How many of us ride in just a snaffle?

mattilda

mattilda

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I can't remember when I last rode any horse in anything more than a snaffle bridle. My old lad was a true gent and, although he could be a typical nutty tb, he never needed more than a snaffle. I then got my stonking big, more attitude than he needs, Hano. He is a dressage horse and horribly spooky but I still only need a snaffle on him. Martingales and the like are redundant for me. Maybe I am just lucky but I sometimes wonder whether horses really need all the hardware they have stuffed in their mouths.
This is not intended as an inflammatory post just pondering. :)
 
I do too. I have a hot Arab, a TB type and a Spanish ATM all in snaffles.

I was brought up with the idea that if you needed anything more, then it was a reflection on you as the rider/trainer that there was a need to school them on, rather than a quick fix noseband or martingale.

That said, i did have one that had a martingale on, and i never got him to where i could trust him without, but i had a good try first.
 
My youngster has never been ridden in anything but a snaffle, no martingales either, not even a noseband :) My older boy has to have a gag for jumping as he is SO strong when he sees jumps, but I hack him out in a snaffle, again with nothing else, and thats all we do these days :)
 
mine are! My 5 yr old gelding is in a happy mouth loose ring snaffle, same as my 22yr old! My eventer wears an auragon (sp?) snaffle loose ring and hanging cheek for XC. Very unusual nowadays though!

Bexcy-bee x
 
I do with all 3 of mine, although one of mine, Wings, my WB, is being tried in a pelham at some point, as when jumping, I sometimes struggle to get him to listen to me as he finds everything very exciting, so hope that a pelham will just help me have that little more control. He is very well schooled, so that isn't the issue, jumping just gets his adrenaline running and he kind of, blows his brains :D

The other 2 will never need anything stronger than a snaffle. All of them are ridden in cavessons without flashes.
 
I have an ex racer, who ive had for a few weeks and he is in a snaffle. and i ride a very wizzy appaloosa but only in a snaffle. i dont like anything else!
I really, really, hate Pelhams.
Snaffles feel just right :)
 
all of mine and the majoirty i ride for other people are in snaffles, one goes in a double and i think thats in, the odd one has a flash also but most are just plain snaffle bridles, one of my horses i used to jump in a gag but generally i could jump in a snaffle just liked being able to take an extra pull and know it work as he got rather strong and a little like a tank
 
When I went to view my horse, she was wearing a dutch gag on the bottom ring, with a grackle and a martingale. I removed the grakle and martingale to try her, but they didnt have a snaffle to try her in which I found quite sad!

Now I ride her in a snaffle for everything, including showjumping, and fast hacking. The most other gadgets she has is a hunting breastplate for jumping as its something for me to grab hold of lol!!! She is a German Warmblood, with alot of TB blood in her, she can be strong and forward but nothing that ever warrents a dutch gag on the bottom ring!!

My olf TB Ted was 2 months out of racing and never had any other bit in his mouth that a snaffle.. I love snaffles =o)

Power to the snaffle!!!
 
Me. French link loose ring snaffle. Could probably ride without a noseband tbh, but I like the look of it. He is a fairly simples ride!
My last ride however was ridden in a kimblewick with martingale, and we didnt even consider putting him in a milder bit - he could be difficult enough in that!He was a masters horse for three seasons, and it blew his brains out from then on.
As long as a stronger bit is used in the right hands (and preferably for a reason, rather than to look good!) so that it does not harm to the horse, and the horse is happy with it, I say each to their own!
 
I use a pelham because it is more correct for showing than a snaffle. I school a bit in it at home but I don't need it/use it for brakes. For just general hacking or jumping I use various snaffles depending on the pony. My old mare has a martingale with her snaffle cos she can be a bit wahey let's go at times. The thing with martingales is, as long as they are correctly fitted, they are there if you need them, if you don't they have no effect.
 
Full cheek snaffles for my two, and just plain cavesson nosebands, never had the need for more than that.

Got no issue with other bits where needed, I just prefer not to need!
 
Me. Cavesson noseband, no martingale, although i do sometimes wish i had a neck strap to cling onto!
She goes in a Myler pelham in the showring.
 
Yeap I rode my previous ex racer in a french link snaffle and my new 4yr is ridden in it now with a crank. Atm thats all she needs and shes happy enough, she can be a bit whizzy at times but she has quite a sensitive mouth so i dont feel she needs more in there. But i have a feeling she will need more brakes for xc :eek: but we shall cross that bridge when we come to it lol
 
We do. JP's with lozenges and Eggbutt sides. No flash nosebands here either, just cavessons on 'sloppy' setting.

Cavessons are for actually meant for decoration or fitting standing martingales to (:eek:)

No brakes or steering with any of them though :)


(Joke)
 
Nope my lady hates snaffles and absolutely will not tolerate any type of snaffle....she came with a post it stuck in her passport saying this. I've tried her but she just hates them....and I won;t force her to go in one to conform to people's idea of "right". I see nothing wrong with using whatever bits best suits a horse...it's the hands that make the horse's mouth not the bit! She gets a NS trans continental and loves it! Most of our racehorses in training are in snaffles, the odd one gets a dexter for fast work and one is in a happy mouth fulmer.
 
