Some ideas needed on what to try next

madhector

madhector

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Jerry has been away for a week and a half now, and had a chat with Ali yesterday about him and she is having the same problems that I had (nice to know it wasnt just me, but annoying that they are still happening) The first one is his mouth, he had a couple of sores on the corner of his mouth a month ago, and we left it to heal and was all fine, but he has developed them again with her, and hangs on the left rien slightly. He has had his teeth checked and wolf teeth out, back has been done, so not sure where to go next.

He is ridden in a single jointed fulmar (as he really didnt get on with a double jointed or straight bar mouthpiece) and wondered if it was worth trying a different bit, to see if it stops the rubbing. He is still green and does always accept the contact and can be quite fussy, so dont want to make it worse. Any suggestions?

Her second problem was his canter, having not had a school to work in I have mainly used the field, and so his canter work has been limited as he found it very exciting cantering in the field andthought it was safer to leave it till the menage was built before I worked on it properly (then I went and broke my leg and had to send him to Ali's) When I did get a chance to work on it, it was very gangly and unbalanced, to the point where he fell over with me going round a corner in a 20x40 arena
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Ali said she is having similar problems, but that it is improving, and just wondered if there was anything else we could do to help him, with out making his mouth worse!

Sorry, very long one, but any ideas appreciated
 
is his bit a happy mouth? my friends appoloosa tried one and it brought his mouth out in sores. as soon as she went back to metal it was fine
 
Put rubber bit rings on his bit, my ponys mouth used to rub at the corners while being riden and rubber bit rings did the trick, also bit tape can work but bit rings are better.
xxx
 
I'd really be wanting to stop the sores on his mouth TBH - Because it wont be helping him settle into his work..... But I don't know what bit to suggest. I guess it's a case of getting something that fits his mouth well?? Mabe an EDT could help.

If he's unbalanced in canter I'd suggest only allowing him short bursts of it followed by downward transitions to get him more on his back end. Watch to see that he is not falling out/is straight. Transitions and lots of them in all paces.....
 
Is the bit loose ring or eggbut?
Somethings you can try

Fulmer bit so it doesn't slide through his mout
Happy mouth snaffle
Have you tried a nathe bit?

You can also buy skin hardener and apply it daily to the healed sides of the mouth to toughen things up a bit.

As for canter , I'm thinking either cantering out on hacks in straight lines in a half seat position. Or if he can do that ok I'd be trying him a pessoa on the lowest setting. Or maybe just with a roller and side reins on the lunge?
 
He is in a fulmar at the moment, as otherwise we have no steering.

Think might be worth trying a different material maybe, do nathe do jointed fulmars?

Where can I get skin hardener from? that sounds ideal, as think once he works properly and stops leaning, it wont rub, but cant get him to work properly till his mouth heals up

He works well in a pessoa in trot, but finds canter in it too much still, I had been lunging him in canter to let him find his own balance and he was improving, so might get him cantering with the pessoa on soon
 
What noseband do you ride him in?

Be has a loose ring snaffle, but gets a sore mouth if she's not wearing her flash because she opens her mouth and pulls silly faces without it.
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I have the same problem with Pidge as he leans on the left
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If he leans bad then his mouth gets sore, regardless of what bit he has in - loose ring kk, fulmer kk, pelham, double, tried all of them - no difference at all. Have even tried the bit guards which didn't stop it either
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Only thing that works is getting him off my left hand, which is bloody hard work
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I know in part it is my fault as my left leg is weaker
his back and teeth are fine as is his saddle.
 
mmm...is difficult isnt it, Jerry is still so green, so he really just needs to work into a contact, but cant expect him to do that with a sore mouth. He has little sores on both sides at the moment, think it might be a case of the corners of his mouth needing to toughen up a bit, but we dont seem to be achieving this
 
very! Pidge actually has white marks on the left which are obviously man made as they are not noted on his passport - pre me owning him by the way.
different bits don't seem to make much difference at all IME, and I don't think the corners really toughen up much either - well Pidge's haven't
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Just been working with instructor on ways to get him off the hands and using himself properly but it is sooooo hard.
 
I had the same problem with Jack a few years ago. It started off by him doing the off with me in a waterford - and hence I split his mouth trying to pull him up. Anyway, hacked and jumped in in a hackamore for a few weeks to let his mouth heal. Then when we went back to schooling and his usual bit, I used to put vaseline in the side of his mouth to stop the bit from rubbing, he has a habbit of chucking the bit through his mouth, he hangs badly on one of his reins. He to was ridden in a fulmar with bit rings. But now, touch wood we seem to have mastered it. I now ride him in a hanging snaffle, no bit rings needed or vaseline!

Hope this helps!
Mx
 
Put heamorriod cream on the sides of his mouth this will help with the rubbing. Horses tend to be more one sided than the other so double the amount of work on the left reign. You need to not let him lean on to the left reign I found by lifting up about a foot above the withers would stop my horse leaning on one side of the bridle and would force her to carry herself. Lots of up down transitions and very gradual 1/4 circle building up to a 1/2 then 3/4 then a full circle over a period of time soon brings the unbalanced horses to start to hold themselves. Even just a couple of strides of canter where you can feel the horse is balanced and then do another transition back down to trot so each time you ask and get the canter the horse is learning to hold itself. I have found it may be a long drawn out process but for me this has worked. Usually start to see results over a 3 week period.
 
The thing is you cant get him to work properly without taking a good contact and a few days of taking a good contact results in sores (on both sides) This is with vasaline on. So got me thinking it must be worth trying a different bit, as it must be pinching, and the leaning is due to the pinching rather than lack of schooling
 
Oh yes, its like a vicious circle, can't get the canter balanced unless you take a contact and then when you do they hurt their mouth
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will be taking on board what people suggest so I can try it with Pidge
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fortunately its only the left side with him. He has got a nice little rub on his face however from the fulmer end from Sunday where he was a tad keen at Somerford Park
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