My horse goofs around with his bit and it really annoys me. Time for a Mullen Mouth?

[purplnurpl]

Silly gray horse.
He usually goes in a KK ultra. Sometimes he’s in a plain snaffle. Always a loose ring.

He does this thing where he lifts the bit in his mouth, smooshes the link or links together, then then straightens them back out making a stupid metal clanking noise.

It drive me NUTS!! Like coworkers that click their pens on and off while thinking.

He does it just to do it, as it seems. More often when he’s just standing around. I don’t notice it when he’s working REALLY hard so maybe when he thinks more about his paces he puts his beady little brain to work elsewhere.

Something with more links like Dusberry (sp?) might play differently but he’s already a gumby boy and I can’t straighten out any more gumby then I have now! Oui.

I was thinking along the lines of that KK mullen training bit. The snaffle with the square port. I just can’t find one via google. That one would fit in such a way that he could not lift it.

What about the happy mouth bit with the bumpy doos on it? It’s cheap enough to try out. Although I like heavier bits.

Rubber mullens are too fat for his mouth.

Isn’t there a site that lets you ‘rent’ the more expensive bits?

He may stiffen his jaw and neck with a mullen but it’s worth a try. I know the KK mentioned above is illegal.

Which Mullen Mouth bits do like?

[JB]

You might try a Myler Comfort Snaffle with a wide barrel, though I could not in the least tell you if they are legal.

I’ve seen horses do that. Sometimes it’s because it’s sitting too low in their mouth, regardless of what the Wrinkle Rules say.

[purplnurpl]

[QUOTE=JB;3910480]
You might try a Myler Comfort Snaffle with a wide barrel, though I could not in the least tell you if they are legal.

I’ve seen horses do that. Sometimes it’s because it’s sitting too low in their mouth, regardless of what the Wrinkle Rules say.[/QUOTE]

I’m so glad you mentioned that. I’ve always been one to let the bit hang lower then higher.
I was thinking about it last night. But not in such a nice way. More like, hmmmm…if I crank this up a hole or two will you stop? PLEASE PLEASE STOP!
LMAO.

[Icecapade]

[QUOTE=JB;3910480]
You might try a Myler Comfort Snaffle with a wide barrel, though I could not in the least tell you if they are legal.

I’ve seen horses do that. Sometimes it’s because it’s sitting too low in their mouth, regardless of what the Wrinkle Rules say.[/QUOTE]

my trainer always looks funny at my horse and his french link… he has a fairly tiny mouth and a french link even with two wrinkles seems to sag in his mouth… and its a 4.5" so its not like its huge. Fortunately he hasn’t taken to straight fussing with it at this point, but easily he could.

And I have no idea beyond trying something with the coating even just to quiet it. Although if he is clanking it he is at least holding it in some fashion and thats a plus!

[purplnurpl]

Oh believe me, he is a jack of all trades.

He was going through some growing (tooth) pains as a 4 year old and I gave him a nice soft rubber snaffle.
He stood at a hunter show and squeaked the darn thing for hours. I wanted to ring his ears.
That was the end of that.

[ThreeFigs]

Yeah, before you spring for a new bit, shorten your cheek pieces. My coach likes to tighten them till there’s no play in the cheekpieces when you try to lift them away from the horse’s face. Imagine you’re trying to “snap his bra straps” for an idea of what I mean by that!

[JB]

Keep in mind that while a double jointed bit is pretty mild, not all horses like that much play in their mouth. I switched my mare from a JP double jointed bit with a bean in the middle (so theoretically even more mild than a FL) to a Myler Comfort, and her mouth and head play quieted a LOT.

[JB]

@Beasmom;3910534

Yeah, before you spring for a new bit, shorten your cheek pieces. My coach likes to tighten them till there’s no play in the cheekpieces when you try to lift them away from the horse’s face. Imagine you’re trying to “snap his bra straps” for an idea of what I mean by that!

That sounds pretty tight to me, but maybe I’m just not picturing it right.

What you want to avoid is (again, regardless of the Wrinkle Rule), having the big always pulling on the corners of the mouth. There’s a difference between there being 1-2 wrinkles because that’s where it should sit in the horse’s mouth, and having 2 wrinkles that pulls it tight, for that horse. Never having relief from the pull can dull his responses.

[sublimequine]

I’d definitely try raising the bit. My mare hates if the bit is too low in her mouth, and will rattle it around angrily until I fix it. :lol:

[ThreeFigs]

I understand, JB. Believe me, it’s not THAT tight, just doesn’t allow for much “play” in the cheekpieces. All the horses I’ve fitted this way are happy and quiet .

Yeah, if you’ve got the horse’s lips drawn up to his eyeballs, it just may be too tight!

[JB]

@Beasmom;3910628

I understand, JB. Believe me, it’s not THAT tight, just doesn’t allow for much “play” in the cheekpieces. All the horses I’ve fitted this way are happy and quiet .

Ok, gotcha

Yeah, if you’ve got the horse’s lips drawn up to his eyeballs, it just may be too tight!

Ya think? LOL

[purplnurpl]

Ya I guess I do have it hanging a lil low. I’m a two wrinkle at the max person.

