bit guards or full cheek

tetleyteabag

My favorite type of tea!!
Nov 12, 2008
457
0
0
south wales
Hiya all, currently riding in a loose ring french link snaffle but I have problems turning my boy sometimes when he is in a stubborn mood. It is a training issue that I am working on but need something to stop the bit going through his mouth while we are working.

Is there any specific difference or is it just personal preferance between bit guards or full cheek?:eek:

Any other suggestions welcome:)
 
if you've already got a loose ring you may as well try the bit guards first as they're only a couple of quid at most ;)

my boy has steering issues at times (well, more ignoring me issues!!) and they aren't as effective as when he had a full cheek but are still not bad :)
 
You can put bit guards on anything, sometimes getting certain bits in a full cheek can be a pain. I have a pair that I'm using with Mrs P's loose ring at the moment, she tried to eat them at first but seems quite happy now - as long as I don't stick one of them in her mouth while I'm tacking her up :eek: She also used to get her full cheek caught on her haynet when she was parked, this isn't a problem now :) The thing to remember is that bit guards aren't allowed in dressage tests so you'll need to take them off if you want to compete at dressage ;)
 
Thanks guys:)

Im just a happy hacker really so not worried about dressage legal things just my boys comfort.

I have used bit guards with him before but found they rubbed the corners of his mouth, he is alot better now than what he was but still has his moments which I'm pretty sure he will always have so was just wondering whether a full cheek would be better long term.

Dont really like the size of the full cheek bars though, Ive heard you can get shorter ones, any idea what they are called so I can have a scout about:)
 
I had a mare that was a pain in the steering dept when I first got her.I tried the bit guards,but didn't get on with them much,and she wasn't overly impressed either.

Tried the full cheek,problem solved!! worked well for us,so I would say try the full cheek.
 
newrider.com