book15

15 Bit.

The bit in the horse's mouth is a tool for communication. The horse can feel every movement from the rein in his mouth if the bit is not fastened too hard, is the bit placed too high and too hard there is more strength needed to deal with the force of the bridle pulling the bit upward. The bit gets uncomfortable for the horse to carry and it creates resistance, the bit can also create pressure against the horse's teeth.
Thickness and shape of the bit is adjusted depending on the horse.Only the fact that the horse needs to get used to carrying a bit tells you it is not natural for the him. The normal snaffle is wrong for riding, it works on carriage horses where the reins go through the harness to the hand. A rider can't keep his hands where the driving reins go, the balance is wrong.
If you are using a linked snaffle anyway, you must think of how it works on the horse. The correct guiding is when the force from the rein goes through the mouth to the cheek ring on the outside and then pulls the horse's nose sideways, i.e. the ring makes pressure without putting pressure on the corners of the mouth, some bits have even got bars on the rings to make it more comfortable for the horse.

A snaffle is used to make the horse give his nose sideways. There is hardly no pressure on the bars of the mouth. A Mullen mouth bit works mostly on the tongue and a little on the bars, it must not be too fine.

Because of the leeway of all the parts of the snaffle it takes longer for the horse to correctly understand a signal in the bit. A resisting rein creates a scissor effect in the mouth because of the link. Loose rings are sharper than a D-ring. It is not easy to get a linked snaffle to rest on the bars of the mouth and get the signals there too.

A mild curb bit with short loose shanks is easier for the horse to carry and he understands almost immediately the significance of the signals. The shape of the curb depends on the horse's mouth. Some horses want a high port, others a lower.If the horse puts his tongue over the bit it is a sign that the rider's hand is not sensitive enough. A young horse may play with his tongue over the bit, but he will stop doing it without the rider having to interfere. The directing is the same as with a snaffle.
The curb chain keeps the mouth part against the bars of the mouth and when taking the reins the bit makes pressure on the bars, the horse resolves this by giving his lower jaw. A bit in one piece is more logical for the horse to follow, where the rider places the bit with the rein is where the mouth goes. If you tilt the bit, the horse's head tilts, you lift the bit, the horse's head lifts, you turn the bit, the horse's head turns, and so on. This works if the horse is always ridden with release. The bit goes where the horse wants it, not according to so many wrinkles in his mouth, only the horse can feel if the bit is placed right. The horse must carry the bit himself, the rider must not carry the horse through the bit.
When the horse is getting somewhat trained, the only function of the bit is to balance the head vertically. Riding as an art has never been to pull and jerk on the reins. The purpose is not to make the horse insensitive in his mouth, on the contrary, to make him more sensitive to get a quicker response from him. He should be so sensitive that the smallest rein aid is a signal. If you lift your hand backward, the horse should lower his nose and stop before the rein is tensed, this demands a lot from the rider, but once you are there riding is utterly stimulating. To make hundreds of kilos of muscles cooperate without violence is an art, as fine as any other art.

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