Cut mouth

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gable

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My horse has a small cut on the corner of his mouth - I hold myself fully responsible for obviously pulling when he got very strong when going out for a gallop.

He is in a french link fulmer snaffle.

I wont ride him now till it heals but have a couple of questions...

1. Should I change his bit for open country or is there something else I can do to gain control when he is going flat out with his head between his knees.

2. Other than leave him till it has healed, is there anything I can put on it to help it heal quicker.

Thanks
 
Don't let him put his head between his knees, try "bridging your reins" as racing people do, then you just sit back and relax a bit with your hands on his withers. ride with your stirrups a bit shorter so you can use your bodyweight to balance with.

The harder you pull the harder he will resist.
Of course try to find a nice steep hill so things are in your favour.
Vaseline.
 
Thanks. Will try to sit back more but I naturally sit in forward seat when galloping.

This is going to be tricky.

Will get some vaseline when I shop later.
 
Unfortunately, the cut will take quite a long time to heal so you may have to re-think your plan not to ride. Because the mouth is constantly moving (chewing, licking etc etc) it doesn't repair easily. I resorted to using a hackamore which I found surprisingly good - even had my dressage lessons using it. You will be amazed just how much control you have. My friend had a big, strong, exciteable mare which she was able to manage quite well when she borrowed it.
Once the cut looks like its healed, invest in some rubber bit rings as these will help protect the area.
 
The best thing for a cut mouth is alum. Get some alum crystals, dissolve in water, dip some gauze in it then wrap round the bit where the cut is. Get Horse to wear bridle for a few mins. You can 'top up' the solution every few mins. You can get the crystals from a chemist. It heals cut mouths amazingly quickly. I found that with my Horse using an unjointed bit was the only way to stop him cutting his mouth.
 
Thanks a lot.
It looks much better already but will do some ground work and free schooling for a while until it is healed.
 
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