Happy mouth bits?

[CurlyWurlyRach]

Pros, cons?
what do they do? is the action of the bit changed? are they bendy? tell me everything :D
Ive never actually seen one up close :rolleyes:

[jowyles]

IT depends what sort y ou mean, the white ones are just smaller metal bits coated in plastic and abit of gimmick really, can cause trouble if your horse chews the bit as the chew thru the plastic and you cant use them anymore but they are as hard as a normal bit. I have one and dont really rate it my horse responds better in normal metal or bitless.

[jovi_y2k2]

they're softer and warmer for the horse than normal metal bits, the action works the same as for metal, they do need replacing if the horse starts to chew on it, also they're not too good for horses with "dry mouths" i.e. dont salivate easily with them being plastic and not as smooth as metal. some horses love them, and accept them better than metal bits.

[Forever Fern]

I like them, however when i first bought fern, she was in one and i was going through one a month as she chewed them to pieces :rolleyes::rolleyes:
xXx

[connieD]

i brought one for my youngster - she chewed it within 3 days - she doesnt even chew very much but appeared to have just caught it with a tooth and caused a rut.

had to chuck it as it could cause rubbing - very easy for horse to chew in my opinion!!

[showjumper-zoe]

Our 128 has a straight bar happy mouth he hasn't chewed through it and he's had it for 2 years and he like it as he can't have metal bits

[Bobbin]

Our 128 has a straight bar happy mouth he hasn't chewed through it and he's had it for 2 years and he like it as he can't have metal bits

I use one as my mare appears to not like links, I have a kimblewick for her for fast work and I tried loads of snaffles and one day I tried this straight bar happy mouth and she accepts it alot better.

[connieD]

appears the straight bars must be a bit more resiliant - i has a french link loose ring, i suppose the straight bars sit higher so less likely to be chewed.

depends on the horse and what bit you intend on trying

[CurlyWurlyRach]

my horses last owner has told me shes happier in a happy mouth bit so looks like im on the hunt for one.

I want to stick with a hanging cheek but a straight bar or a linked one....oooh decisions decisions!

[showjumper-zoe]

Some happy mouths are harder thatn others some are plastic and quite hard and others are kind of rubbery. Plastic ones arn't that bendy. The action of the bit dosn't change it's just the material it is made from, our pony has one as he can't have metal or jointed bits so he has a straight bar happymouth but happymouths do come in jointed forms aswell.

What type of bit does she have atm ie. jointed or straigh? Id stick to what she goes best in then get the happy mouth version.

[showjumper-zoe]

http://www.derbyhouse.co.uk/user_resources/Image/prod_thumbs/P3140384-01.jpg
^ A straight bar mouthpiece (with wavy feature which horses seen to appreciate, if for no good reason).
http://www.frogpool.com/prod-5543.jpg
http://www.randrcountry.co.uk/image.php?object_id=1322&image_id=

[joey_olop]

I dont like them TBH, Blackie had a straight bar snaffle one & just chewed straight through it!!

[showjumper-zoe]

I dont like them TBH, Blackie had a straight bar snaffle one & just chewed straight through it!!

I have one that looks like they could chew through it but the one our little pony has is a really hard plasric and he's had it about 2 years and no bite marks on it at all:) He would have to be bitless if it wasn't for happymouths and at the time my sister was competing him in 128 classes so she wouldn't have been allowed to compete him in a bitless bridle (junior bsja rules) also she wasn't keen on the idea of bitless but everyone has different experiences.

[joey_olop]

I have one that looks like they could chew through it but the one our little pony has is a really hard plasric and he's had it about 2 years and no bite marks on it at all:)

He's very destructive lol!!

[showjumper-zoe]

He's very destructive lol!!

Haha, that was my worry when we first put Punch in one, as a little shetlands at one of my old yards chewed through a rubber (the black type) straight bar bit when she was tied up (headcollar over the top) waiting to be ridden lol was quite funny, thankfully no kids were on her.

