I have a horse who I suspect is very sensitive in her poll as she gets very tight there. She is busy with her mouth and I think she may be inadvertently tightening the noseband on herself as she moves her mouth and chews. I think this in turn may be creating more poll pressure. I’d like to hear stories from people who have tried these bridles or use them and are they really “all that”.
if she is sensitive in the poll I am not convinced Micklems are the best option - I find they place the same amount of pressure, if not more, across the poll – the only difference is that the bridle’s “anchor” point sits on the ridge of the nose, which is basically where all the pressure centralizes. To stabilize the noseband it usually needs to sit pretty tight against the nose, which causes poll pressure – the tighter the noseband generally, the more pressure on the poll. Micklem has a trial program through Dover so you can try to see if it makes a difference – for me personally, I think it is more of a placebo effect for most riders, I haven’t seen much a difference.
Is she young, what bit is she in? Busy-ness in the mouth can be related to a lot of things besides poll pressure.
The Micklem works if your horse’s face is the exact same shape as the model that was used for the development of the bridle. There isn’t a lot of adjustability in it, and if your horse’s nose is even slightly incompatible, it will do her no good. I know roughly a dozen people who have tried it, and only one of them had success. I personally think that it’s a gimmick, and you may as well use a drop noseband or a figure 8.
I have no experience with the PS one. I don’t know anyone willing to spend that much money on an experiment like that. Although, it looks to be more adjustable than the Micklem, so that is good.
I’m currently trying one on my horse, who is very, very particular about contact, can be fussy in his mouth, and hates feeling in any way trapped by the bit. A lot of this is being improved by improving my riding and his training, but that will always be his first point of resistance. We discovered that he responds much better to nose/poll pressure than bit pressure on cross country - he can be willful and he is a big boy, but a bigger bit just ticked him off, while a setup that transferred pressure to the noseband made him rideable and content.
So I’m trying the Micklem, which does allow for pressure to be transferred to the nose and poll (it’s all one piece really). So far he does seem happier in it, though we haven’t yet gone full bore cross country in it.
I suspect it wouldn’t work for your horse for the same reason it does work for mine…
Depends on the horse- my STB gelding goes much steadier in the Micklem- I’ve tried going back to a traditional bridle and he wants to rub them all off. My arab mare did the big FU when I tried one on her :lol: so traditional bridle it is!
Beowulf, horse is 9 and has been this way since she was broke as a three year old. Currently using a Stubben double jointed loose ring bradoon. She has been a very hard horse to saddle fit therefore has had a lot of tension in her back off and on. I think this contributes to her mouth issues. Then I think her poll gets tight which then contributes to her back issues and it’s a cycle.
I just switched my 5 YO from a Micklem to a plain noseband and I think he’s happier. With the Micklem it seemed like his face got really itchy. My tb, OTOH, went better in the Micklem, and my draft x doesn’t seem to care.
[QUOTE=Halfling;8573016]
Beowulf, horse is 9 and has been this way since she was broke as a three year old. Currently using a Stubben double jointed loose ring bradoon. She has been a very hard horse to saddle fit therefore has had a lot of tension in her back off and on. I think this contributes to her mouth issues. Then I think her poll gets tight which then contributes to her back issues and it’s a cycle.[/QUOTE]
Does she get regular body work? Or if she’s sore in the back, does doing any ground work or lunging before riding help your horse to loosen up her back before you get on? That may help her more than a Micklem will.
I have a horse whom I’ve used it on and if I’m riding in my dressage saddle, I will use the Micklem. When I ride him in my western saddle with western bridle and no noseband, he’s very good, go figure. Perhaps it is because I ask less of him when we’ve got the western tack on? Perhaps he prefers the fit of his western saddle?
Actually, the saddle he likes the best is my Heather Moffett Vogue. I noticed that when I rode him in that saddle, he was light and not fussy in the bridle. But due to an injury I cannot ride in that saddle so it has to go. So I definitely understand noticing that tightness in the back relates to fussiness in the mouth and tightness in the poll.
If you do a demo program, it certainly can’t hurt to try it, but addressing the other problem should help, too.
[QUOTE=mvspencer;8572877]
The Micklem works if your horse’s face is the exact same shape as the model that was used for the development of the bridle. There isn’t a lot of adjustability in it, and if your horse’s nose is even slightly incompatible, it will do her no good. [/QUOTE]
This is so true, based on my experience, that it needs to be quoted just to say it again. If you want to try one, definitely try to borrow one from someone or get it on trial before investing in one.
I use a Micklem on one of mine, and I like it a lot. But it is for reasons other than relieving poll pressure, as that’s not an issue for that horse.
I did a lot of research and chose PS of Sweden over Micklem. Will let you know the results when my bridle arrives!
in terms of quality, though, the PS of Sweden is far nicer. I’d rate PS of Sweden close to Passier in terms of initial feel, but I don’t think it is as nice personally.
Micklem leather is cheap, indian tanned. Leather quality is on par with Suffolk/Crown, maybe worse.
I have the PS of Sweden “Top Notch” and I adore it.
I also heard (2nd hand) that the elastic ‘cradles’ in the cheek pieces and reins ARE legal for dressage. Obviously, I need to double check, but in the meantime, I am not going to cut them out since my horse (with a sensitive mouth) goes so much better and is softer with them.
[QUOTE=BigMama1;8573173]
I did a lot of research and chose PS of Sweden over Micklem. Will let you know the results when my bridle arrives![/QUOTE]
How did it go!?
It just arrived last night after a couple of exchanges to get the right size so it’s too early to say. However I can tell you it’s the first bridle over to fit my big boy correctly - ie with the cheek pieces not pressing on the bones along the sides of his face. And yesterday was the first time in 2 years of riding him that he didn’t try to rub his face the second I dismounted.
I’ve tried a lot of horses in the Micklem, and have found that most go better in it, whether they’re typically heavy or too light. I hate the way they look, but my horses seem to like them.
I have an Arab and the Micklem fits him, albeit on the biggest hole for the jowl strap and one of the smallest for the “flash” strap. He’s tough to fit because he’s big for an Arab and between cob and regular sizes, but the Micklem works well on him. That said, he doesn’t go any differently in it than in a regular noseband (he’s not picky about tack) and although it looks cute enough on my guy, it isn’t the most attractive bridle out there. I like that it is ergonomic and has fewer straps than a regular bridle. I have one of the deluxe competition models and the leather is nicer than on the multibridle, which I previously had.
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So far love the quality and the look of the PS of Sweden. Definitely fits him better than anything I’ve had on him before and it’s the first bridle he doesn’t try to rub off as soon as I dismount. More foam on the mouth and its frothier than before - not sure what that means LOL
I’m riding my young horse in a Micklem, which is a good fit for her, and I clearly felt a difference when I first put it on her. I’m not good enough to explain what the difference was :lol: but she felt more stable? Easier to get on the bit? Certainly not magic but there was a clear difference over the more standard bridle that I was riding her in before.
My goal is to get her a PS of Sweden at the end of this show season (sort of a reward to both of us for surviving our first show season together) and I’m hoping that she’ll feel the same or better in that!
My horses love their PS of Sweden!
I also saw Fairfax has a new - supposedly scientifically designed new ergo bridle for about $500 - they are only selling it in England right now as they need to custom fit it to the horse. Also, there is a $350 cavesson only by some dressage rider in FL called Tota Comfort. Has anyone tried this one? Its to work with your current bridle: http://totacomfortsystem.com/
