i was originally going to back kaiser in a dr cook, however i know these are not competition legal, and since i have high hopes for him, and want to compete, i know i will have to get him going well in a bit too. My question is, do people get on well with riding at home in a bitless and only really using a bit for comps? or does it just confuse the horse? im now thinking it may just be easier to get him going in a bit from the start, i just think it would take a good few weeks before each comp to get him going nicely in bit again so it worth it?
who uses bitless bridles and competes?
- Thread starter skewbald-mad
- Start date
mainly want to do xc and showjumping, but poss some ode's so would need a bit for dressage...... im not completely decided as i would ideally like him bitless as i know its better for them, i suppose it may depend on if i found a dressage legal bit that he accepted easily and didnt need to spend ages getting him going well in... i take it you use dr cook or similar? am i right in remembering kiki is about the same age as k? what are your plans for her?
I use quite a few different bridles, from sidepulls to hackamores.
Kiki will be staying bitless, she doesn't like squeezing on her head so she will probably be backed in a rope hackamore and then have a bosal for western and a sidepull for english
Kiki will be staying bitless, she doesn't like squeezing on her head so she will probably be backed in a rope hackamore and then have a bosal for western and a sidepull for english
I ride bitless and I compete.
Now just to qualify - they ARE competition legal...just not DRESSAGE legal. You can SJ and XC bitless all you like...(although some places will rule it must be a bitless bridle and not a halter, like many insurance companies, and you can't compete in 'SJ Style' classes that some RC's hold etc...)
I compete SJ and XC bitless - I went to the UK Chasers national finals last year bitless in our dr cooks. You can def use the bridle BE for the sj and xc phases - you'd need to check with BSJA but I'm pretty sure legal for that too.
BD and dressage under BD rules is where they aren't allowed. (including the dressage phase of BE) - and then showing.
For this, I use a snaffle. I ride bitless at home, but not all the time. My horse works better bitless and so I do do some flat schooling sessions bitless as it improves his way of going, encourages him 'up' in self carriage beautifully, and he is incredibly light on the forehand with it. However I'd be asking for trouble if I then all of a sudden slapped a bit in his mouth on the day of a dressage show
. I try to balance our riding 50/50 bitless and bitted - our flat schooling maybe 60/40 in favour of bit, purely because he needs to know and accept my aids in the snaffle too.
Whilst your aids are usually the same bitted or bitless, the pressure is applied in different area's for the horse (mouth v nose primarily - and depending on which bit or bitless you use, other areas too). So your horse needs to be accustomed and settled in the bit before they are likely to be fully settled and working well in it.
I would suggest that if you plan to dressage (or show of course), that you work the horse bitted, whether that is bitted only or bitless aswell. You'd be unlikely to be able to break your horse in a bitless and only ever use bitless at home, and then get a positive response from a bit at a show. If you want to compete in bitted competitions, but also be bitless - use both, but use both at home
It's up to you whether you start off bitted or bitless at the early stages or mix between. But there's no reason your horse won't learn both methods and be comfortable with both methods at home and hence also at a competition, keeping all your options open to compete in any and all spheres when he's old enough
Good luck x
Now just to qualify - they ARE competition legal...just not DRESSAGE legal. You can SJ and XC bitless all you like...(although some places will rule it must be a bitless bridle and not a halter, like many insurance companies, and you can't compete in 'SJ Style' classes that some RC's hold etc...)
I compete SJ and XC bitless - I went to the UK Chasers national finals last year bitless in our dr cooks. You can def use the bridle BE for the sj and xc phases - you'd need to check with BSJA but I'm pretty sure legal for that too.
BD and dressage under BD rules is where they aren't allowed. (including the dressage phase of BE) - and then showing.
For this, I use a snaffle. I ride bitless at home, but not all the time. My horse works better bitless and so I do do some flat schooling sessions bitless as it improves his way of going, encourages him 'up' in self carriage beautifully, and he is incredibly light on the forehand with it. However I'd be asking for trouble if I then all of a sudden slapped a bit in his mouth on the day of a dressage show
. I try to balance our riding 50/50 bitless and bitted - our flat schooling maybe 60/40 in favour of bit, purely because he needs to know and accept my aids in the snaffle too. Whilst your aids are usually the same bitted or bitless, the pressure is applied in different area's for the horse (mouth v nose primarily - and depending on which bit or bitless you use, other areas too). So your horse needs to be accustomed and settled in the bit before they are likely to be fully settled and working well in it.
