Types of bitless bridle for strong horse?

ZoeCharlotte

ZoeCharlotte

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Riding a horse at the moment who's very tanky, he's not been ridden with much frequency in the last few years and I'm not familiar with what's been done with him. He's not keen on bits, of any variety, whatsoever. Tacking him up mostly involves dragging his head down from where it's pointed directly upwards, and he gapes his mouth open almost the whole time when ridden. The only time he doesn't is when I have nearly no contact, which isn't great. He likes to lean on the bit and just charge in whatever gait he fancies, and while I'd love to drop the reins completely and let him sort it out himself, most of the time this seems like a pretty dangerous option! He can work in a lovely soft outline, but only after about 45 minutes of schooling and only in a straight line! Been thinking about trying a bitless bridle on him to see if he prefers that, but what would be a good option? I know hackamores are quite strong and require a very light touch, which sounds like it might be a good option, but the Dr Cook's bridles have a "whole head hug" thing going on which means less focused pressure which might be kinder. Any thoughts? Has anyone had a similar situation or tried a few types? I'm open to any suggestions! Thanks!
 
Personally I'd get the horse's teeth checked as a first priority, there may well be pain issues here which is why he's not happy to be bitted.

Secondly, I'd get a chiropractic check done to check there's no pain issues in his neck, back or wherever.

Thirdly I'd get a qualified saddle fitter to check the saddle as he could be running away from the pain.

Sorry OP - am spending your money here:) But these are all fundamental checks which sound like might need to be done with your horse. You might find that by checking these things at this stage, you're actually saving yourself money for the future, plus might well end up with a much nicer horse as a result.

I certainly wouldn't try anything new like a Hackamore: they can be very severe in the wrong hands and I would recommend that you have a lesson with someone who's experienced in their use in an enclosed arena first, ditto a Dr Cooks which can totally confuse horses when they're put on first.

It sounds very much that your horse has possibly got some teeth/saddle & suppleness issues. I'd work at resolving those before doing anything else TBH.
 
Echo the above, getting saddle and teeth checked. For a Dr Cook it might be worth seeing if you can borrow one first/have it on trial. They're expensive and I've found that the cheaper ones tend to not "thread back through" as easily. So almost get stuck hugging your horses head! What about a sidepull type? Maybe a scrawbrig (sp?). Or you could always invest in a Matrix bitless bridle - It has 6 or 7 different ways of going bitless if i remember right? Someone will probably come along in a bit that knows a lot more about bitless bridles!
 
I would agree with getting the checks done too, I know it's a pain though.

Which bitless you go for is a bit of trial and error, but my cob can be strong, so we are in a hackamore. He respects it, and i know I have control when I need it, but hardly ever have to use it.
 
In addition to the checks already mentioned you will need to teach your horse to follow a feel and respond to a light feel......the first 3 Parelli games if you like!!! He needs to understand what you are asking......
 
Alyth said:
In addition to the checks already mentioned you will need to teach your horse to follow a feel and respond to a light feel......the first 3 Parelli games if you like!!! He needs to understand what you are asking......
Click to expand...

Echo this - teach him the language you are trying to communicate with him in, he doesn't come pre programmed. And work towards including your seat in that language - precede your rein aids (once he knows them well) with a seat aid and he will learn to respond to the seat with less and less rein.
 
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