So my 4 year old wb boy, who I have had for a year, was leaning at a steady and careful pace, has suddenly been unridable at the canter due to canines below the surface of his gums. His teeth were recently floated and he is sound and his tack fits- However now when I ask for a canter he cranks his head to the right and throws his head in the air and nearly stops and can’t be steered. I rode him in a halter with reins and he was fine, so I know the problem. I have tried every bit (including bendy rubber Berris mullen mouth), all to no avail. I would love to be able to take him to some shows to get him mileage off the property (maybe do a flat class and tiny warm-ups) before the weather turns bad. Does anyone have any advice about a bit that might work (legal, so not the sponge bit) or gum remedies? Or is it just tincture of time-
learning, not “leaning”-typs
Emerging teeth can make the whole gum area sore, so I can’t imagine any bit is going to feel good.
You can take him to shows and just not show, which means you can use a sidepull
Bitless bridle.
Until everything progresses and the canines can be addressed.
IMO a bitless and a bitted bridle ride the same. Lengthening, seeking contact, lateral work, etc. & so on. Everything I can do with a bitted bridle, I can do with a bitless. He responds the same with light contact and more definite contact. The dynamics feel the same to me.
I did this with my horse and it was the answer until his canines could be dentist’ed. He learned the things appropriate to his stage of training just the same. Honestly I look forward to the day when bits will not be required in competition.
Until his canines were done & dusted, he couldn’t tolerate the bit. Afterward there were no more bit issues. He accepted the bit as normal for a horse being introduced to it.
The one caveat is that he did not automatically understand that the bit was taking the place of the bitles. There has been some re-training. But it hasn’t been a difficult transition.
And I’m happy to have the bitless option for him on casual rides and trail rides.
Oh man I feel your pain. My youngster was turning 5 and one canine had not come through. Mullen mouth bits helped the most I think for the stability, but the steering was not good at all, and the canter to the right was the worst. It was the upper right canine. He needed his teeth floated also, but that didn’t resolve the issue. The vet said the tooth was right there at the gum. I’d been waiting for an appointment with a dental specialist. When that finally came, she opened up the area and excised a tiny amount of gum to help the tooth come through. It did wind up erupting promptly (we were a little afraid it would close up without the tooth pushing through), and it made him a lot happier! There was nothing abnormal about the tooth just later than the other 3.
Have the vet help it along by erupting them if they’ve been bothering him for some time. Had this done to a mare with teeny tiny ones that drove her batshit. Because they were tiny and had not been found for (likely) years, it took her a while to trust the pain was gone and bits were not going to make the pain return, but she did get better after they were erupted by the vet and got a LOT better about me farting around in her mouth to make sure the gums didn’t grow back over in just a few days.
This! I forgot that I had done this in the past with others- been awhile since I had a youngster- Vet is coming soon! I appreciate all the feedback on here along with the absence of any snarky remarks that COTH seems to attract on other posts. Nice to know there are nice people on here with helpful and heartfelt answers to a horsewoman in need of advice !
Got the canines through and teeth re-floated (points that appeared 2 mos after float) and rode in a bridle for the first time in over a month yesterday. He was defensive at first but with time and patience and lots of “good boy Nuggets” he began to trust that the pain was gone. Hoping for daily progress so I can get him off to hang out at a few shows before season ends.
that’s worth going “hmmmmm” about to try to figure out why. That’s a pretty short time for a point of significance to develop. Sometimes it’s just about their particular chewing pattern AND having extra soft teeth. Teeth to tend to harden with age, so it could just be that. But it’s worth checking him again in a few months to see what’s going on there, just to make sure.
He’s back to his old self !
