I bought a rope halter for her and noticed that she was even lighter and more responsive. Bear in mind that this mare has never been heavy. When I put her in a rope halter, it was almost like there was no horse on the lead. However, lately she has decided that if I go to catch her with the rope halter, she will not make it easy. If I show up with her leather one, she is right there waiting to get caught. I am starting to wonder if I may have hurt her with the rope one. I don't need to rip on her face or hang on her to get a response, but I tied her up about a month ago while I went to catch my filly. She has never had tying issues, but I am worried that she might have pulled back when I wasn't there and possibly hurt her poll. She is a lot mor defensive now when I put on the rope halter; her head is high and her back is dropped and tense. Has anyone else ever experienced something like this? I am even considering switching my filly into a leather halter to see if she is more comfortable. She has definitely needed the rope one in the past, but she is very soft on the lead now.
I guess this is one of those times where if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Unfortunately, it took the probable injury of my horse to get it through my thikc head.
Rope halters aren't always such a gentle, touchy-feely piece of equipment.
Gah! Sorry about the errors. The edit button went away. Also, the plain ol' snaffle bit is another one of those that can be a razor in the monkey's paw. I had a friend whose horse was in training with a dressage trainer. She put him in sidereins and a snaffle that he was used to. For some reason, he panicked and fought the sidereins. The snaffle split his tongue horribly. I thought a snaffle was only to be used on one side or the other. Anyway, it's another thing that seems harmless and humane.
ReplyDeleteSo if you have a particular piece of equipment that you feel can be very dangerous and/or cruel, but everyone says how gentle it is, sound off about it here.
ReplyDeleteI think you're probably right, AofG. She associates & remembers the bad feeling she got from it.
ReplyDeleteHorses are smart, eh??
Oh, yes, any gadget can be a menace. Side-Reins, too tight, too quick, too fresh a horse with too much pain being applied, makes them a bit batty.. Okay, a lot. Razor in the monkey's hand is probably safer than any of the gadgets used improperly..
The horses poll is amazingly sensitive. Well, not amazingly, because it's anatomically VerY vulnerable. And therefore, very sensitive.
A thick egg-butt snaffle can be too fat for a horses mouth shape, and discomfort ensues. Proper fit is crucial, in all bits of tack, for the comfort and safety of the horse and rider.
That includes stirrup leathers. Check, and double-check.
Hugs and scritches to Tess.
Hugs and schlobbers to Dillo:)
Unless, of course, she likes her withers scritched:)
Lol! If the Dillo Daughter had withers, she'd surely like them scritched. Tessa is most comfortable in a thinner curved snaffle or a thin French link baucher.
ReplyDeleteThe bit issue is quite perplexing to me. Everyone has an opinion- some love a snaffle, some hate it. I always thought it was the most kindest bit of all in light hands but am now seeing opinions indicating otherwise.
ReplyDeleteConfusing at best.
NCC, it really depends on many factors. Most horses I've ridden suited a snaffle. It's the fatter snaffles, the really fat ones, that can actually do damage, in the wrong shaped mouth. I started Tad in a D-Ring Rubber snaffle. Not a thick bit, at all. Never needed to change it. But, in the wrong hands, any mouth can get ruined, or deadened, or (shudder) broken. Mouths are ReallY tough to fix, completely, once they are broken. Hammering on a horses jaws...(shuddering aGain.)
ReplyDeleteDoesn't matter what bit is in there..
Heavier bits are from riding the wrong end first.
They are needed, to correct previous bad riding.
IMhumblestO, naturally:):)
CRAP, of course, I don't mean that the very best riders can't get the right reaction from various bits. Or that all horses will suit a snaffle. They don't.
ReplyDeleteThe Double-Bridle for Dressage is there for tradition, and for HighSchool work, only.
Hands of the Masters...
sorry, edited for further muddiness:)
Let's add insult to injury while we're at it. Let's say you have a big "kind" snaffle in your horse's mouth. That can't possibly be good enough so you get one of the crank cavesons (well-padded), and crank that mouth shut around that big bit. This infuriates me to no end. One or the other is bad enough, but I swear people are sadists. Who ever heard of a horse going with a relaxed jaw? A horse's mouth carrying a bit comfortably? Never heard of such a thing!
ReplyDeletetough subject...
ReplyDeleteMaybe they tolerate bits? The kinder the bit the more tolerance?
SOme bitless bridles are worse than bitted...IMO. I just use a simple snaffle. Eggbutt I believe. So far so good, he is still light when he wants to be...
A really good test of a bit is to shove your arm through the bridle and bend your elbow so the bit is in between your forearm and upper arm, with the chinstrap at the back of your arm, and pull back on reins. (Bit will rest on your inner elbow, point of elbow is pretend horse's nose!) Even better, put bit under your own chin and have someone pull on the reins. Snaffle bits can really raise a welt in a hurry. A curved, short shanked curb with a leather chinstrap is really kinder. But.... snaffles are for direct rein, curbs are for neck reining. I've no idea what sadist thought up jointed curb/snaffle doohickies. The swinging action of the shanks can really drive some horses nuts. When those bits first came out they had a metal bar that connected the bottom of the shanks together.
ReplyDeleteThe Mylar comfort snaffle has a good design in my opinion because it won't 'teepee' in the horse's mouth.
Mechanical hackimores can do some serious nose damage if not fitted and used wisely. Sidepulls have knots in them and will hurt when yanked on, and rope halters really dig in at the knots. I've seen a lot of horses flipping their face because the halter gets left on under the bridle and it digs in.
The problem with claiming that something is gentle is that people will pull harder. Lets face reality. We design gear that goes from uncomfortable to downright painful to the horse. We train the horse by applying and releasing discomfort. Be honest, use as little discomfort as possible to get the job done, but realize that it does tooo hurt!
Thanks, k. I missed this!
ReplyDelete(slaps forehead!)
How does that happen??
Your last sentence said it. Said exactly right. as usual.
Horse has a responsibility to yield to pressure.
Pain shouldn't be part of pressure.
?
duh?
except under extreme circumstances..
oh, oh, I'm hungry, losing legibility, coherency, glucosey..
(crash)
AofG
ReplyDeleteYou hate figure eight cavessons? No. say it isn't so.
Do you know how long I had to save to get one?
And they are so elegant and purdy looking.
A real finishing touch.
I had a very smart horse who would do this jaw splitting "Oh Oh The Bit Oh Oh".
I have pretty light hands but he was a weiner.
Floated and all potential excuses addressed.
I still live by the 3 finger rule with the figure eight cavesson.
But I like them when necessary.
And they are purdy AofG.LOL
It's not the figure 8 that I have issues with. It's the newly popular crank caveson. The strap under the horse's jaw is doubled and can be tightened way down like a sort of pulley. It's terrible.
ReplyDelete