Suggestion ??

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Zoee

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I've been to view a horses today & fingers crossed i will be getting him, however when i rode him he was in a eggbut snaffle & i think he needs a slightly stronger bit ..i was thinking a full cheek type ... Any suggestions?:D
 
A full cheek is no stronger than an eggbut it just has a slightly different action, why do you think he requires a stronger bit? if you felt you were not in control in the eggbut are you sure it is the right horse for you?
 
If he is suitable for you and you are capable of riding him why are you trying to change things already? This does annoy me slightly to be honest because if he is too strong for you then he isn't suitable.
Why not get him home, give him time to settle in and then if you feel the same in a few months then change it?
 
Zoee said:
He's not to strong for me and i am capable of riding him but he is young i do not want him learning to rush
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If ridden correctly he should not learn to rush, being a young horse there is even more reason to keep things the same and not make changes until you need to for some reason.
 
Zoee said:
He's not to strong for me and i am capable of riding him but he is young i do not want him learning to rush
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If your approach to young horses and teaching them not to rush is to insert a stronger bit, then I would respectfully suggest that you don't get him or get him, keep him in the bit and employ a good instructor to instruct and guide you on appropriate schooling and training to achieve the desired result correctly and appropriately.
 
If he is young then the last thing you want to do is be putting stronger bits in him, in laymans terms, you'll give him a hard mouth.
Pretty much all horses, correctly schooled, should never need more than a snaffle.
 
Whilst in a perfect HHO world all horses should be schooled well enough to only be ridden in a snaffle, some horses may need something stronger or even just a different type of snaffle.
This horse might not be unsuitable for the OP it just might require a bit of tack tweakage because she is a different rider to his current one!!
OP horses do respond to different actions of different styles of snaffle. I took on a horse who felt like he needed something 'stronger'...he evaded & pulled against my hand. He was in a thick, single jointed snaffle. It was far too thick for his mouth & he hated the nutcracker action. I put him in a thinner, loose ring snaffle with a lozenge & he was a different horse.
Another horse was horrific in a Mullen mouth loose ring...happy as Larry in a full cheek, lozenge mouthpiece.
All snaffles are not equal.
 
glamourpuss said:
Whilst in a perfect HHO world all horses should be schooled well enough to only be ridden in a snaffle, some horses may need something stronger or even just a different type of snaffle.
This horse might not be unsuitable for the OP it just might require a bit of tack tweakage because she is a different rider to his current one!!
OP horses do respond to different actions of different styles of snaffle. I took on a horse who felt like he needed something 'stronger'...he evaded & pulled against my hand. He was in a thick, single jointed snaffle. It was far too thick for his mouth & he hated the nutcracker action. I put him in a thinner, loose ring snaffle with a lozenge & he was a different horse.
Another horse was horrific in a Mullen mouth loose ring...happy as Larry in a full cheek, lozenge mouthpiece.
All snaffles are not equal.
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However being strong/hard/irritable in the mouth and rushing in a pace against the hand are quite separate things!
One requires tweak age of the bit
The other requires correct schooling to encourage sitting on the bum and taking weight behind so there is less on the forehand and the feeling of 'ploughing' along!
 
LaMooch said:
If you are thinking of changing the bit to this horse before purchase then I'm afraid its not the horse for you
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Really? I'm amazed at this attitude. I've tried horses that had previously been owned/ridden by male riders. Although I knew the horse was fab, I also knew I'd have to tweak bitting/nosebands to make it perfect for me. Particularly XC. Oh & this works both ways as well, took a horse in a Pelham straight away put it in a snaffle.
Saying that you want to tweak bitting/tack means the horse isn't right for you is utter tosh IMO!
 
TandD said:
However being strong/hard/irritable in the mouth and rushing in a pace against the hand are quite separate things!
One requires tweak age of the bit
The other requires correct schooling to encourage sitting on the bum and taking weight behind so there is less on the forehand and the feeling of 'ploughing' along!
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Yes but if a horse isn't happy in its mouth you are fighting a losing battle trying to get it to engagement. You cannot expect a horse to work into a contact if it hates the feeling the contact gives in its mouth.
I would have no qualms in buying a horse & then changing the bit if I felt something suited it better & would help it be happier in its work.
 
LaMooch said:
If you are thinking of changing the bit to this horse before purchase then I'm afraid its not the horse for you
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Eh !, I reckon at least two thirds of the horses I buy have a bit change planned before I get them home .
All the horses I own now had bit changes on day one with me.
OP when and if you change the horses bit think through what the horse is doing then chose a different snaffle to suit.
 
Goldenstar said:
Eh !, I reckon at least two thirds of the horses I buy have a bit change planned before I get them home .
All the horses I own now had bit changes on day one with me.
OP when and if you change the horses bit think through what the horse is doing then chose a different snaffle to suit.
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Finally another voice of reason! :)
 
Goldenstar said:
Eh !, I reckon at least two thirds of the horses I buy have a bit change planned before I get them home .
All the horses I own now had bit changes on day one with me.
OP when and if you change the horses bit think through what the horse is doing then chose a different snaffle to suit.
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Precisely!