Here he is at that hunter show when he was 4 (with the rubber bit)
The bridle is all kaddywhankas because I had to avoid his molar area as best as possible.
He had a hard time growing big boy teeth. poor guy. You can see the bumps under the upper part of his jaw just before his cheek bone.

http://i128.photobucket.com/albums/p189/xckaboom/boomhead.jpg

[pattnic]

My gelding kept messing around with his double-jointed loose ring much like you describe your horse doing. Adjusting it didn’t help, nor did using a bit with the same mouthpiece but a different cheek (dee), so I tried the Happy Mouth mullen mouth that you describe. He quit goofing around with the bit.

The only problem with the Happy Mouth is that it really is a bit too thick for him, so I found a loose ring with a regular mullen mouth in metal (I think it’s German silver, maybe?) with a smaller diameter. Haven’t tried it yet, but I see no reason it won’t work for him.

http://www.horsetackinternational.com/German-silver-Mullen-mouth-loose-ring-bit.html

[goeslikestink]

is your horse the grey one in the piccy if so the bridle isnt fitted correctly and theres play in the cheek peices the strap of the nose that runs over the poll should be under and inside the brow band - the horse you can see where she has the rubber bit is at an angle rather than than laying flat ie pokes outwards a tad so you can have room to do up at last a hole or to but would start with one hole each side then move it up to another each side if nessacary
beesmom is correct its to long and therefore allowing play and threfore wont have the correct contact with horse
look here on my helpful links and read the 1st three links on bits and bit advassion
http://www.chronicleforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=178116

[slc2]

“angrily rattle it til I fix it”.

Anger may be in the eye of the beholder. It could be more like ‘oh joy! something in my mouth I can play with!’

Raising the bit up might not always fix it. The horse with the very small mouth can pop the bit against his molar teeth and then push it back toward his teeth with his tongue and have a great game going.

Some horses just like to play with the bit. It might even be good for them to have something to play with so they don’t get more antsy, plus it keeps their jaw more mobile and keeps the saliva flowing so they have a nice foam in their mouth. One of ours does that and it bothers the trainer not one bit.

[mvp]

Where you are-- been there, done that. Here’s what worked for me.

I’m glad you mentioned when your horse plays with his bit and doesn’t. It’s when he as enough “extra” brain cells to do so. So at least some of your problem is about his mental state. That having been said, you are still in a tough position with a young horse who hasn’t learned to concentrate yet.

When my young’un did the same thing, some old-school people suggested that when he was using himself, pushing from his hindquarters into the bit, he’d also quit fussing with the bit. To them, playing with the bit was a sign that my horse was behind my leg. So we worked on that long-term project, too.

In the meantime, this horse benefitted from a soft, very stable bit. It gave him something “safe” and boring to press up against. This helped with both of the long-term mental and physical projects I mentioned above.

Though I think they were a bit wide for him, he went most peacefully in a nathe mullenmouth D-ring. I know that bit might not be legal or even fashionable with its D-rings, but my it got my horse through this phase of his career quite nicely.

Now he has the strength behind, as well as the mental habit using himself, accepting training rather than looking for a stress-relieving habit like playing with the bit. It’s all good and he can go in just about any bit.

[purplnurpl]

[QUOTE=goeslikestink;3912042]
is your horse the grey one in the piccy if so the bridle isnt fitted correctly and theres play in the cheek peices the strap of the nose that runs over the poll should be under and inside the brow band - the horse you can see where she has the rubber bit is at an angle rather than than laying flat ie pokes outwards a tad so you can have room to do up at last a hole or to but would start with one hole each side then move it up to another each side if nessacary
beesmom is correct its to long and therefore allowing play and threfore wont have the correct contact with horse
look here on my helpful links and read the 1st three links on bits and bit advassion
http://www.chronicleforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=178116[/QUOTE]

read before posting like think before talking.

[Qtina]

I have a comfort Myler with the barrel and I do believe that they told me it was legal for dressage. I also believe they have a rental program.

I got my Myler because my horse was constantly chomping and chewing so bad I finally quit riding him until I got his teeth done - he kept chomping, but not as bad. So, upon doing my research I found that some horses don’t have a lot of tongue room and prefer a more narrow bit - such as the Myler.

I bought one with the understanding that I could return it if I returned it within a week - and he really seemed to like it. He stopped chomping almost completely. The only time I notice it at all is when something stresses him and then it is very mild and doesn’t last long.

So, for me the Myler worked great. I do think it was because of the amount of room (or rather lack of room) in his mouth.

But, I tried it on my other horse and he didn’t like it at all. He prefers his thicker bit.

[purplnurpl]

SLC nailed it. That is exactly what he does. My horse, as seen in the picture, has a teeny mouth.

goeslikestink repeated what I said about the bridle in the picture, which is fine. Thanks for posting. The links I found useless. One was about evasions that don’t apply to me. The other was written by someone who obviously rides in a halter and lead rope. That’s fine too. I took the time to look at them.
I should have found a different picture to post.

Like these two:
He was quiet here as a 4 year old
http://i128.photobucket.com/albums/p189/xckaboom/boombit2-1.jpg

he turned 5 and had his issues with his molars and has been rattley with the bit ever since.
I think I did get in the habit of leaving it loose when his mouth was hurting during that 5 year old time.

Here he is with it as a 6 year old with the bridle fitted a little loose.
http://i128.photobucket.com/albums/p189/xckaboom/boombit1.jpg

and his mouth grew. 5’ bits no longer fit him.

[slc2]

Hey did a DRESSAGE JUDGE tell you you got a crappy score because he was rolling the bit like a poker con rolls dice? If not, why care about it.

Good grief I do love that horse. :D:)

DAMN he just looks so good!