Bit O Magic
With Alixe Etherington
Thursday, December 12, 2002
The rider's seat, legs, whip and spurs act on the horse's body and legs.
The bit acts on the horse's head, which is a counter-balance to the action of the horse's legs. It instructs the head to come into a balance position corresponding to what we're asking of the body.
There are 4 points of control in the mouth: the tongue, bars, corners of the mouth and the palate (the latter is a severe point of control). There are 3 other points of control that bits work on as well: the poll (which asks the horse to lower his head), the nose (which asks the horse to bring his head back) and the curb groove (which asks the horse to pivot his head into the on-the-bit position).
English riding stems from three main countries of development: England, France and Germany. They differ predominantly in how they give their rein aids. The French use more thought than rein, the Germans a distinct rein aid, and the English somewhere between the two. The bit action of bits pretty much is determined by country of origin.
There are 5 main families of bits, only 2 of which are covered today (because they are the only ones relevant for dressage).
- snaffle
- double bridle
- Pelham (double bridle combined into one bit)
- gag
- hackamore
Snaffle
The snaffle bit sits in the mouth on the bars and has its predominant action on the corners by folding slightly in response to the action of the reins. The hook/eye construction also exerts pinpoint tongue pressure and asks the horse's head to come upwards/backwards to the rein, which doesn't help to keep the horse's head long and low. Note that lighter bits offer a slower release, so that they are not milder. Fatter bits require larger aids for the same response. They may also crowd a fleshy tongue or lower palate. Think of going with a thinner bit if a horse tries to stick his tongue out--he may be telling you he doesn't have enough room for the thickness of the bit.
Cheek Variation:
Egg-butt: The most expensive part of manufacture was making a smooth clean hole for the rings to go through, and poorly made bits caused chafing of the horse's mouth. Egg-butts were an inexpensive solution because they moved the hole away from the lips. The bit action is unchanged except that because the ring is fixed, every wobble in the rein is not translated to the horses mouth so that they do filter out some noise. Thus they are often preferred in the hunter world where the need to communicate is not quite so precise as in the dressage world.
D-ring: Identical to Egg-butt except additional benefit of very slight direct rein aid.
Full-cheek: Also different look to Egg-butt, but identical action. Direct rein-aid more pronounced, especially if keepers are used. Usefully with young horses if correctly (snugly) fitted, because they can act like a guiding hand on the cheek to help the horse to understand the concept of steering.
Link Variation:
French Link: Hourglass in center. "French are besotted with sex." Curve should be smooth and gentle and should have some substance to it. This bit acts with less leverage on the corners, and relieves pinpoint pressure on the tongue with the French link. No matter how hard the rider pulls on the reins, the link will still flex and touch the tongue but not put point pressure on it.
Dr. Bristol: Oblong plate that slices through the mouthpiece at an angle so that it sits angled in the mouth. If it is put in correctly, the link is lowest at the back of the mouth and goes up and away from the rider. The rider controls it by raising and lowering the hands. The danger with this bit is that if the bit is put in upside down (i.e., when the bridle is cleaned), the action is reversed, and things get ugly! The bit works like a light switch--it is either on or off. It has short arms and minimal corner action.
KK: The KK arms have eyes that are 90° to the eyes of the French link, so that they are what exert the tongue pressure. The link floats, and never comes in significant contact with the tongue. Now, instead of a single-jointed snaffle with one point of tongue pressure, you now have 2 points of tongue pressure and the horse has no way of seeking relief. This bit is more severe than a single-jointed snaffle. With a French Snaffle, the eyes are horizontal (parallel to the tongue) and the link is up and down, so the link can flex and relieve tongue pressure--making the bit mild. In a single-jointed snaffle, one eye is horizontal (no pressure) and one is vertical (pressure), so only one exerts tongue pressure.