[Iron Maiden]

I've sometimes ridden the horse I compete in one. He leans on it but tends to mess & chuck his head around less than he does in his normal bit (a sweet iron French link). Biggest problem is that he feels a bit dead in it & can be very strong, so I'd never use it to jump, but he can do a reasonable dressage test in it. Could you borrow one & give it a whirl?

[CurlyWurlyRach]

if it didnt work then theres always ebay ;)

Nobody i know has once and you cant borrow rubber bits from most places.

Curly actually goes well in a straight bar and a french link :rolleyes: i will ride her in one after the other tomorrow and see - better brakes in the straight and better steering in a linked.

[Rosie1994]

I've used a straight bar loose ring snaffle and a straight bar dutch gag. My horse seems happy in these than in a metal jointed bit.

[halkynuk]

mmm ,,, as one of the "golden oldies" around here & often find it difficult to consider "new" equine equipment, have to say, I'm thrilled to bits with the Happy Mouth peanut roller hanging cheek snaffle, as in the picture above, my nedd & I have recently moved on into.

The mare was very traumatised about her bit when she came to live with me in 2003 to the degree that she even went down with me for no reason that I could account for whilst simply riding her in walk in one of the fields where she lives.

At the time, I was riding her in the straight bar loose ring rubber mullen that she came with.

Following this & due to the fact that I felt we were making little or no progress, eventually for a while I rode her in her headcollar ~ wow! what a difference - what a happy, responsive horse.

From then, we moved on to work in a Flexi Mouth straight bar eggbutt snaffle with her gaining confidence in her bit but eventually finding that she could set her jaw against it with no concerns or respect to what I asked of her, if she chose to do so.

In July, I took a week out & spent time with Bobby Russell CircusHighschool - http://groups.msn.com/CircusHighSchool - nr Fraserburgh in Scotland to ride his Andalusian high school gelding & work with him on the ground.

wow! what a wonderful experience.

I knew I needed to work with a high schooled horse & with someone excellent on the ground.

Bobby's dear Cantario, the Andalusian, was wonderful to ride & with Bobby excellent eye on the ground to give me guidance, helped & encouraged me to know that the mare & I can move on to do far more.

Following my visit to Bobby's, I decided that both the mare & I were ready to move on up out of a mullen - straight bar snaffle.

After a lot of research to help me consider what this should be & not wanting to use a metal bit because of her inherited problems, I chose the Happy Mouth peanut roller hanging cheek snaffle - with Bobby & the Oldnagsman's help & advice that this bit would not cause any pressure on her poll - it's the gag version whether in metal or one of the modern synthetic coatings that is so severe.

wow! what a difference her new bit has made.

When riding, she's even lighter in the hand & with the new (to us) Derby House working hunter saddle we've recently got, she's also lighter to respond to my leg aids too.

I chose the Happy Mouth peanut roller hanging cheek snaffle because, from my research, I found that neither HM or Flexi mouth do a peanut roller eggbut snaffle that comes in her size & also because I think she has a small mouth, so the action of a simple snaffle might put pressure on either her tongue or the roof of her mouth which the peanut roller should not because of its multipul joints.

From our experiences, I'd have no hesitation in recommending considering either the Happy Mouth or Flexi Mouth range of bits.

Today at Chester Races, I spotted that one of the horses was in a Happy Mouth or Flexi Mouth fulmer!

Yes, ok, there is the possibility she might chew the bit & damage the surface, thus needing to replace it ,,,

,,, but, when dealing with a horse that is so sensitive in the mouth as my mare is, if I need to do this, what is the real cost?

Is it worth replacing the bit with some degree of frequency yet having a very happy, responsive, willing to work at what ever task is asked or is it the £'s it costs to do this?

Yes, the Happy Mouth & Flexi Mouth mullen mouth - straight bar bits are bendy.

Hope the above is of some help.

[showjumper-zoe]

In the derby house catalogue it actually says on the page where the happy mouth bits are that they are not chew reistant lol

[halkynuk]

showjumper-zoe - "In the derby house catalogue it actually says on the page where the happy mouth bits are that they are not chew reistant"

True ,,, as is said in other promotions of the Happy Mouth & Flexi Mouth range of bits.

