bit shopping for Irish Draught

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Tyssandi

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ok I am trying a selection of bits to find the right one for my 16.1hh Irish draught mare for her first sponsored ride. My last ID mare was easy to find the right bit

What have you got your ID horses in for cross country/sponsored rides. She is nearly 7 and has a high head carriage gets strong on the approach and it will be her first sponsored ride - I need to re balance her on the approach as she may come in wrong due to excitement


So far I have tried

trans angle universal
jointed pelham
pelham with peanut
3 ring gag french link
3 ring jointed
straight bar kimblewick with small tongue groove
and hackamore




The best she has gone is the kimblewick and hackamore


hackamoor is out as it was for hacking only and just trying it out

thanx
 
Mines in a normal plain jointed loose ring snaffle, cavesson noseband, running martingale. I wouldnt suddenly change the bit because I was doing smething different (ie a sponsored ride). I'd do it and see how she went, and if I needed to, change bits before the next one, I'd give her an opportunity to get used to the new one hacking etc first.
 
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stormox said:
Mines in a normal plain jointed loose ring snaffle, cavesson noseband, running martingale. I wouldnt suddenly change the bit because I was doing smething different (ie a sponsored ride). I'd do it and see how she went, and if I needed to, change bits before the next one, I'd give her an opportunity to get used to the new one hacking etc first.
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Yes that is what I am doing, hacking with the bits a few times to get her used to it. She has not yet minded any of the bits, but she is a big girl and need brakes due to more novice riders on these rides, I need to make sure if I need to stop I can like if some falls off , loose horse. Etc .
 
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Changed our bridle to a micklem, but kept the same bit. The different bridle has made an amazing difference. Control is back, and head not held high now.
 
School her, the bit no matter of type will only be as effective as the hand that controls it. My big ID's were all schooled in fulmers before moving onto a loose ring snaffle and finally into a double bridle. Once the finished article they would mostly be fine on the bradoon, but if they got leaning or rude, the curb would just sit them up and say 'listen'. Many doubles are fitted incorrectly with the curb at right angles to the ground, fitted like that they will be a waste of time.

A quick fix for an exceptionally rude horse would be an american gag with a back strap plus a standing martingale. I find pelhams on rude uneducated horses simply make them bear down on the hand and run on the forehand. Takes two to pull remember. The skull and jaw is fascinating and after I had studied it I had a much better understanding of pressure around the poll and trigeminal nerve and the crushing of the cheeks with tight nosebands. It is also worthwhile considering that a hard pulling horse is probably an aching horse because he it not fit enough or schooled enough to carry himself in balance. I have certainly pulled a big bit out the box for a fun ride or hunting thinking 'that will stop the B', taken decades for me to realise it won't. Plus a lot of older horses will have had their mouths ruined in previous hands and you will be stuffed to a certain extent in that case.
 
AdorableAlice said:
School her, the bit no matter of type will only be as effective as the hand that controls it. My big ID's were all schooled in fulmers before moving onto a loose ring snaffle and finally into a double bridle. Once the finished article they would mostly be fine on the bradoon, but if they got leaning or rude, the curb would just sit them up and say 'listen'. Many doubles are fitted incorrectly with the curb at right angles to the ground, fitted like that they will be a waste of time.

A quick fix for an exceptionally rude horse would be an american gag with a back strap plus a standing martingale. I find pelhams on rude uneducated horses simply make them bear down on the hand and run on the forehand. Takes two to pull remember. The skull and jaw is fascinating and after I had studied it I had a much better understanding of pressure around the poll and trigeminal nerve and the crushing of the cheeks with tight nosebands. It is also worthwhile considering that a hard pulling horse is probably an aching horse because he it not fit enough or schooled enough to carry himself in balance. I have certainly pulled a big bit out the box for a fun ride or hunting thinking 'that will stop the B', taken decades for me to realise it won't. Plus a lot of older horses will have had their mouths ruined in previous hands and you will be stuffed to a certain extent in that case.
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She is schooled 3 times a week, her flatwork which was behind about 1 - 1/2 years, due to previous owners not schooling correctly, is coming on leaps and bounds despite the hiccups and saddle issues. She is schooled in a peanuts Nuele snaffle, she was allowed to ride head high due to past owners so it is taking time to lose the big under neck and flex naturally from the neck. My last ID was a different ball game as I schooled her from the beginning, western and English and she was a easy horse to bit.

She has gone head high from 2013 so to undo the natural choice of this mare is hard but not always impossible, but for this mare she has a high carriage.
 
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Rowreach said:
Do you mean a Cambridge mouth? Almost all my IDs go/have gone in Cambridge snaffles.
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It has the Cambridge mouth But I have the sprenger kimblewick she went the best in this, as my old ID did but she had the Cambridge one rubber covered without the rein slots.
 
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Spottyappy said:
Changed our bridle to a micklem, but kept the same bit. The different bridle has made an amazing difference. Control is back, and head not held high now.
Click to expand...

Can you send me some picks if you have them with normal bridle and then micklem bridle on Facebook would help me see the difference
 
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