Dewsbury Link: French Link with added weight so that the bit moves forward in the mouth more quickly when the rider gives with the hands. This causes a horse that is too light in the bit to seek contact a bit more readily and to follow the bit more readily--an ideal bit for a horse that is reluctant to follow the bit down in stretchy-chewy circles or to seek the bit in the free walk.
NON-DRESSAGE LEGAL BIT: WATERFORD
The Waterford bit is based on the "continuous rein theory", and is a series of links. It keeps the horse's attention, and the half-halts come through very effectively, yet there is no tongue pressure and it is a relatively mild bit. Care needs to be taken in the make-up of the links--they can't start too close too the rings or you will damage the bars, which is just as bad as if you damage your horse's legs.BACK TO LEGAL BITS:
Exceptions to the snaffle-bit actions: Baucher, aka "Hanging Cheek Snaffle": With this bit, the headstall has a separate ring. In this case, the rein action causes the bit to tilt, exerting poll pressure that encourages the horse to lower his head. Caution here, though--not all Baucher bits are created equal. The mouthpiece must attach about the center-line of the circle when the cheek piece is pointing straight up and down in order for the bit to be effective (some cheap imitations have it coming off right at the center line, in which case there is no tilting, and thus no poll pressure, and subsequently the bit is not better than a simple snaffle).
Double Bridle
When used in the double bridle, the snaffle is called a "bridoon." The rings are smaller for aesthetic reasons, but the action is unchanged. The mouthpiece is also slimmer, but this is just to make room for the second bit. (Yes, the horse has two bits in his mouth at the same time. Alixe is always surprised at the number of the people who are not aware of this fact).
The second bit has its own headstall and set of reins. The snaffle continues to work on the points of control in the mouth. The curb bit is used to fine tune the head carriage of the horse "theoretically" it is not supposed to work on the mouth at all so that rein action tightens the headstall and curb strap, applying poll and curb pressure to ask the horse to lower his head and come onto the bit. The reality is that it does work in the mouth because it sits on the bars.
Variations:
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English Weymouth: This has a port that is supposed to limit tongue pressure, but the reality is that the tongue doesn't fit well beneath the port so that the outer edge of the tongue is pinched by the edges of the port resulting in pinpoint tongue pressure. It also has sliding cheek pieces, which result in a loss of precision and control.
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German Weymouth: This bit is a substantial refinement over the English version. The port is as wide as the bars of the cheek will allow. While it may still pinch the tongue, it comes a lot closer to allowing room for the tongue, and may be satisfactory for horses that don't have meaty tongues. Additionally, the Germans have gotten ridden of the slop in the cheek pieces.
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French Mors de LHotte or Mullen Mouth: This is a gentle uniform arc, rather than a ported bit. The French decided that since no port was going to prevent the tongue from getting pinched, it was better to apply pressure to the tongue evenly all the way across the tongue so that no one spot receive more than any other. They also fixed the cheek pieces. Horses that object to ported bits will often go nicely in a Mullen Mouth bit.
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Revolver. This is an "experts" bit. It allows the reins to activate each side of the curb independently so that a tendency to head tilt can be corrected by applying poll pressure more strongly to one side or the other; it is only for use by skilled riders since it is possible to induce a head tilt in unskilled hands. It is only made by Dewsbury.
NOTE: Higher ports push horses away from the
bit if they have shallow palates. If
you have a horse
that
is reluctant
to come to the bit,
think of trying
a mullen mouth bit and see if it makes a difference. Mullen mouths can be used in snaffles or in double
bridles.
A WORD ABOUT CURB LENGTH:
The severity of the curbs action is not based on how long the curb is, but how long it is below the bit compared to how long the cheek piece is above it. The FEI has set strict standards for allowed ratios of curb to cheek piece length, so while you can buy longer curb lengths, don't fool yourself into thinking you are buying a stronger bit. You are buying a more expensive bit, but because the FEI mandates that the cheek piece also be longer, the bit strength will be the same.