I know, it’s an odd combination, but I’m wondering if a snaffle bit (preferably an eggbutt) with a cricket even exists. Figured I’d ask here, since the English side of the horse world doesn’t really do crickets. And I mean an actual cricket that makes noise, not a roller.
I’ve never seen one, but I bet there are some bit makers who could make one for you.
You mean something like this? Just type into google “snaffle bit with a port” and there are different options, but they are still a D-ring snaffle bit.
PDF.pdf (76.8 KB)
No, nothing like that. Much too harsh for my mare’s sensitive mouth. She goes well in an eggbutt double jointed snaffle, or a Little S hackamore for trail riding. I ride English/dressage but we are no longer competing and she’s mostly a trail horse, or was until her hooves started bothering her. She has a “busy” mouth, likes to chomp on her bit, and I thought she might like a cricket as an alternative. Of course the noise will drive my dressage-purist barn mates crazy, though… (Her teeth are fine, in case it matters. And she doesn’t do it on the trail, only in the arena, but while her hooves are healing we are confined to the cushy footing of the indoor.)
Seen quite a few but with 3 links and a cricket, a fussy mouthed horse may find too much going on every time they move their head. Remember things we humans think are “soft’ may not be comfortable for a horse.
Like a double jointed eggbutt might not be as soft to the horse as it looks compared to that 3 piece snaffle with a low port. Little different action, neither is “harsh”.
This thread is 2 years old but there may be something on it that will help you –https://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/f…t-where-to-buy
OK, now I see we are all replying to a year-old thread bumped by a greenie … :sigh:
Possibly a Greenie with a marketing goal…:(, sure knows a lot about that bit.
/snicker
OTOH, if someone really wants a bit like that, it’s a useful link.
In any case, I’m barely riding with a bit at all anymore. I’ve had several hand surgeries since I posted this, and the weight of the horse’s head on the bit is not something my hands like. I am using the Little S hackamore, sometimes with one hand but usually with both. I have it set up to be as mild as possible, and she likes it and does not lean on it. When I do use a bit, she chomps on it at first but quiets down. It’s a double-jointed eggbutt snaffle.
We aren’t doing much besides bumming around trail riding. I may tackle neck reining “for real” over the winter, when most trails around here are closed, and I’m using the indoor a lot. Mare is 21, but she’s smart and picks things up very quickly, especially things that make her more comfortable.
