT.

[cd_horton]

You may try the Myler Bits with the Hinged Ported Barrle

[KimRL]

Thanks so much Doublebarr and CD Horton. I appreciate your consideration of the fact that it is hard to put every detail about a person's riding and horse's training down while "talking" over the internet.

To OldHag, I have to agree to a certain point; however, I was asking in a generalized way to get an opinion on what type of bit to use since I have no idea what he may have been trained in. The BIT is what relays the message from the hands to the horse what is being asked.

Any additional opinions on what might be tried would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[AllAroundHorses]

First off, to teach a headset I use the snaffle, then once they understand converting them over to the curb bit is not too difficult.

I see that I am a little late to post here, but I might still be able to help.

I prefer not to use draw reins or martingales because if not used in the right hands (even sometimes when used in expereienced hands), you can cause a horse to become behind the bit.

One thing to remember is the headset is only half of it! You need to get the hindquarters working with you too, so you have a nice rounded back and that will naturally bring the head lower. First make sure you have proper impulsion to work with before you start asking for a head set, or else you will encourage your horse to move downhill. For a horse to properly carry him/herself they need to do quite a bit of muscle built up and it takes time!

Ok, so what I like to do:
When starting a young horse, before I even ride them, once they are advanced in lunging, I teach them the headset. I will use a saddle, bridle and halter. I almost always lunge using the halter ring, but sometimes use the bridle and bit. A lungeing lesson that includes this would probably look like this...warm up free, with the bridle on but no restrictions. Then I will take my reins and run them in between the horse's legs and tie them right behind the pomel of the saddle. NOT TOO TIGHT, that would force the horse behind the bit. I want just enough pressure so that they feel the seesaw motion on their bit (always a snaffle bit!!!) which encourages them to stretch their necks down and out, also encouraging rounding of their backs (kind of like the long and low dressage exercise).

Later when I do saddle work I make sure to ask for impulsion from behind to get them stepping adequetly underneith themselves. Also since they got the lunging lesson where bit pressure meant lowering their head, they will be much more willing to lower their head for you later when you are riding.

[doublebarr]

AAH - this thread is over 3 years old since the last post, LOL!

[GotaDunQH]

Originally Posted by KimRL

Hey everybody!

Below is a similiar that I tried on him tonight that did not achieve much response:


Hope this all was not too confusing. Thanks so much for your insights and opinions.
Kim

I use this type of bit on my WP horse, but he's a finished horse and has learned how to carry this bit and respond to it. I would go back to snaffle, then move on to a low port with a swivel shank.

Jennifer

[AllAroundHorses]

double bar,

haha, I just looked at the month it was posted not the year!!! Oh well, maybe it will help someone else