Bit/ no bit question.........

[hackedoff]

Straightforward question- if you had a horse who is quite happy in his snaffle but who in a parrelli hackamore comes almost straight into an outline with a lovely stride would you continue down the bit route or go bitless?

[chev]

Go bitless.

The only reason I'm bitting Andy is because he needs to wear one for showing, and if he stays entire, he needs to have one.

[Mehitabel]

is it better bitted or bitless, or no difference?

personally, i'd do both. i like horses to be able to be bitted - you never know what's round the corner and if i ended up having to sell i'd want the best home possible, which is more likely the more versatile the horse is. i'd say being able and willing to go bitted or bitless is a big plus, also only going bitless automatically rules out showing, dressage and xc competitively.

i don't think a bit is automatically A Bad Thing, nor do i think bitless is automatically kinder.

[cvb]

I would probably want to do some work on the difference between the bit and no bit reaction.

So for immediate work I would go bitless, but I would want to review what bit I used, whether the quality of the contact was very different and so on.

For example, I had rope hackamore under bridle at the weekend, with 2 sets of reins.

And if all else failed, I might just have to ride western ;)

[KarinUS]

i don't think a bit is automatically A Bad Thing, nor do i think bitless is automatically kinder.

That's the part that worries me too! A couple of months ago we had a really interesting thread on here where someone pointed out how the pressure points on bitless bridles can actually be pretty severe on some models, etc.

I would try bitless if I had a better understanding on which ones are really mild. But I don't and so I just try to have sensitive hands and continue riding him in a eggbutt lozenge-link. :rolleyes:

[hackedoff]

Hmmmm I may experiment with a riding school hackamore or buy a bitless to try ( can always e-bay it) but work with bit in case I ever get round to showing. It's interesting though- will take some pics of the difference of how he goes in either case.

[sheil]

Originally posted by hackedoff
or buy a bitless to try ( can always e-bay it)

If you buy a genuine DR Cook Bitless Bridle from www.bitlessbridle.co.uk (http://www.bitlessbridle.co.uk) or from www.bitlessbridle.com (http://www.bitlessbridle.com) (for those in USA) you will have the benefit of the 30-day no quibble moneyback guarantee, so you won't need to e-bay it:)

[Bay Mare]

I've got Saff in a Hackamore at the moment (due to rearing when you put a bit in!) and was amazed at how much better she worked (relaxed, long and low, overtracked) by just taking the bit out of her mouth. Oh, and she stopped rearing too!

I'm going to continue bitless for hacking out etc (when I'm not broken) but do want to get her back into a mild bit as well as a) I want to do some dressage and b) if anything happens (fingers crossed and wood touched that it doesn't) and I have to sell her (close your ears Saffy) then she will work in a bit if necessary.

Having ridden Saff in a Dually with reins and in a Hackamore I have to say that she hasn't complained and she would! She's the type ;) I know that Bitless can be severe, especially mechanical Hackamores etc but it's another case of them being as severe as the rider's hands. Especially with something that puts pressure on the nose you have to be ultra careful about the fitting (I double checked mine with my trainer) but I wouldn't necessarily dismiss them just because they CAN be severe. A french link can be severe in the wrong hands!

[cvb]

hackedoff

you probably alreayd know this, but there are loads of different bitless options - and I think there are a couple of recent threads which give links etc for some of them....

But is there a problem with just carrying on with the parelli hackamore ? why do you need something else ?

[hackedoff]

I guess I want something that looks more like a real bridle:o and the halter is ok for 'doing parelli' but to hack out in I'd like something more substantial with normal reins............

[Yann]

I've just posted a pic of Rio in her Dr Cook on the thread 'Dr Cook 1 Nobit 0' in the general forum fi you want to see something that looks like a proper bridle. I suspect half the riders we hacked past this weekend didn't even notice I was bitless:)