I would suggest that if you plan to dressage (or show of course), that you work the horse bitted, whether that is bitted only or bitless aswell. You'd be unlikely to be able to break your horse in a bitless and only ever use bitless at home, and then get a positive response from a bit at a show. If you want to compete in bitted competitions, but also be bitless - use both, but use both at home
It's up to you whether you start off bitted or bitless at the early stages or mix between. But there's no reason your horse won't learn both methods and be comfortable with both methods at home and hence also at a competition, keeping all your options open to compete in any and all spheres when he's old enough
Good luck x
wow thanks peaches! so its really only dressage thats not allowing bittless? i didnt realise you could do xc etc in a bitless! (well i knew hackamores were allowed) but not dr cook etc.
ok so im kinda going back to the idea of bitting him but doing bitless too, and hopefully getting him going in both!
thanks again,
ps - dont need to worry about showing as im totally not into that and kaiser ruled his showing days over when he ripped his leg open
ok so im kinda going back to the idea of bitting him but doing bitless too, and hopefully getting him going in both!
thanks again,
ps - dont need to worry about showing as im totally not into that and kaiser ruled his showing days over when he ripped his leg open
I can't think of anything besides dressage you need a bit for competitively....le trec? - not sure on rules there at all...
Don't forget with bitless bridles when you break the horse in though - the same as with bits it can take a little bit of playing to find one that applies pressure in the places which suits the horse the most.
Also - My horse was 9 when I got him, and 11 when I changed to bitless with him. He was broken at 3, so had had 8 yrs bitted riding. He took to the change fantastically. Whilst some horses take to it better and others not so well, the same should apply to a horse that's used to being bitless: If you go about it the right way, if your horse is bitless and later in life you want to introduce a bit there's no reason to say he shouldn't get on okay: but just like when breaking in the first place you'd need to go through the bitting process of mouthing etc.
Starting one way never shuts off the option to change or introduce a second method later on
Don't forget with bitless bridles when you break the horse in though - the same as with bits it can take a little bit of playing to find one that applies pressure in the places which suits the horse the most.
Also - My horse was 9 when I got him, and 11 when I changed to bitless with him. He was broken at 3, so had had 8 yrs bitted riding. He took to the change fantastically. Whilst some horses take to it better and others not so well, the same should apply to a horse that's used to being bitless: If you go about it the right way, if your horse is bitless and later in life you want to introduce a bit there's no reason to say he shouldn't get on okay: but just like when breaking in the first place you'd need to go through the bitting process of mouthing etc.
Starting one way never shuts off the option to change or introduce a second method later on
I can't think of anything besides dressage you need a bit for competitively....le trec? - not sure on rules there at all...
Don't forget with bitless bridles when you break the horse in though - the same as with bits it can take a little bit of playing to find one that applies pressure in the places which suits the horse the most.
Also - My horse was 9 when I got him, and 11 when I changed to bitless with him. He was broken at 3, so had had 8 yrs bitted riding. He took to the change fantastically. Whilst some horses take to it better and others not so well, the same should apply to a horse that's used to being bitless: If you go about it the right way, if your horse is bitless and later in life you want to introduce a bit there's no reason to say he shouldn't get on okay: but just like when breaking in the first place you'd need to go through the bitting process of mouthing etc.
Starting one way never shuts off the option to change or introduce a second method later on
thats why im lucky having k so young, i can start him using both, so he hasnt just had one method for years. He will be getting bitted early next year anyway regardless of if i chose to use bitless or not. (he will be 3 next june)
as for which method suits, i only mention dr cook as it works on getting horse to move away from pressure, on cheeks, which k is fully used to now as he has been doing parelli stuff since a tiny tot
not planning on doing trec so thats not a prob!
always pays to ask and if show being run by riding club they may say nope as may a pony club.
i was asked to leave the riding club flatwork as i had a rope hackamore and not the leather and metal one and the difference is, the riding club has one less member currently, as i've not found the bitless BRIDLE we like or they permit.
if it is called a bitless BRIDLE you are usually ok, so i think a bosal or scrawbrig is classed as a bridle, which is what i hope to play around with next.
for hacking i always have a bitted bridle with halter underneath but my insurance company is ok with this.
pleasure rides and le trec normally ok. sj should be ok i think though showing and dresage is bitted. however there are are some shows that offer a bitless only class, but they are few and fair between.
i was asked to leave the riding club flatwork as i had a rope hackamore and not the leather and metal one
and the difference is, the riding club has one less member currently, as i've not found the bitless BRIDLE we like or they permit.if it is called a bitless BRIDLE you are usually ok, so i think a bosal or scrawbrig is classed as a bridle, which is what i hope to play around with next.
for hacking i always have a bitted bridle with halter underneath but my insurance company is ok with this.
pleasure rides and le trec normally ok. sj should be ok i think though showing and dresage is bitted. however there are are some shows that offer a bitless only class, but they are few and fair between.
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