Hi all, I am looking for a little advise on this subject - double twisted wire bits - if you owned barn and one of your boarders started using one of these at the advice of their new trainer - horse is a hunter and rider is 15 - very very nice and expensive horse and trainer is very well known, but i dont agree with the way the rider is being taught to use this bit in a snap-release then pose for fence??? WWYD?
I am an event rider myself so no wuss when it comes to difficulty and i have used a variety of bits xc for strong horses but i have never put that bit in a horses mouthā¦?
I have used that bit. When I was that age too. And I suppose if the BO who is not my trainer started telling me which bits I could & couldnāt use on my horse, I just might start looking for a new facility to board at. Any bit can be harsh in rough handsāI have seen people doing some serious yanking with their plain D snaffle on a horseās mouth.
As a BO are you willing to lose a boarder over their choice of bit?
If itās your barn, you can make whatever rules you like.
Itās the trainerās call. Unless you see the horse bloody in the mouth, itās not your business.
I have used that bit and have one sitting in my tack box. I have (and had at the time) an educated and soft hand. In the wrong hands I have seen a snaffle be abusive - I am a big believer that there are harsh riders, not harsh bits.
I would not but in unless you see the kid really ripping into the horseās mouth - you could loose a boarder and it really isnāt any of your business.
In my opinion, I cant imagine a horse ever needing that harsh of a bit. Bitting up is no replacement for good training. I would not allow the rider to use the bit. She should tough it out and learn to train the horse, not use special equiptment to force the horse to obey. I see a double twisted wire as a very harsh bit.JMO. With a lot of hard work, even the toughest horses can be ridden in a less harsh bit.
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It the trainer client and they are doing the teaching and training so its their call. I think this one falls under the none of your busness catagory.
Quotiing Parelli isnāt the way you want to go here.:lol::lol:\
I also believe Teddy was in a twisted wire. (RIP little buddy:sadsmile:)
Iāve used that bit over fences with an OTTB who simply needed the extra reminder to not lean on the bit during the excitement of jumping. With the double twisted, rating was easy on both of us.
Seems like the rider wouldnāt be able to āposeā over the fence if the horse was objecting to the bit.
At any rate, the trainer might have switched bits for any number of reasons. It could be a temporary aid, or the kid might have the best hands in todayās universeā¦
Best thought I can come up with is to wait and see.
Not your horse so itās not your call. Unless the customer asks for your opinion then donāt give it.
[QUOTE=CashMoney;3261629]
a snap-release then pose for fence??? [/QUOTE]
WTF is a snap release?
I think the OP means snap, as in tug on the reins, then let go.
If, as you say, sheās simply āposingā then maybe sheās a very very light-handed rider on a very strong horse. It may ālookā like posing, but in reality is probably not. Any bit can be harsh in the WRONG hands & any bit can be soft in the RIGHT hands. Unless, you actually see abuse occurring stay out of it. Hopefully, this is a knowledgeable trainer & as a knowledgeable trainer will know what he/she is doing. Iāve seen many horses go with bits that make me wonder what theyāve got in there (have you SEEN some of the bits on the German team), but you know what, those horses jump well move well & enjoy their job & are ridden by people with some of the lightest hands Iāve ever seen!
When my gelding came to me he had been ridden in a double twisted wire by his old owner.
Yes he set his head, and he stopped on a dime, he also reared and went backwards at any sign of pressure on the bit.
It took a good 6 months to teach him forward was ok. Another 6 months to introduce collection of any kind.
I also reschooled a pony about 7 years ago that came to us w/ that bitā¦ we were told it was the only bit in which she was āmanageable.ā 3 months later we had her jumping courses in an eggbutt.
I donāt see the necessity for such a bit and have seen more harm than good come from it. Now Iām not in the club that thinks every horse has to go in a french link, but at the same time, less is usually more IMEā¦
Now whether or not you should butt inā¦ I hate to say it, but probably not. 
I appreciate your input!
I really appreciate you all chiming in. I am definately not one to medle in what my boarders to as long as it is not abusive and that it does not affected other boarders and we are all considerate of each other. And I am very aware that I have āopinionsā that are exactly that - i was seeing it from where one person posted - that i think it is being used as a substitute for teaching to ride - like i said i ride and train a good number of horses, i choose not to show as much anymore becuase I enjoy working with the young horses to get them started well - i am good at it and i love that - i like being a kindergarden teacher:) and i look at bits as tools to communicate and to be used in good judgement. By snap and release I mean about 4 strides from the fence give the horse a quick hard pull and then release and then again in the corner to get balance and release again. I again thank everyone - i definately try not to impose my personal beliefs on others, i just found myself feeling bad for a very sweet horse whose face get a surprised grimis everytime he gets a snap.
[QUOTE=CashMoney;3261788]
I really appreciate you all chiming in. I am definately not one to medle in what my boarders to as long as it is not abusive and that it does not affected other boarders and we are all considerate of each other. And I am very aware that I have āopinionsā that are exactly that - i was seeing it from where one person posted - that i think it is being used as a substitute for teaching to ride - like i said i ride and train a good number of horses, i choose not to show as much anymore becuase I enjoy working with the young horses to get them started well - i am good at it and i love that - i like being a kindergarden teacher:) and i look at bits as tools to communicate and to be used in good judgement. By snap and release I mean about 4 strides from the fence give the horse a quick hard pull and then release and then again in the corner to get balance and release again. I again thank everyone - i definately try not to impose my personal beliefs on others, i just found myself feeling bad for a very sweet horse whose face get a surprised grimis everytime he gets a snap.[/QUOTE]
Firstly itās none of your business, you are not the trainer. Secondly, it sounds like she and her trainer are trying to teach the horse not to rush and pull by using a half halt. Often a quick correction with a strong bit will teach a lesson more effectively and more kindly than constantly nagging by yanking and pulling with a plain snaffle.
I have a horse that pulls like a freight train and a very tiny teenager, she uses a double twist to teach the horse exactly the lesson the above horse needs to learn - how is it better to have him drag her around the ring, completely ignoring her while wearing a nice soft plain snaffle? After one or two half halts, he is very light and responsive and is not pulling and is totally listening to her aids.
Iāve got a double twisted wire in my bit collection. I havenāt ridden in one in a while, but I did when I was 16 on a very well-trained appy mare. She doesnāt look upset does she? (All my other pictures of her show the same pleasant expression.) I guess I shouldāve been able to ride her in a plain snaffle by some accounts, since she was so well trained, but she went best in the double twisted wire.
IMO, there are many bits that are harsher than a double twist (gags, elevators, etc) and ANY bit can be harsh in the wrong hands.
Good bit to whoa a horse that wants to run through your hands and lengthen its stride to the fence
I have no education on the bit, so canāt speak to that, but as a barn owner, I sure think it is my business when and if I believe someone is mistreating a horse on my property.
I would never tolerate abuse of an animal on my land, by a trainer, owner, or anybody else.
Yep, I would be happy to loose the money on it.
Nevermindā¦I donāt really care.
What kind of riding & training do you do? Iām just confused because hunter/jumper riders (actually letās through in dressage & eventers as well) would just call this a 1/2 halt. Iāve never heard of it called a āsnap & releaseā! How do you teach your young ones to balance & listen if you donāt use 1/2 halts? Itās a very valuable aid in riding, and one that is very much used in the corners of a course as well as, oh about 4 strides out, if your horse is totally ignoring you and rushing to the fence (which can become very dangerous)! 
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