When your horse suddenly and forcefully pull the reins out of your hands when under saddle it's called Reefing. They can do it by pulling their heads down suddenly, or by flicking their head and neck out forward. It can be just a little annoying, or a major consistent problem. I know my pony reefs when it's near the end of our session, and he's retty sure he's had enough. I…
Choosing the "right" bit for your horse is more about you and your horse than the actual bit you choose. The Myler brothers famously said "Bits don't train horses, people do."Changing your bit is simply a part of the solution, and never a quick fix.If your new bit gives you the response that you are looking for, that's great. Don't rest in your laurels though and assume the problem is…
There used to be a general rule of leaving one finger's width of space between your horse's lips and the cheeks of the bit. When all you could get was single link bits, this rule stood pretty firm, but now there are a variety of different mouthpieces and the fit will vary slightly with each different type. I'm going to go through a few options here so that you can be sure that you new…
There are a few questions that I get asked time and time again, so
here' s a series of "cheat sheets" for you to give you a place to
start. Please keen in mind, that these suggestions are general, and do
not take into account the details of your exact situation. Use them as a
guide, read the product descriptions of the bits listed, and consider
them as they might apply to your particu…
I've been inspired to write this blog post by another blog that I shared recently, from poloponyrescue.com in the USA. It's a humorous- but very telling- article, and you can read it here if you want. This won't be as humorous, but hopefully at last a little bit helpful when you are next in that exciting moment of about to bring home your new horse. Whether it's your first horse,…
Guest Blog: Zoe Harrison, Coach, author of "Riding with Feel" and Sprenger Bit Agent.From the earliest times bits have been
made from an assortment of materials, including bone, wood, iron, alloys of
brass, stainless steel and during more recent times there has been a desire to
produce a metal that is most acceptable to the horse and gives the rider
control.In1872 Hermann Sprenger founded a…
