Does anybody use a Micklem as a bitless bridle?

[Charlie31]

Hi, I'm just wondering if anybody uses their Micklem as a bitless bridle and how they get on with it if so?

I use an ordinary bitted bridle at the moment but I'm thinking my horse might be more comfy in the Micklem. I have also seriously considered trying him bitless on several occasions in the past but have chickened out due to fear of the unknown and being confused by the wide range of bitless designs available. I quite like the idea of trying a Micklem and then being able to experiment with both a bitted and a bitless bridle. So I'm just looking to find out people's experiences and opinions really.

Just to add context my horse is currently in a bog standard cavesson bridle with the noseband done up very loosely. He has a Myler low port comfort snaffle as this is the bit he goes best in - he has big lips and a big tongue and I think the design of the bit suits his conformation well. He mostly goes well but if it's a more exciting hack then when we're at walk he will toss his head about / headshake a bit and he'll have a really chomp of his bit. When we get back from any hack all he wants to do his rub his head on anything he can - me, the wall, his rugs etc. He can't wait until the bridle is off and it's particularly around the noseband and mouth area. Once the bridle is off then he's happy.

None of this is excessive but I just think he could be more comfy really so I'm looking to see what I can do for him. Any thoughts or suggestions welcomed please.

 

[emfen1305]

Hi, I'm just wondering if anybody uses their Micklem as a bitless bridle and how they get on with it if so?

I use an ordinary bitted bridle at the moment but I'm thinking my horse might be more comfy in the Micklem. I have also seriously considered trying him bitless on several occasions in the past but have chickened out due to fear of the unknown and being confused by the wide range of bitless designs available. I quite like the idea of trying a Micklem and then being able to experiment with both a bitted and a bitless bridle. So I'm just looking to find out people's experiences and opinions really.

Just to add context my horse is currently in a bog standard cavesson bridle with the noseband done up very loosely. He has a Myler low port comfort snaffle as this is the bit he goes best in - he has big lips and a big tongue and I think the design of the bit suits his conformation well. He mostly goes well but if it's a more exciting hack then when we're at walk he will toss his head about / headshake a bit and he'll have a really chomp of his bit. When we get back from any hack all he wants to do his rub his head on anything he can - me, the wall, his rugs etc. He can't wait until the bridle is off and it's particularly around the noseband and mouth area. Once the bridle is off then he's happy.

None of this is excessive but I just think he could be more comfy really so I'm looking to see what I can do for him. Any thoughts or suggestions welcomed please.

I borrowed a micklem style from my instructor for a couple of weeks before deciding on whether to get my own. My boy can be very fussy in his mouth, he's very mouthy and chews a lot on the bit but i suspect he does this when he is nervous and also when asked to concentrate and work properly as when left alone on a long rein he doesn't chomp - the myler is next on my list of bits to try, he goes best in a ported pelham but he doesn't need one all of the time. Anyway, I didn't notice him settling any better in the micklem with the bit, but I did decide to try him bitless after he pinched his tongue through constant chomping after our lesson (not in the micklem) and whilst I didn't feel out of control at all, he was noticeably more spooky! He had a little nap which he hasn't done in ages and was a nightmare cantering on the field. Could be a bit of spring grass or just an off day but I'm wondering whether the chomping is a bit of a coping mechanism for him and by taking the bit away, he was much more on edge. I haven't tried him in the school as I am giving it back but just an observation I noticed! I'm still on the fence about buying my own.. not sure if this helps, probably not haha!

ETA: What I will say though is I have never ridden my boy bitless before, not even in a headcollar and he adapted to it very well with the micklem, I could turn him very easily and once he had got over himself out on the hack he did begin to relax and drop his head..

 

[pansymouse]

I use mine exclusively bitless in the sidepull configuration - my mare doesn't like having her face squished in the cross over set up. She loves the sidepull but it's not my main bridle as her braking is not that reliable in it. If we're having a relaxed bimble I'll pop it on to give her a break from being bitted.

 

[Charlie31]

I borrowed a micklem style from my instructor for a couple of weeks before deciding on whether to get my own. My boy can be very fussy in his mouth, he's very mouthy and chews a lot on the bit but i suspect he does this when he is nervous and also when asked to concentrate and work properly as when left alone on a long rein he doesn't chomp - the myler is next on my list of bits to try, he goes best in a ported pelham but he doesn't need one all of the time. Anyway, I didn't notice him settling any better in the micklem with the bit, but I did decide to try him bitless after he pinched his tongue through constant chomping after our lesson (not in the micklem) and whilst I didn't feel out of control at all, he was noticeably more spooky! He had a little nap which he hasn't done in ages and was a nightmare cantering on the field. Could be a bit of spring grass or just an off day but I'm wondering whether the chomping is a bit of a coping mechanism for him and by taking the bit away, he was much more on edge. I haven't tried him in the school as I am giving it back but just an observation I noticed! I'm still on the fence about buying my own.. not sure if this helps, probably not haha!

ETA: What I will say though is I have never ridden my boy bitless before, not even in a headcollar and he adapted to it very well with the micklem, I could turn him very easily and once he had got over himself out on the hack he did begin to relax and drop his head..

Thanks and that's an interesting perspective about the chomping on the bit. Mine will generally only do it when he's excited and by the end of the tide when he's calmed down it stops again. It's a good point that it could be some sort of coping mechanism and so behavioural rather than physical. It's good that your boy did relax with it on the bitless setting though. I too have never ridden mine bitless and am becoming increasingly interested in the idea. I've not idea how it would go though...

