Poll: Put this to bed for me forever - is it better to do up headcollars using the headpiece buckle or under jaw clip

How do you prefer to fasten headcollars?

  • Total voters
    243
I use the buckle only ever use the clip for clipping.

I especially don't like undoing the clip when you turn something out it just feels wrong as you have to pull the head collar over the head the buckle release just seems better.
 
I'd never ever travel with a headcollar that has a throat clip, not after cutting a friends horse out of the haynet. Horse rubbed his head on it, twine of net caught on throat clip and held fast. Horse thrashed around......

Buckle for me.
I also keep rope halters on the yard (and car and horsebox) for quick catching, one size fits all.
 
The Fuzzy Furry said:
I'd never ever travel with a headcollar that has a throat clip, not after cutting a friends horse out of the haynet. Horse rubbed his head on it, twine of net caught on throat clip and held fast. Horse thrashed around......

Buckle for me.
I also keep rope halters on the yard (and car and horsebox) for quick catching, one size fits all.
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I hate it when people leave headcollars on the horses when they are on the horse walker.

The walker is right outside my stable so I often watch horses going around on it, especially if they are having a hooley and a buck or rear on it.

One day I saw a horse who kept rubbing the side of his face on the outside of the walker actually put the buckle part in one of the holes before freeing it quickly - it was only a hundreth of a second but my heart was in my mouth.

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I only use leather headcollars so they are much easier to fasten via jaw clip.
Unless the leather is kept well oiled, the buckles can be difficult to use especially with cold fingers.
 
Birker2020 said:
The ones on the right rather than the ones on the left?
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I hate the ones on the right, every one I encounter is always stiff as hell. But I can see why the left ones would be harder for some people too.

I always use head strap, I didn't know the throat latch was even an option till this year and if I got caught doing it at the sanctuary I'd have hell to pay as some people do believe VERY STRONGLY that there is a right and and a wrong way ?
 
I normally always use the jaw clip. If your catching multiple horses its just easier to pop it over the ears one handed. I also think (and I know this is irrelevant,) that they look nicer hung up from the head rather than the nose which unless you do it up again after taking it off doesn’t work with using the buckle…..I can’t say it really care much either way though. If someone did my horses and left head collars undone one way or the other I would think nothing at all of it.
 
Clip under the jaw!! Unless there's a reason I need to leave the headcollar around their neck while I'm bridling up :)
 
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I favour the clip under the jaw - it's quicker and easier and doesn't bend the leather. I really don't have a strong opinion either way, though it does irrationally irritate me to see head pieces not fully done up when people use that method!
 
I used the clip under jaw for the first time with Tali’s head collar until the clip broke ? she was better to get it on that way. Now I have to do the head piece buckle again.
 
Ah I'm also a buckle-upper. But unfortunately have to use a muzzle and I get turn out as part of my livery. If I relied on people to buckle up up then the muzzle would probably fall off :confused: so I have to rely on the clip.
 
I was firmly in the camp of 'put headcollar on, leave jaw clip undone and throw leadrope over neck so he can just follow me in'. Especially if it was cold - hands were firmly in nice warm pockets!
 
I use a rope halter these days for turning out and bringing in as a better control tool imo especially as I have two together. I still tie up in a plain head collar. I’ll use either but now favour the clip under the jaw as quicker. Anything to make my life easier. I also only buy ones with a upper noseband buckle as find these much easier to use when putting a bridle on especially at shows and can leave it on then rebuckle back over the bridle.
 
Buckle for me. If mine has been left with the jaw clip undone and the bucks secure I’ll try that way but I hate it! Feels so awkward.
 
Dont like the clip ones and always have leather which have adjustable nose part so if i was tacking up outside i undid the nose , put bridle on, then did nose up so horse was secure while i put hat etc on..we didnt have a gate on our yard so i was always very careful not to be too casual just in case she decided to run off
 
Mrs Jingle said:
Surely only if left on while out in the field, or if tied incorrectly directly to the ring or any other solid tethering point without a breakable bit of string loop or similar? I have only ever used leather for turn out if absolutely necessary to have one on in the field but I agree it does irk me to see a horse turned out in a nylon one. Just in case can often becomes 'Oh damn now he has broken his neck, leg or whatever'.
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I have had a nylon one catch on the catch of a stable door - fortunately the door broke before the horse. Thereafter used fieldsafe headcollrs
 
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