I've gone back to using a snaffle for jumping but I'm not sure if I'll keep using it - jerry gets ridiculously excited and tanks off so I might have to resort back to my Pelham. for showing, I'll use my snaffle for the veterans class
 
I don't ride in a snaffle and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I've gone through alot of guilt about what bit I *should* have in my horses mouth and have had to decide that as long as we're both happy and enjoying ourselves that is the important thing.

When I had a lazy cob I rode in a snaffle as running off would have been far too much like hard work, she'd rather stop and eat.

I now have a fit and forward going 17.2hh Westphalian that I'm hoping to event this year. We do flatwork in a NS trans angled filet baucher and at the moment we jump in a dutch gag. Better that we jump safely and sensibly in a dutch gag than that he takes a flier and hoons off into the distance. If I'd had him as a 4yo then I might well have been able to school him to go nicely in a snaffle but I didn't and I can't turn back time.
 
Mine are ridden mainly in snaffles - my old Welsh seems to find a vulcanite pelham reassuring for XC but has a loose ring snaffle at all other times with a cavesson noseband, big mare is always in a loose ring snaffle and has on occasion worn a drop noseband although she's back to her cavesson again now. Flynn is normally in an eggbutt snaffle with a cavesson but we trade it up for a cheltenham gag with the same mouthpiece and two reins if he's doing anything he finds too exciting. All my past horses have had plain snaffles and cavessons unless there is a very good reason to be using anything else.
 
Nope, absolutely not :( but it is very much my aim. We do anything remotely exciting in a double, however I am proud to say I touch the curb about once every 6 months in all situations other than hunting, when I will touch it (or rather, bloody hoik on it the first time we get in open country) once or twice. After that, if he leans, I know he's just tired. So I'm pleased that I know I'm riding on the bradoon. But not yet confident enough to let the weymouth go... ;)

Snaffle-mouthed horses, in every discipline, rock.
 
I was riding my boy in a full cheek snaffle but have swapped him to a loose ring snaffle and just a cavesson noseband.
 
Nailed said:
When I went to view my horse, she was wearing a dutch gag on the bottom ring, with a grackle and a martingale. I removed the grakle and martingale to try her, but they didnt have a snaffle to try her in which I found quite sad!

Now I ride her in a snaffle for everything, including showjumping, and fast hacking. The most other gadgets she has is a hunting breastplate for jumping as its something for me to grab hold of lol!!! She is a German Warmblood, with alot of TB blood in her, she can be strong and forward but nothing that ever warrents a dutch gag on the bottom ring!!

My olf TB Ted was 2 months out of racing and never had any other bit in his mouth that a snaffle.. I love snaffles =o)

Power to the snaffle!!!
Click to expand...

My old pony came to me with the very same kit. Grackle, Dutch Gag on bottom ring and martingale. She was strong, rude and would bugger off at any opportunity. So I took it all off and tried her in a plain snaffle....no martingale, just a plain snaffle bridle. She was still strong, still rude and would still bugger off but I never felt the need to change back or to something stronger.
 
Oh dear I hope it isn't a shocking reflection of my riding :eek: but I generally don't ride in George in a snaffle as it just doesn't seem to suit him or me.

For hacking and jumping I use a mullen mouth dutch gag with roundings from the the snaffle ring to the little ring below, with a drop noseband. He also has a martingale, partly because on the rare occasion he is alarmed by something he sticks his head up, and partly so there is a next strap for not so confident me.

For schooling we generally use a kimblewick, simply because this is what he goes best in and seems happiest with. However, for dressage we either use a myler mullen mouth hanging cheek, or a loose ring mullen mouth snaffle depending on how he is going.
 
I ride in a pelham as it is the bit that my horse is most comfortable in and works well in all situations for us.
Not all horses are happy in a snaffle and I've no objections to people using a different bit where needed. Light sensitive hands and schooling are more important to me, rather than whether someone is using a snaffle or not. Horses for courses at the end of the day ;)
 
My ex racer does DR, SJ, XC and hacking in a snaffle and is fine in it :D

I am suprised that so many people remark on the fact she wears a (loose) caveson noseband has a snaffle bit when we compete, it's funny how it seems so unusual to them.

I loaned a very go-y, strong cob X a few years ago, who was also in just a snaffle, and I was told by a PC instructor that I must use a Continental gag on him. I told her that I didn't need to as we had perfect control in all diciplines (as proven by us competing sucessfully).
 
I ride my horse all the time in a nuschule (I think it is called) training loose ring bit and drop noseband which he seems very happy in, luckily he doesn't know how to bolt as has never been allowed to. I try to keep the bit as mild as possible except sometimes he wears a pelham for showing, I used to show him in a double bridle but he was never very happy in the mouth even though I rode him on a light contact. I always think that no matter what the bit, they are far stronger than us and if they really bolted then nothing would be strong enough. :eek:
 
My two are both in loose ring snaffles although I use a Rugby Pelham for the old man for his showing classes - for two reasons, it's more correct and flamin heck he is strong when he gets to a party! I'd prefer to see a horse ridden correctly in a stronger bit than someone persevere with a snaffle and be hauling at their mouths.
 
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