Bit rubs?

[buck22]

In all of my years I have never actually dealt with bit rubs of any kind so please excuse my ignorance.

My horse seems to suddenly be developing bit rubs this year, the upper corner of his mouth, a spot about the size of a pea. Equal sizes on both sides of his mouth.

He is wearing the same bridle he’s worn for over two years, adjusted each drive on the same holes, and same bit (swivel cheek liverpool glory bit, that sticks out .25" out each side of his mouth) and same reins adjusted the same way (rough cheek slot). Harness is the same, terrets the same, vehicle the same. Everything adjusted to the same holes, everything fits the same.

The ONLY difference is that we’re driving with more contact now than last year. End of last year he was actually going better and more steady in to a more pronounced contact, and this year - after the winter break and with our new exercise routine - he’s traveling much better.

In the past two seasons we were green green green and I would start our work really slowly, and we were working on light contact (he used to have a tendency to get confused and balk) and sort of build up to being more steady in my hands. This year, after our winter break, I’ve been getting him fit in a variety of ways, and our driving, while mostly walking in this early of the season for fitness, is more advanced than we’ve been and we’re more or less picking up where we left off in November.

I am wondering, did the mouth become calloused to the bit in prior years with slow introduction to contact?

I can’t for the life of me figure out what else is different that he’d suddenly be getting rubs.

And, I don’t know what to do about it either :o He’s not pink or rubbed raw, but I don’t want it to get there. Vaseline? Bit guards?

help! Thank you!

[goodhors]

Regardless of what he has worn in the past, remeasure his mouth.

I use a new pencil, put it across the tongue like a mouthpiece. Have one end flat even with his outside lip, no pressing, then mark where the pencil comes out on the other side of the lips. This should give you the width of the mouthpiece alone. If you plan to add bit guards, I add in 1/4 inch more to the width for a pair of guards, so you allow enough addtional width of space needed to fit his mouth correctly.

You may want to measure the width of the mouthpiece of bit he is using, to see if that is the same width the pencil was. You need to ONLY measure the inside width, do not include the part where the shank goes thru the mouthpiece. Horse can’t use that part, so you THINK he has a wider bit than he actually does. Inside mouthpiece is all he gets for width.

If your measurements do come out the same, I would look at the bit itself, see if it is getting worn or sloppy when the parts move. Using a bit often for two years or more, they can easily be worn so parts move differently now.

We have bit guards on all our bits. I look at them as a problem prevention tool. From my riding experience, I saw a lot of curb bits that pinched lips between the curb strap/chain and the part where the bridle buckles in. Also saw a number of worn and ill-made bits with various cheeks that had gaps that would grab skin or hairs, pull on them when the bit was moved. These included most snaffles, with both loose and fixed ring shapes. Those sliding loose rings can grab skin as they turn in the mouthpiece ends. Eggbutts where the mouthpiece fits on the ring, not always smooth and closed edges on the hinge. Curbs that move a lot in all their swiveling and flexing with rein uses.

Hold your bridle up, move the shanks of bit around while looking at the hinges and swivel parts to see if gaps open and close with movement. I had one like that, looked FINE until I pulled the cheek ring out sideways and a HUGE gap opened up and was evidently grabbing skin by the way horse had reacted to a leading rein. Fine with reins directly back to the saddle. Bit was just worn out in the hinge. Decoration on the wall now and a demo to show a BAD bit when I need to show problems that can happen.

Fixed sided bits, H style, can rub on the opposite side that the rein motion is being used on. I no longer like the H style bits, they allow so little communication, now that I am used to more flexible bits. You move one part of the H style bit, it affects the whole bit and face of the horse. Can’t “whisper” with that kind of bit and no legs on the horse.

Bit guard can also prevent that wear spot you mention, IF you keep the bit guards cleaned after every use. They can easily collect nasty slobber that hardens, flecks of food the horse spits while working. That stuff gets hard when dried, can easily cause rubs on the soft lip tissues. Wiping guards off, dunking the bit in water, cleans the wet stuff off after use easily.

If he is holding the bit differently, using his mouth in a new way, bit guards might protect his skin from any rubs. Be sure to get a bigger mouthpiece size, before adding bit guards.

[gothedistance]

@goodhors;6207621

If he is holding the bit differently, using his mouth in a new way, bit guards might protect his skin from any rubs. Be sure to get a bigger mouthpiece size, before adding bit guards.

Excellent advice! I second this.

