A 'snaffle mouthed' rant.

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Cedars

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And a plea....!

PLEASE please please please PLEASE do not ride your horse in a snaffle if another bit would suit him better, just so you can write it in the advert!

I have seen SO many horses now, described as snaffle mouthed in the advert, who are definitely NOT - and that wouldnt put people off! I would so much rather someone said, "X wears Y bit, because of Z reason, and it does C", than I got on a horse and either had to haul it in the mouth to stop, won't go round, etc etc etc.

If you can show me you've thought about your bit choice, then that would be fine!

Who agrees?!
 
so your basing your opinion that an owner has the wrong bit on a horse when youve only ever seen it ridden once, where as the owner would know the horse a lot better,
 
I do. One of mine is snaffle mouthed, and in no way strong, though can lean on the bit if you let him drop onto his forehand. He is the 'worst' of my three for spooking and being an idiot, but isn't strong.
 
There are so many kinds of snaffle I don't really get the point of adverts using it as a selling point. In heavy hands some snaffles can be pretty nasty. If you don't like how a horse is going maybe watch how the owner rides for a bit or ask if they use any other bits that you could try?
 
Oh no, this isn't when we ride it! This is when the owners ride it! We've seen horses tanking off with the owners, horses doing a giraffe impression, total inability to steer the horse....and a lot of these are videos that they've sent us to show us the best!

Its almost like people think snaffle mouth makes a horse intrinsically safe - when IME it can actually mean the opposite!

I wonder whether it comes from when there werent as much variation in bits as there are now?? So it was snaffle, or something much harsher? As someone says ^^^, there are many variations on the simple snaffle now, so WHY ride them in a simple rubber bar if you cant stop them!!
 
Yes I was at a yard where someone considered a 3 ring gag to be a 'snaffle'.

Really annoyed me, especially as the horse was a lovely ride, and only needed the gag cos he was too much for over horsed son, who was of an age, and standard when he should have had a 14hh pony not a 16.2hh horse.
 
Shazzababs said:
Yes I was at a yard where someone considered a 3 ring gag to be a 'snaffle'.

Really annoyed me, especially as the horse was a lovely ride, and only needed the gag cos he was too much for over horsed son, who was of an age, and standard when he should have had a 14hh pony not a 16.2hh horse.
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Why would that annoy you?
And 3 ring gags are referred to as snaffle gags because of the "snaffle" action.

Snaffle is a really weird word - never really thought about it before!
 
I'm not really understanding, you mean you turn up and they've got it in a snaffle for the viewing and it's not working or do you mean that they normally ride it in a snaffle and it would go better in something else?

If the former surely it's easy to ask what they normally ride it in, if the latter then you have to make a decision whether you want the horse and to sort it's bitting out later whilst rubbing your hands with glee as the fact it's not going well in the bit they have chosen means you should get it at a better price.

Can't see why it would be worth ranting about.
 
jemima_too said:
I'm not really understanding, you mean you turn up and they've got it in a snaffle for the viewing and it's not working or do you mean that they normally ride it in a snaffle and it would go better in something else?

If the former surely it's easy to ask what they normally ride it in, if the latter then you have to make a decision whether you want the horse and to sort it's bitting out later whilst rubbing your hands with glee as the fact it's not going well in the bit they have chosen means you should get it at a better price.

Can't see why it would be worth ranting about.
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This
 
my mare is in a french link snaffle mouth and good most of the time, on the bit, brakes ...
but can still tuck her head in behind the bit and p off with me if she fancies it! What you see briefly doesn't mean the horse needs bitting up etc etc

i'm aware that she needs a gag for jumping so change accordingly but agree with whoever said it, no need to to rant.
 
As i mentioned in another thread, i was so worried over a single jointed snaffle being a nasty action etc....i put her in a linked bit, she hated it and made sure i knew it! back in single joint and is a poppet!

I also know a welsh d, that put in a eggbutt snaffle and your arms will ache, stick her in a gag, and she is incredibly light and working correctly.
 