The current owners may have it in totally the wrong bit as it is. I really think people need to get off their soap boxes about bitting. What is a 'soft bit' for one horse may not be for another and the reason this particular horse feels strong and rushing could be bit-related for all we know. It's about trial and error with horses and you learn what suits them and you. Of course schooling and encouraging the horse to work correctly is what we all should try and do but you have to feel you have the right tools and the horse has to be happy to want to work in the way you are asking.
 
Goldenstar said:
Eh !, I reckon at least two thirds of the horses I buy have a bit change planned before I get them home .
All the horses I own now had bit changes on day one with me.
OP when and if you change the horses bit think through what the horse is doing then chose a different snaffle to suit.
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Same here....I tweak everything to my preference.
 
Thanks to everyone who said this isn't the horse for me because he's a brilliant horse. I've been with horses for 10 years and I am not a novice I know what I am capable of riding and I know not to over bit. By a different bit I ment a different type of snaffle as he doesn't need anything stronger I mean bits such as a French link etc
 
Hi Zoee, maybe if you could explain the reasons why you think a bit change is needed then folk could help. What is he/ she doing/ not doing to make you feel that you need to change bit? More info could help folk to make useful suggestions.
Best wishes.
 
Patterdale said:
If he is young then the last thing you want to do is be putting stronger bits in him, in laymans terms, you'll give him a hard mouth.
Pretty much all horses, correctly schooled, should never need more than a snaffle.
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You can't be serious! Try taking a keen but well schooled 16.3 WB round XC in a snaffle and you would soon change your mind. Some horses just have less sensitive nerve endings in their mouth and they take a hold no matter what.

Having said that you do have to be wary of using stronger bits on a young horse.
 
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Zoee said:
I've been to view a horses today & fingers crossed i will be getting him, however when i rode him he was in a eggbut snaffle & i think he needs a slightly stronger bit ..i was thinking a full cheek type ... Any suggestions?:D
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Zoee said:
Thanks to everyone who said this isn't the horse for me because he's a brilliant horse. I've been with horses for 10 years and I am not a novice I know what I am capable of riding and I know not to over bit. By a different bit I ment a different type of snaffle as he doesn't need anything stronger I mean bits such as a French link etc
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I think the confusion arose because in your first post you said stronger bit. As few other details were given I can see why people suggested that perhaps the horse may not be right.

However you have now said you don't think he needs something stronger. So presumably you just don't feel he's 100% happy in what his current owners have him in? Which snaffle is best will depend a lot on trial and error. I have a collection of bits and changed my current horses bit or trial a new bit when I feel he's unhappy in his mouth. I'm still not convinced I've got it totally right and you'll either need to find people willing to lend you bits to try or to build up your bit collection!

There are people out there with far more knowledge than me who would be able to advise more specifically.
 
Difficult for anyone to advise without seeing / riding horse. I had one that was hard to stop in the kimblewick she came with & goes brilliantly in a loose ring French link (i think she ran away from the pressure of previous bit. Another who hated the same bit - shook head around & prefers eggbut snaffle.
Play around with bits, but give the horse time to adjust to New rider/ environment & don't expect instant results
 
Basically he's a 4/5 yr old who hasn't been worked very much and not had any schooling don't at all in the last 3/4 months. I rode him and he got rushed in his trot because it is not established and in his canter he did get a bit excited (I did regain control and did bring him to a trot do please don't say he is not the horse for me because I didn't have a problem controlling) I was thinking a full cheek because he does have problems turning (not very responsive to leg aids) when I say I wanted a stronger bit I don't want something very strong because he doesn't need that I just think he needs a different type of snaffle that may help him and me when he's being ridden. So that if he does get excited I will be able to gain control quicker. Sorry for any confusion. I will try different bits I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions but never mind ill figure out myself :)
 
MrsD123 said:
foal = troll?
inexperienced person asks for advice , then rejects it....... we have been here before.
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Troll because they ask a reasonable question and then reject the frankly bizarre advice that they don't buy a horse if they want to change its bit? Ok then...
This place gets more mental every time I come on which is becoming increasingly rare.

Good luck with the new horse OP, sorry no actual helpful suggestions to make!
 
I always use full cheek bits on babies, for previously the reason you are suggesting, you can steer with them better.

Other than that, I don't see that a full cheek snaffle acts in any way differently than an eggbut, provided that you do not use keepers with it.

I haven't even seen my new horse in the flesh yet, and I've already changed his bit :D
 
One of mine is in a Balance International full cheek snaffle. It's quite an expensive bit but for him it works really well - it's designed so that the centre joint is very small, unlike many modern snaffles. My old lady used to go really well in a French link that has a sort of spinning central link - can't remember the make but it wasn't expensive! My other boy goes in a rubber snaffle. He was a rehabilitation job and totally rejected metal bits. He went in a hackamore for a few years and now I've been able to introduce the rubber snaffle and it seems to be mild enough for him to accept. They've all hated Mylers but I know of some horses that won't go in anything else. Basically it's a case of trial and error with whatever you can get hold of/afford - the bit banks may be your friend.
 
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