Which bit fits my horse? - Christina Cherry

Education | Ilka Stand | 01/18/2017

A suitable snaffle bit is a prerequisite for sensitive and sensitive rein aids with a horse’s mouth chewing happily. But which bit suits my horse and me? Countless offers and promotional descriptions make the choice difficult. In addition to different materials, shapes and modes of action, the nature of the horse’s mouth must be taken into account.

To consider is the Length of the jaw gap, the position of the teeth, the tongue, the palate, the jaws and lips, as well as the distance from the upper and lower jaw and the width of the mouth. All of these factors are created individually for each horse and must be considered individually.

The bit should be soft on the tongue and on the corner of the mouth and stimulate the horse to chew and saliva, so that the muscle chain from the chewing muscles to the neck, neck strap, long back muscle to the abdomen and hind muscles can loosen and work together loosely. For this purpose, the horse must gladly and confidently accept and seek the leaning against the bit with the rider’s hand. A suitable bit is the basis for this.

Knowledge:

Apart from the bit shape, size, length, thickness and type, you always have to deal with the bit material.

Denture materials:

The most common bit material is stainless steel. It consists of different parts chrome, steel and nickel. Stainless steel bits always shine through the chrome content, clearly silver.

The second most common alloy for bits is Argentan (also called German Silver or German silver). It consists of copper, nickel and zinc in different parts. Depending on the copper content, Argentan bits can range from dark silver to light golden.

Most of the bits that are commercially available consist of alloys that contain, among other things, nickel in a relatively high concentration. Nickel, especially on mucous membranes, can cause allergic reactions.

An alternative to nickel-containing alloys is e.g. among others Aurigan and Sensogan (patent: Sprenger) or Kaugan (patent: Busse). These alloys are largely nickel-free and consist of different parts of copper and different precious metals. The higher the copper content, the darker golden the bits are.

Copper has several positive properties. On the one hand it has an antibacterial effect, on the other hand it tastes sweet when it oxidizes. This stimulates the formation of saliva in horses, which are stimulated to chew more and thus generally better accept the bit.

Correctly select the bit:

There are different lengths, thicknesses, shapes and modes of action. Which bit is the right one for which horse should be carefully considered.

First it is important that correct Length to choose. This is measured from jaw angle to jaw angle. If you stand in front of the trodden horse and pull the bit rings apart, there should still be about half a centimeter of space. If you are unsure about the width of the teeth, it is better to choose a bit that is too long than a bit too short, as bits that are too close to the jaw angle can damage the jaw angle in certain types (e.g. water snaffle bits). Ideally, the bit lies loosely on the mouth angle if the bit is not touched or moved.

Next up is the bit-thickness (Strength) can be selected. This is measured directly on the mouth angle, on the inside of the dentition. Mainly the individual anatomy of the horse has to be considered. The space between the upper and lower jaw, as well as the length of the jaw gap and the nature of the tongue must be taken into account.

If there is a lot of space between the jaws, the jaws are long and the tongue is thick and fleshy, the horse will probably prefer a thick and / or solid bit.

If there is little space between the jaws, the gap between the jaws short and the tongue thin and soft, the horse will probably prefer a thin and / or hollow bit.

Of course there are all anatomically possible combinations with the many different horses, so you have to look at each horse individually, what fits and what does not.

The bit position:

Now the correct position of the bit must be determined.

If the horse moves the bit back and forth while chewing, it must not come up against either the cheek or the incisor or stallion teeth. Unfortunately, the “two-fold” rule does not apply in most cases. You should unravel the horse, open the mouth laterally and observe whether the bit is pushed too far forward or backward by the tongue and buckles the bit higher or lower accordingly.

Bit type and effect:

Now there is a choice between single or double broken or a rod bite. In addition, it must be decided which bit type (water bridle, olive head, D-ring, B-ring, thigh bridle, etc.) should be used. To make this decision you have to be aware of the effect of the different construction methods.

A simple broken bit lies on the reins around the lower jaw branches when there is a clear pull on both sides and can trigger the so-called "nutcracker effect". In addition, the bit is centered in the direction of the palate, which allows the tongue to continue moving back and forth. An unpleasant pressure on the palate can only arise if the noseband has been strapped too tight.

If the bit is broken twice, the tongue is also fixed between the lower jaw branches and can no longer move. The “nutcracker effect” is even stronger here than with a simply broken bit.

With strong pull on both sides of the reins, a rod bite exerts strong punctual pressure on the very thin lower jaw branches and fixes the tongue. However, if the bit is only strongly accepted on one side, it can misjudge between the upper and lower jaw. A rod bite always works simultaneously, on both sides. Broken teeth, however, are always one-sided.

A pole bit should therefore always be ridden only with the help of a Avoid misjudged and accordingly unwanted reactions of the horse.

Conclusion:

Like all topics related to our horses, there is a lot to learn and to know about dentures. Every rider should acquire as much knowledge as possible in order to be able to choose the right equipment for his horse.

he the author:

Ilka Stehn was born the second of four children near Lüneburg. From an early age she had nothing but horses in her head, but could only start riding regularly at the age of twelve.

It has always been clear that she wants to work with horses.

Through a very close cooperation with Antje Bandholz (trainer of the old French equestrian art) for several years and until today regular lessons with the honorable Eberhard Weiss (classic riding and driving instructor), she was able to learn the basics of horse training up to high school.

Specializing in horses where other trainers have not progressed for various reasons, she is now, among other things, an equipment expert.

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