Lolita said:
I went to view a "snaffle mouth" horse who turned out to be a snaffle hack but in the school he was ridden in a sever myler combination bit!
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Interesting you should call a myler combination severe. I can jump PF in a happy mouth snaffle, but a myler combination does ******* all; brakes are rubbish and steering fuzzy. Antifaz, on the other hand, went very very well in it. All relative, isn't it?
 
Well I took my instructor and they said all the parts added on to Mylar bit etc had made it more sever than a Dutch gag and the horse did in fact turn out to be very strong :)
 
Its not just one viewing though - when you view, then they send you a bunch of videos and photos of 'the best bits' and the problem is still there!

Its just such a shame that, for a line in an advert, people underbit their horses, when I'm sure actually people would be much happier to see them in the right bit for them, regardless of the 'strength' of it!
 
I do think it's far nicer to have a 'more severe' bit that you only have to use lightly than pulling a horse's mouth out with a 'less severe' bit.
Both of mine are ridden in snaffles, the gelding has your plain old jointed snaffle and the mare has a french link snaffle. The mare however has a dutch gag for jumping and hunting, although before we had her she was third ring for everything!
 
"Snaffle mouthed" can occassionally mean "we can't stop the bugger in anything so we went back to a snaffle because it looks/sounds better!"
 
I would rather ride a horse in a strong bit with a light rein contact, than haul on it's mouth with a snaffle.

My cob isn't strong, but his conformation means he can be heavy in the hand - he's 19, we don't school, we have fun hacking, and he's out of the hanging french link at the moment, and in a ported pelham. He goes beautifully, forward but not tanky, and he flexes - in the same hacking situation in a snaffle, the head would be up and the bull neck working against my hand.

I hope that my four year old will be in snaffle, going forward into a light and consistant contact, as she continues to be ridden on, it will be my fault if I hurt or ruin her mouth, and I'm acutely aware of the responsibiity.
 
Cedars said:
Its not just one viewing though - when you view, then they send you a bunch of videos and photos of 'the best bits' and the problem is still there!

Its just such a shame that, for a line in an advert, people underbit their horses, when I'm sure actually people would be much happier to see them in the right bit for them, regardless of the 'strength' of it!
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a horse is never under bitted, most problems seen are due to a rider.

now cedars correct me if im wrong but you are infact flamehead? the same poster that needed help in teaching a youngster to trot up, how on earth do you think you are able to take on a strong fit, tb/wb type eventer?

let alone pass judgement on an owners bitting choice thinking you know better... LOL.:)
 
Cedars said:
And a plea....!

PLEASE please please please PLEASE do not ride your horse in a snaffle if another bit would suit him better, just so you can write it in the advert!

I have seen SO many horses now, described as snaffle mouthed in the advert, who are definitely NOT - and that wouldnt put people off! I would so much rather someone said, "X wears Y bit, because of Z reason, and it does C", than I got on a horse and either had to haul it in the mouth to stop, won't go round, etc etc etc.

If you can show me you've thought about your bit choice, then that would be fine!

Who agrees?!
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101% agree!!
 
horsegirl said:
I don't see why people get so worked up about what other people put on their horses.
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Not very often we agree horsegirl, but you are bang on the money there.
I used to get irritated by it, and then I decided I would only be bothered about things that affect me and my horses- it works so much better for me this way. :)
 
Lolita said:
I went to view a "snaffle mouth" horse who turned out to be a snaffle hack but in the school he was ridden in a sever myler combination bit!
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I don't think of a myler combination bit as severe - if anything, I think it's less severe as it spreads the pressure away from the mouth to the nose, jaw and poll as well so the mouth only takes a quarter of the pressure.
When my mare was very anxious about any pressure in her mouth I rode in a rope hackamore for a while then a myler combination to help her to relax as the pressure wasn't all on her mouth. I found that she opened her mouth and tensed her mouth much less in this bit than she would in a conventional snaffle so it was a really great transition for us.
So, in the opinion of my horse, who has worn it, a myler combination is not really a severe bit. It is really quite comforting.
If I wanted better brakes I would go back to the rope hackamore.
 
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