[Drive_NJ]

We use the neoprene bit guards for one of our horses
they fit better on the liverpool bits than the pull on rubber guards

but
you need to be closer to 1/2 inch larger bit size to accomodate the width of the neoprene

I also second the idea that if you are driving with more contact this year you are likely using the bit and bridle in a way that is contacting his skin/ head/mouth in a different way
and staying in contact with him more - a surprise rub can happen

[buck22]

Thanks everyone so much. I suppose I need the next size up and some bit guards. I have a personal aversion to all things neoprene (I don’t mean to be ungrateful for the advice, I’m just funny on certain things in my old age :lol:)… do leather bit guards exist and are they just as useful (if neo is the winner then its fine by me of course)? What is a good bit guard to get?

(wondering outloud) wonder if I could make bit guards out of ThinLine… hmmmmm…

And … I guess my next question is then…

Is what I’m experiencing normal progression? I’m not taking more contact as if my horse is running off with me, we’re just having better conversations and he is pretty much requesting it (if anyone recalls, our monkey-tail issues of last year are a distant memory so far, I can keep my hands lower, quieter, more “in the box” and less prone to drifting around, my pony really prefers that I am “there” and he was apparently trying to tell me with his tail… clever boy, used the appendage closest to me… “Hellooooo! Here’s a flag in your face! How much more obvious can I make it…” was probably wanting to swat me upside the head :lol:).

I will definitely examine the bit to check for wear, but I just can’t imagine thats the case, I don’t drive THAT much, and for the last two years he’s had the winters off.

Its striking me a bit odd frankly, as if something is amiss but I can’t figure out what it is. I’ve progressed with ridden horses and never had such issues, but none of them were in a liverpool and a heavy harness headstall that keeps things rather fixed either.

Thanks so much for the advice and help! I’m really confuddled on this one.

[Drive_NJ]

I have not seen anything like leather bit guards in EONS

mostly you see neoprene or gum rubber

the neoprene are a full circle with a slit cut across one side and tiny velcro tabs to close (make sure those are on the outside)
Come in black and a variety of other colors
They are nice because the slip on a long shanked bit easily and they are soft

the other typical bitguard is a circle of rubber that you pull on the bit like those pull on bell boots. I’ve usually seen red and sometimes black, but smartpak says -white-black-brown
Though I did see one site that had lots of colors - blue, green, yellow

Here is a handy how to for putting on the rubber kind - and they are a little thinner than the neoprene ones

http://www.wikihow.com/Put-Bit-Guards-on-a-Horse’s-Bit

and this is another interesting alternative
http://www.jeffersequine.com/easy-button-bit-guard/camid/equ/cp/RD-E0/

oh wait - I found some leather ones - a bit too bling for me and honestly they look like they could rub too
http://www.runningroantack.com/bitguards.html

Yes there are normal leather ones still !
http://www.nationalbridle.com/product-p/1-0966.htm

[buck22]

Oooooh, I see… how very interesting. Lacing up leather doesn’t interest me in the least, I could see that becoming irritating quite quickly. But I could easily make my own of leather and use the velcro trick, thats pretty slick.

Then again, if the entire universe is happily using neo, who am I to buck what works.

Thank you so much!

[goodhors]

The Wiki method is good, but I would still advise heating the rubber bit guards before trying to put them on. They do split if pulled hard and they are cold. Microwave them in a cup of water for a couple minutes, they get pretty darn hot to work with and stretch to work over the long parts.

We use black rubber guards, which blend in well on the bay faces in all activities.

Never saw the Jeffers models before! Interesting, just wonder if the seam and buttons would rub in regular use.

I don’t think I would like the embossed leather ones, because the lacing would protrude to rub on the horse face.

The plain leather guards look nice. I would probably use some kind of heavy thread, stitching thread for leather, to lace them closed, to prevent something sticking out to rub on horse. I have done that with some rubber bit guards I had to put on Pair bits with a bar on the bottom. It did work pretty well. Not sure what other flat type item would work to make a smooth stitch to close them without a rub. Maybe a cable tie ending on the outside?

Lastly, have you had the dentist or Vet check his teeth recently? Sometimes a problem will crop up suddenly even with regular dental care. A painful place in his mouth could affect how he carries his bit or holds his head while in work that might create the rubs.

[China_Doll]

Some of the swivel have more play and apt to pinch. As they get worn that is more likely to become an issue

[buck22]

Thanks so much you guys. Great suggestion about teeth, my guy just went down to once a year visits after being a 2x a year visit for several years. He had an awful mouth when he came to me and my dentist and I agreed 2x a year was best until his mouth was really in good shape. Perhaps things aren’t as good as we thought, though he’s been pretty good for a while.

I guess its really possible the bit could be wearing in, just find it surprising I guess, but this is my first go with a liverpool so its not like I have experience to draw on.

I guess I’m mostly just surprised how sudden this is, and how odd it is that it chooses to happen at a time when we’ve reached a new level and things are feeling really great.

The solution seems simple enough, thanks to everyone’s help… its the cause that has my knickers in a twist I suppose… just wish I knew why this was happening.