I do recommend trying a Myler by the way. I've tried quite a few different things and this is by far the one that has worked best. My horse went through a phase of being really rude and strong last year and I found that in the Myler I generally had control just with a light touch, which is obviously much more preferable to yanking on his mouth. I'm more of a hacker than one for going in the school though and generally like to go on a loose rein as much as possible so I can't really say whether it would be any good in the school or not.

I use mine exclusively bitless in the sidepull configuration - my mare doesn't like having her face squished in the cross over set up. She loves the sidepull but it's not my main bridle as her braking is not that reliable in it. If we're having a relaxed bimble I'll pop it on to give her a break from being bitted.

This is another possibility if I found that the bitless wasn't good on fast rides. I guess at least with there being three different set ups you can try them all in one go rather than trying one specific bitless design to find that your horse wasn't comfortable in it. Do you not use the Micklem when you're using a bit then? Any particular reason why not?

 

[pansymouse]

This is another possibility if I found that the bitless wasn't good on fast rides. I guess at least with there being three different set ups you can try them all in one go rather than trying one specific bitless design to find that your horse wasn't comfortable in it. Do you not use the Micklem when you're using a bit then? Any particular reason why not?

I've never used the Micklem with a bit, my mare prefers no noseband with a bit. I use a Bombers Tongue Relief bit which I find even better than a Myler. She has a big tongue and a small mouth so bitting her comfortably is always a challenge.

I'm a bridle maker so I should spend some time designing a bitless bridle that gives face squish-free braking, I suppose.

 

[Charlie31]

I've never used the Micklem with a bit, my mare prefers no noseband with a bit. I use a Bombers Tongue Relief bit which I find even better than a Myler. She has a big tongue and a small mouth so bitting her comfortably is always a challenge.

I'm a bridle maker so I should spend some time designing a bitless bridle that gives face squish-free braking, I suppose.

Thanks for explaining. I did try the Bombers bit before the Myler actually and he was okay in it but not as good as the Myler. Also brakes were a serious issue when he got excited on a fun ride! I still have it as a back up for if he gets sick of the Myler though.

Have never tried no noseband so that could be an option too, especially given that I voluntary have it ridiculously loose all the time anyway.

I wonder if it's possible to design a bridle that doesn't put some pressure on somewhere, I guess they all use force in one place or another as a means of having some sort of control don't they?

 

[claracanter]

I ride my ex racer in a Micklem and he is very fussy in the mouth. I started riding him bitless with the side pull configuration to diffuse the situation. The first time I did it, I thought I must be mad but I've had no problem with him at all. He had been off for 9 months with a tendon injury so it was almost like restarting him again. However because he is going so well I decided I wanted to reintroduce a bit because I wanted to get out and compete again. He has a large tongue and so the bit bank recommended a Bomber happy tongue bit. He is starting to accept this bit now and going nicely. He will always be a bit of a chomper but this bit is by far the most successful. I still hack him bites to give him chillout time

 

[criso]

Just to add context my horse is currently in a bog standard cavesson bridle with the noseband done up very loosely. He has a Myler low port comfort snaffle as this is the bit he goes best in - he has big lips and a big tongue and I think the design of the bit suits his conformation well.

My now retired one had a small mouth and big tongue and hated a cavesson noseband, he actually went much better with no noseband or a a drop, he also liked the a Myler comfort snaffle. I didn't try him in a Micklem but given that the noseband piece sits in a similar place to a drop, I suspect that would have worked too.

 

[RoughcutDiamond]

Hey, I can't help re the bitless side of things I'm afraid. My boy, like yours, couldn't wait to get his bridle off before he would rub on hay net, stable door, me etc, though the irritation seemed higher up than you're describing. I tried the standard Micklem last summer; the first time I took it off he just turned to his net and started eating! The improvement has remained aside from when he works and gets a sweaty head! Trouble is I've been advised to try a grackle for fast work so now going through the mind-boggling array of comfort bridles as I can't bear the thought of him going back into his previous bridle! If you're on FB look up 'Hire a Micklem bridle' - excellent service even if I was sceptical that anyone could tell what size to send from a profile pic of pony's head and no measurements - she was spot on!

 

[Otherwise]

I've used one as a sidepull very successfully. He really reached for the contact, better than he does in a snaffle or double and was amazing to jump in it. We were doing all lateral work, tempis and canter pirouettes in it, steering was better than expected but you really had to be correct to get anything. I learned a lot using it, more than I expected to.

He can be fussy with the contact and he grinds his teeth a fair amount, though most of all when I finish with walking on a long rein and he still did it bitless so I wonder if it is partly a quirk of his. He does still rub his head as soon as I take the bridle off but it is sweaty so I don't read much into it.

I don't hack out in it though. He isn't particularly fun to hack, when he spooks at something he whips round and shoots off and does that at least once per hack and I just don't trust him enough in it. I've considered taking him out in a hackamore as he also works well in one but again the steering isn't great and I'm better off if I catch him before he spins. If he was less sharp it would be fine but I wouldn't feel comfortable on him as he is now. Maybe when we're both old and grey it will be a possibility. Obviously you know you're own horse and can assess whether it will be a safe option for you, I really do like mine for everything else.