As I ask "Is it worth replacing the bit with some degree of frequency yet having a very happy, responsive, willing to work at what ever task is asked or is it the £'s it costs to do this?"

[Whatanejit]

Bits are as complex, if not more than saddles - aren't they.

In my steep horse ownership learning curve I've found bits were bottom of my list to research and truly understand myself - I've been relying on other peoples opinions and advice and also listening to my horse over the last 18 months.

Stable management - tick
Field management - tick
Feeding - that was a biggy but I can safely say - tick
Saddles - well the jury is out on that one - I understand enough that every horse is different and needs special consideration but one also needs to take into consideration the bias of some fitters / saddlers etc and of course the incomepetence.

But bits - ruddy hell = there are millions of them!

So my tuppence worth to answer you question Rach is that Coops was schooled in a full cheek happy mouth with the peanut wotsit in the middle when at the dealer's yard - so we followed suit.
Aparently, they are good for babies when they are learning to steer.

He always played with it and chewed - big lumps became very rough so he needed another quite quickly.

As his schooling progressed we moved onto a hanging cheek snaffle - initially metal as it was given to us by our RI but it was a bit small so we bought the happy mouth equivilant.

He chewed that one too - we bought him another - he tossed his head around a lot when hacking - teeth done 7 monthly.

Flatbroke filly pointed out to me that where the plastic of the happy mouth is joined to the metal of the hanging cheek that there is a great deal of movement and in some cases it has nipped the side of the horses face. It didn't Coops but it was an interesting point.

We decided to go for the hanging cheek straight bar option in case it was the joint he didn't like - when at Frogpool Manor the shop assistant also pointed out this movement.

So we opted for a Myler bit instead - straight bar with independent action on either side and a hanging cheek option.

He loves it.

He accepts the bit without question, he doesn't head toss anymore, there is nothing to chew.

Bingo!

Sorry for the essay - you'll have to muddle through to get the right one for your girlie and it'll probably cost you along the way - but hey - it is worth it in the end.

[CurlyWurlyRach]

T'is abit of a minefield.

Apparently she was never strong in the happy mouth and she is in a metal bit sometimes - ive been considering happymouth for ages but her old owners advice has just given me the push i need.

The worst thing that can happen is i waste my money and shes no different, shes not destructive at all so should be ok on that front.

Im off to ride in a straight bar and then the hanging cheek now - see which one she goes best in. I have a feeling it may be the mullen.

[halkynuk]

Looking forward to your observations of the differnece between the mullen & hanging cheek.

Is the hanging cheek a peanut roller or a regular snaffle?

The reason I ask is because is that after working onboard Cantario, Bobby Russell's Andalusian at CircusHighschool in Scotland, in a snaffle July this year, I decided that it was time both my mare & I moved on from the Flexi Mouth eggbutt mullen.

I'd quite forgotten how light & sensitive aids can be with a snaffle due to all the bit issues I've worked the mare through.

I did not want to use a metal bit because the mare has historical bit issues that we have made so much progress with via riding in a headcollar then onto a Flexi Mouth eggbutt mullen.

I looked at what was supposedly available in the Happy & Flexi mouth range that might suite her, I chose the Happy Mouth peanut roller hanging cheek snaffle because it was the only one in her size I could find available & after being assured by both Bobby & the oldnagsman that the hanging cheek aspect would not put any poll pressure on her.

She seems to love this bit. Bobby advises that her breed are known to have small mouths so perhaps a regular snaffle was causing pressure on the roof of her mouth that the jointed peanut roller won't?

She is now so light in the mouth & added to which, seems feels my leg aids so well in her new - to us - saddle, all I've got to do, is refine myself to ride her even more lightly when applying leg & hand aids & we should make some lovely progress in our work.

Interesting that you say her previous owners have given advice that have given you the push to ,,, what sort of bit were they using with her?