Category Archives: Bitless Bridle

discussions on bitless bridles

Updating posts on bitless bridle and Cricket.

Sorry to not have posted lately folks but Cricket has been sold so I can’t post on her ongoing re-conditioning and gaiting.

Rocky mountain gelding

Snippet – relaxed walk

The good news is Snippet is taking her place.  He’s a 14 yr old beautiful black Rocky Mountain gelding.  We rode him for the first time in a while this weekend – he did just great with one exception – the bit was bothering his mouth (needs his teeth floated) so we put him in Playgirls bitless bridle – ten minutes or less of playing with him and he was good to go.  As luck would have it the rain began so that was the end of horsing around on Sunday.

On Sunday (Nov. 22) i introduced Sambo’s Dakota to the bitless bridle.  Like the other Rocky Mountain horses Dakota did just fine!

Bitless Bridle – Playgirl

Introduction to the Bitless Bridle for Playgirl – a Rocky Mountain gaited Mare.

About Playgirl

A quick bit of background about Playgirl. She is a 10 year old Rocky Mountain mare that is certified but hasn’t been ridden in about 4 years as she has been used as a broodmare.

Playgirl’s initial introduction to a bit less bridle was about 15 minutes in the round pen- simple leading, turns and lateral flexing on the ground.

After that I had 3 rides on her over several days – ranging from 15 minutes to 1 hour.

3 days in a bitless bridle

1st ride – (Sunday) -15 minutes. Playgirl’s initial ride of 15 minutes was confusing for her due to the fact that she hadn’t been ridden for 4 years and the bitless bridle does not act the same way that a snaffle bit works on the mouth. Never the less a good start considering her long vacation.

2nd ride – (Monday) 40 minutes. After a ground work warmup I started with large circles and figure eights as a way to get her more familiar with the bitless bridle pressure on her jaw, nose and pole. Her right side was fine but her left side was not so good. Not surprising as most horses are better on one side than the other. After a short time we changed to a simple slow walk (dog walk) around the 80×120 foot arena. My objective was to relax her, start building strength and confidence and get her mind off the earlier work. After 20 minutes or so we went back to the circles and figure eights. Both sides were much better after the “Break”.

3rd ride – (Wed.) 1 hour. After 2 times of light riding Playgirl’s attention and reign response was much better. We spent approximately 30 minutes in the arena at a slow walk doing light circles around objects. We then went to a large open field near the arena, here again only slow walking was permitted. Her response was lightness and a low head (neck level to the ground with her head just below the withers). I spent the last 10 minutes riding her with the reigns laid across the saddle horn. You must admit – not bad for a horse not ridden in 4 years and only exposed to a snaffle bit before the bitless bridle.

Do you think the bitless bridle works?

Rocky Mountain Mare Playgirl - over ground poles

From here I’ll start blogging about the conditioning and gait training of both Cricket and Playgirl. I’ll be doing the conditioning using the Dr Cook bitless bridle.

Bitless Bridle – Cricket Part 2

Pictures of Cricket in a bitless bridle

Cricket - Rocky Mountain Horse - Bitless bridle

Cricket with Bitless Bridle

Here’s a picture of Cricket with her bitless bridle – note it’s not a side pull.  See the crossing straps under her chin – very important. The chin strap is looser than suggested but that was done intentionally for todays ride.

 

 

Bitless bridle – it works!

The bitless bridle works for Cricket so now lets try another horse.  Click here to find out about Playgirl and her bitless bridle experiences – she is another Rocky Mountain gaited mare.

Bitless Bridle – Cricket Part 1

My experiences and thoughts about the Dr. Cook Bitless Bridle

Cricket - Rocky Mtn Mare

Cricket – Just after a heavy rain

Why did I try using a bitless bridle? Well I have a 14 year old Rocky Mountain gaited horse that would throw her head and in general act unhappy and become high headed with both snaffle and curb bits. I tried several types of each, including tongue relief bits. I heard about the bitless bridles and decided to do some research and in doing so I came across an article by Dr. Cook on the short and long term effects of bits on a horse’s mouth/jaws.

What the heck – I found a leather Dr. Cook Bitless Bridle at a consignment tack store at a great price. That’s all it took! I bought the bridle and fitted it to Cricket (my victim). Luckily fitting instructions were included with the bitless bridle.

First time with my new bitless bridle

The next weekend (Saturday) I did some round pen work in order to get her familiar with the bitless bridle. We did directing, redirecting, lateral flexing, vertical flexing all on the ground. Cricket was initially a bit confused as a bit pulls on the mouth/tongue/jaw while the bitless bridle pushes on the opposite side jaw/pole/chin. This was no big deal as it took her about 10-15 minutes to start “getting it”.

The next day (Sunday) would be the big test. We did about 25-30 minutes of arena work with figure 8’s, serpentines and circles. Cricket went from unhappy, active mouth and high headed to relaxed, licking and chewing with her head and neck below the withers.

Now remember Cricket is a gaited horse and so often I hear people say that you need a walking horse bit and have to ride them “on the bit”. Well guess what gaited horse fans – with the bitless bridle she does a really relaxed and nice dog walk and flat walk as well as a self-carriage gait on a loose reign now. Her mouth is closed and she is so much happier!

What is the results of using the bitless bridle

I have been using the Dr. Cook Bitless Bridle for approximately 2 months now, both in the arena and trail, and have had really good results. No control issues on the trail either.

Would I buy another bitless bridle again?

The next question is would I buy the bitless bridle again? Absolutely! Actually I just bought the Biothane version for another gaited horse that I have in re-training after 4 years of not being ridden but that’s another blog.

If you have any questions about my experience with bitless bridles and gaited horses please feel free to either e-mail me or respond to this post. To see pics of Cricket in a bitless bridle click here

Bob