Chomping on Bit

[Pico_Banana]

I need help please – my horse is consistently “chomping” on her bit and I’m looking for ideas on what’s causing her to do so and what I need to do to get it to stop.

Here’s the background: I recently purchased a new horse. She’s young, coming 6. Her seller was unable to tell me exactly what she was using, but it looked like a KK Ultra to me, so I bought a 5 1/2" 16mm KK Ultra. I decided that bit was too long and bought a 5 1/4" 16 mm Neue Schule Tranz Angled bit. The “chomping” has been going on all of this time. I then wondered if maybe it’s too thick for her because she doesn’t have a ton of room in her mouth and am now borrowing a 5 1/4 14 mm KK Ultra from a friend. Still chomping. I then had her teeth floated. Told the dentist about the issue. He said her mouth was pretty bad and that she should be fine once he was done. You know where this is going – she’s still doing it.

Any ideas? I don’t know if it’s being caused by anxiety, discomfort, or something else. But she even does it when I’m just handwalking her around before I even get on, so it doesn’t seem like it should be anxiety. She does get bored fairly quickly, so maybe it’s just her needing something to do? And if it’s that, maybe I should try one of those bits with the roller in the middle?

All ideas/advice greatly appreciated.

[csaper58]

Sometimes, the more you try to make something better the worse you make it.

It sounds like your horse is young and inexperienced, so maybe relax and give it some time? Let her get used to which ever bit fits her the best.

Be sure your saddle fits, if the chomping is happening only when you ride.

[JoannaHCR]

My chomper loves her Neue Schule Verdibend 16mm Mouth 5-1/4". I only got to ride her in it a few times as she was pretty far along in her pregnancy when I got it, but the difference was immediate.

Also, if you moved her, I would throw out the common suggestion of considering whether she might have ulcers from the stress of moving to a new barn.

Good luck!

[CHT]

TMJ issues?

[Keg-A-Bacchus]

Chomper owner here. My mare is very oral and puts everything in her mouth. She chew on bits like a puppy with a bone. I spent the first few years with her just trying different bits and hoping she grew out of it. I didn’t want to close her mouth with a flash since every other horse I’ve owned never needed one and I didn’t want to “mask” a problem. It’s my biggest regret. I wish I would have put her in a drop or something and just taught her that chewing on the bit is not an option. It’s a habit she now has for life. I now ride her in a Mullen Myler baucher and she can’t push it into her teeth. She still tries multiple times each ride but it’s the best we’ve had by a long shot. She’s also going best in a figure-8. Snug but not tight. I had vets, dentists, massage therapists and trainers all agree it’s just a bad habit. She does it when she’s bored and when she’s trying really hard at something new. In HINDSIGHT I would have popped her in a thin baucher Mullen and a figure-8 or drop and just spent a few weeks making her hang out in it until she learned to find a different way to express herself. It would have been well worth taking a month off riding and just making her wear it. She gets a correction now (pop with the whip on the butt and a bump with the leg) when she starts. She stops now immediately when I do that but always tried again later. So if I could go back in time, thin, quiet bit and a snug nose and and just hand out with her in hand. If she starts chewing say “Ack!” and tap with a whip. If she’s being quiet with it, praise. I wish you luck. The mouthy ones are rough and I hope you have better luck than I did! Ignoring it definitely didn’t work for her like it doe for some. Oh well. She’s pretty amazing even if she tries to chomp a dozen times a ride now. LOL