pros and cons of flashes!

[AllegroEventing]

Hello! recently i have been thinking of using a flash on my pony! i haven’t been able to find any good pros and cons on them, i used one in the past on my old lease and i know the use of them. but i love knowing lots of details before i put something new on him. A little bit about him, he is getting more consistent in contact after being in training but still evades contact and chews A LOT on the bit. I have had him for a year and i was hoping his bit chewing would stop but it definitely hasn’t.

Thanks in advance!

[Arlomine]

Flash nose bands are supposed to be used to support the bit from below, so it is more stable in the horse’s mouth. Unfortunately, most people use them to force the horse’s mouth shut…which does not mean the horse is accepting the bit.
Also, consider that they are really low enough to compress the airway for cross country, and consider a figure eight or crescent nose and instead.

[shall]

Change the bit to something more inviting? The flash stabilizes a ring bit. Why not try a fixed bit such as an eggbutt bradoon for the smaller horse or pony?

[bornfreenowexpensive]

I take off flashes this time of year (and do not use them on my green horses). If he is chewing a lot…I would first be trying different bits…including trying d-ring, egg butt etc. as well as different mouth pieces and materials (metals, rubber, single joint, double joint etc). Borrow from everyone you know and make sure you have the one he likes the best!

flashes are a bit of a bandaid in that they do increase effectiveness of the bit (so help in control) but do not magically teach him to accept contact.

[GraceLikeRain]

I just got one in that was chomping on the bit like it was her job. I took off the flash and loosened the noseband to the first hole. Once I got on I dropped the reins essentially to the buckle and we walked until the mouth was quiet. If the mouth quiets on a loose rein it lets you know that some facet of the connection is creating tension. It can be super humbling and frustrating but horses don’t typically enjoy chomping on a piece of metal.

After a few rides with this mare she is super quiet even with light contact at the walk but her ability to trot on a loose rein is still very green. If I do touch the reins the chomping returns. To me, this really reinforces that the mouthing is linked to her understanding of contact or anticipation of the contact.

I do not believe ponies are evil/naughty despite all of the funny memes. However, I think that due to their smaller size they are often pushed harder and earlier. When someone runs into an evasion issue on a 17.2 WB I think they tend to use a bit more tactic and finesse than on a 14h pony because a bucking WB has a lot more power. I’ve seen otherwise tactful trainers tell riders to yank and spank ponies in a way they would never recommend on a horse.

If your pony came with a busy mouth than someone may have taken some short cuts along the way.

[Saskatoonian]

Disclaimer: I hate flashes. If I need a drop, I use a figure 8. If I don’t, I use a plain cavesson. I’ve never heard of a flash being used to stabilize a bit before - only for closing a mouth.

Pros: you can easily take the flash off. You can easily adjust the flash so that the buckle isn’t in a sensitive place. You can use a standing martingale with one - not legal in eventing, but sometimes useful for training. I also had a dressage trainer run a draw rein through the top strap of a figure 8 to work through some stuff - the cavesson of a flash noseband would have been better for that. I suspect a flash might be easier to adjust for a beginner.

Cons: in order for the flash to do much, the cavesson has to be tight so that it’s not pulled down, potentially interfering with breathing. Also looking terrible, but aesthetics are the least of my objections. The pressure isn’t even, as it is on a figure 8.

[malriis]

I agree that a bit change is probably in order if you haven’t already tried it. A flash can be used to prevent a horse from evading contact, but I think it is always worth addressing the root cause of the issue. Something about the bit or the contact is making the horse very uncomfortable. Not all bits work for all horses. Even typically gentle bits can sometimes clash with their mouth conformation.

[ExpialidociousOTTB]

My trainer (USDF gold medalist) believes that to accept contact, horses need to be able to relax the jaw. We do not use flashes or drops or anything like that. Plain cavesson, adjusted loosely.

I think it just takes time. My horse is also inconsistent in the contact, likes to chew - we’ve been taking dressage lessons for about 5 months, he’s just now offering some really lovely stretch. I’m confident we will eventually get all the pieces together :-).

ETA: we are just starting to sample some different bits - came from hunterland with a Neue Schule D ring.

[PalominoGirl]

Like any other piece of equipment, a flash can be used wrong. Using it to keep the mouth closed is the wrong use. The intent is to support the lower jaw/bit on a horse learning to accept contact. It should not be tight enough to keep the mouth closed.

[Willesdon]

Being a person of advancing years, I can remember equestrian fashion before the flood. Caveson in my childhood, drop in my teens and then came the flash - which I believe appeared when WBs gained popularity. Very fancy young WB horses pushed hard and fast for maximum showiness and largest $$$$$ needed to have their mouth strapped shut to hide their resistance due to gaps in their training. The fashion spread from there.

It is indicative of this doubtful history that no one actually knows how to correctly fit a flash noseband. Where should the buckle sit? Opinions differ. Should the strap end face up or down? Opinions differ. Where should the caveson sit, given the number of nerves that are affected by a noseband. It has to go high up againat the cheek bones to hold the flash in place but this is not where a correctly fitted caveson should sit…

Other opinions are available but it seems to me a happy, well trained horse should work just fine in a loose caveson. In fact, no noseband at all also reduces tack cleaning!

[ToughShet]

I used to use a flash because everyone I rode with said I should. Now I look back and feel awful about it; I’d secretly loosen it every ride, but sometimes my instructor would crank it back to the tightest possible notch.

I echo what others have said. From extra squirrelly to very chill — I ride them all with a loose noseband and no flash. My current instructor feels like the noseband should be more or less decorative, and the more research I read, the more seems to be coming out about the potential harm from over-tightening a caveson, etc. Swap bits and see if that fixes it! Or (possibly you’ve done this) check to see where the current bit sits. Maybe at times it’s bumping against a tooth.

[sunhawk]

an active chomping mouth is an anxious mouth

[poltroon]

Another vote to change the bit. My horse goes best in a Duo which is unjointed soft rubber. She tolerates a metal mullen. She hates bits that move in her mouth. She chomps and plays and is irritated with jointed bits even standing in a crosstie.

I am not a fan of flash nosebands because of the way they pull down the cavesson and I find them hard to fit and easy to misuse, as well as messy to clean. If you do want a strap below the bit - it can help stabilize the bit and sometimes be helpful - the Micklem bridle seems to work much better and be much more comfortable. Of course, a flash attachment is a cheaper way to experiment.

[sunkistbey]

I use a flash to support the bit but to ensure that it isn’t too tight, I feed a sugar cube after I put it on. If the horse can’t chew a sugar cube then the flash is too tight and their jaw can’t work properly. Dr. Max Gahwyler taught me that little trick.