anyone had this issue with a straight bar snaffle?

charlie76

charlie76

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Someone advised trying my horse (who tends to come BTV) in a straight bar happy mouth, which I did. He is super in walk and trot but in canter he chucks his head in the air and gets very upset ( something he never does in any other bit). He also gets upset when I shorten my reins. I tried it with and without a flash and he was still upset by it so gave up and put him back in his french link snaffle. Within 2 laps he was back to his normal, non head chucking self!
Has anyone else had this problem? Just goes to show, mild is not nec better!
 
According to SD -
Horses that are extremely sensitive to bar contact can be ridden in an unjointed snaffle, which has a straight or bowed (mullen) mouthpiece. Other horses find this kind of pressure to the tongue extremely annoying, and so one has to try what is best for the horse. But a straight bit can never be used onesidedly. If you move the left side to get position, the bit will lighten/wiggle on the other side.

There's another problem with the straight bar bit as well. and it goes for all bars. They don't fit the mouth very well, unless they're mullen, and to a great extent at that. Although it may not always be as extreme as in the animation to the left, there is always the problem of the straight bar resting against the edges of the palate, when the tongue presses on it.A straight bar does not conform to the mouth, and the horse has nothing between the palate and the bit and cannot protect itself. All he can do to relieve it is take heavy support on the bit, or gape open his mouth.
 
it does sound as though he was objecting to any kind of contact with the straight bar. it's easier to keep a light contact in trot than any other gait because the horse's head and neck are far stiller, so maybe that's why he was fine in trot?
i think the happy mouths are stronger, for want of a better word, than rubber straight bars (the soft bendy black ones) and nathes (which i think are a bit softer plastic than the hms, could be wrong though, haven't handled one for a while), and as detailed above, not all horses suit a straight bar bit.
i teach someone who had her horse in a peewee (so, thin metal straight bar) on softest setting (curb strap thing loose) and the horse, although not exactly fighting the bit, did open her mouth a lot - the peewee is deliberately fitted low too for some reason so that could have had an effect though. horse now seems happier in jointed bit - trying a hippus, seeing how she goes. (couldn't accept anything apart from peewee for months)
it makes sense that a double-jointed bit with lozenge or similar will be able to conform to the internal shape of the mouth far better than a single joint or straight bar, obv. newish research showed that it is narrower across the tongue in there on most horses than previously thought, hence lozenges seem to be getting smaller.
 
it does sound as though he was objecting to any kind of contact with the straight bar. it's easier to keep a light contact in trot than any other gait because the horse's head and neck are far stiller, so maybe that's why he was fine in trot?
i think the happy mouths are stronger, for want of a better word, than rubber straight bars (the soft bendy black ones) and nathes (which i think are a bit softer plastic than the hms, could be wrong though, haven't handled one for a while), and as detailed above, not all horses suit a straight bar bit.
i teach someone who had her horse in a peewee (so, thin metal straight bar) on softest setting (curb strap thing loose) and the horse, although not exactly fighting the bit, did open her mouth a lot - the peewee is deliberately fitted low too for some reason so that could have had an effect though. horse now seems happier in jointed bit - trying a hippus, seeing how she goes. (couldn't accept anything apart from peewee for months)
it makes sense that a double-jointed bit with lozenge or similar will be able to conform to the internal shape of the mouth far better than a single joint or straight bar, obv. newish research showed that it is narrower across the tongue in there on most horses than previously thought, hence lozenges seem to be getting smaller.
 
Mine did EXACTLY that. He loved it in w & t but hated it in canter. He could also get very lean-y on it so we gave up trying, he's now if a full cheek snaffle and loves it!
 
I put my horse in a myler fulmar when he came but although he doesn't go BTV, I found he leaned alot on the left rein. It was suggested I tried a straight bar mullen mouth which was ok, but only for two shows and then he did become BTV! I was then recommended to try him in a loose ring snaffle, with lozenge and he has been fab ever since. the loose ring has really helped his left lean - I know that isn't your problem, but maybe trying a bit with a loose ring might help?
 
charlie76 said:
interesting reading- thanks! any other suggestions for him as I am exhausting my range of bits!
Click to expand...

well, my first choices for jointed are sprenger kk ultra, or sprenger kk with slightly bigger lozenge than the ultra, or hippus H510 (single-joint, but it's a limited hinge rather than swivelling like a normal jointed bit, only moves in 1 plane, so the nutcracker action is far more limited than other single-joint bits). otherwise, nathe might be worth trying, as said above i think they're softer than happy mouth, or rubber snaffle.
tbh though btv might be a habit not necessarily to be cured by the bit, for now...!
 
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