So I am rehabbing a horse that was started badly, or I should say started without a lot of knowledge. I am putting some dressage basics into his brain bank and he is lovely in so many ways, except he like to stick his tongue out to the right. Not all the time, I’ve made some progress, but maybe 50% of the time. I hate using gimmicks but I have never had a tongue wagger before.
Anyone with successful experience with one?
My last gelding did it dramatically as a nervous habit. We’re talking 8+" of tongue stuck out the side of his mouth and curled around, or over the bit first and then out the side of his mouth.
turns out he REALLY hated tongue pressure from the bit. Couldn’t handle it. Previous trainer was rather old school just tied his tongue and strapped his mouth shut with a cavesson.
After we ruled out dental issues, I bought a Bomber’s Happy Tongue bit. If you hold the bit up by the rings like it would be on a bridle facing away from you, the mouthpiece is bent both forward (so up off the tongue) and and also up into the horse’s mouth like a port only it takes up the whole width of the tongue. Instantaneously quiet mouthed. He never fussed or threw his tongue out even once when I changed to that- I never had to tie his tongue or put him in a noseband.
I had to stalk ebay for a minute but I found one used for about half the price of new.
These are the bits I’m talking about:
http://bombersbits.co.uk/products-page/horse-bits/happy-tongue-loose-ring-eggbutt/
[QUOTE=AllyB;7947630]
So I am rehabbing a horse that was started badly, or I should say started without a lot of knowledge. I am putting some dressage basics into his brain bank and he is lovely in so many ways, except he like to stick his tongue out to the right. Not all the time, I’ve made some progress, but maybe 50% of the time. I hate using gimmicks but I have never had a tongue wagger before.
Anyone with successful experience with one?[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=AllyB;7947630]
So I am rehabbing a horse that was started badly, or I should say started without a lot of knowledge. I am putting some dressage basics into his brain bank and he is lovely in so many ways, except he like to stick his tongue out to the right. Not all the time, I’ve made some progress, but maybe 50% of the time. I hate using gimmicks but I have never had a tongue wagger before.
Anyone with successful experience with one?[/QUOTE]
I would not assume the tongue sticking out and/or playing with it is necessarily from a bad training start.
I have seen the rare foal, especially TB ones, have a habit of playing with it’s tongue already when still nursing, just a few months old.
Some got over it, some kept it right up to when we started riding them.
We used a rope nose hackamore, no bit, but they still were playing with the tongue.
Keeping them busy under saddle helped some not to do that during that time, but they reverted to it when just standing there.
I am not sure you can change something like that if it is truly more of an OCD problem, like cribbing, weaving, fence walking and such.
Interesting to hear AllyB say she had a horse quit that when she used a certain bit.
Guess that it depends why a horse is sticking it’s tongue out.
There are some race horses that did race better with a tongue tie, so the tongue didn’t flap around or, as they used to think, may interfere with air flow while racing.
I am glad horses are not penalized by that when racing or showing, because I have seen some really excellent, talented horses do that, is who they are.
Let us know how it goes, if you find some way to get that tongue reliably to stay inside.
Myler also makes some ported snaffles, which give good tongue relief. Might be worth a try.
My TB was raced and from the pictures I had his tongue was tied.
He always just stuck it out a tiny bit at the corner. Sometimes he never did.
He was better about his mouth when I stopped using a flash and used a very loose nose band.
When I was a kid learning to ride, there was an ASB schoolie that hung his out so long it was comical, Cantering was funny, we were convinced it was going to get broken off. Some horses you have to just live with it.
With some horses all I need do is remind the student to relax their fingers, and soften their wrists. And the problem is solved until rider forgets again.
Other horses do it when tense, and sadly some just do it.
It is also sometimes an indication the horse needs his teeth floated, and/or may have TMS (temporomandibular synovitis).
…but IS tongue flapping penalized in showing. I think in dressage it is.
I had a horse that was born here. His mother was ex-racehorse so we discounted her pink flapping tongue as ‘track stuff’. This baby did it since a suckling and the only thing that might/could have caused it is tummy pain from ulcers…and the habit never went away.
He is Irish bred, the friendliest, calmest, dumbest thing you ever met and does it when standing round relaxed - fortunately, when kept busy under saddle he quits it.
He is six now.
But if anybody has the real knowdown they would make a mint. Just keep trying.
You could look into trying a micklem bridle. My horse that likes to stick his tongue out stops in that bridle with a sprenger dynamic bit. His tongue hung out a lot of the time.
Try a chiropractor. I’ve seen that fix the problem.
I only have one experience with a TB eventer. The only way was to flex him (right behind the jaw )so his forehead/eye was looking a little bit to the side the tongue came out. If you could keep him flexed it stayed in, and if it came out and you flexed him it went back in. His owners couldn’t get it all the time but when they did it worked every time.
Hey thanks everybody, it certainly is a fascinating puzzle to solve. I am going to look into the ported snaffles. I put him in a french link happy mouth and he loves it, but his tongue still comes out. He is also very confirmed crooked, tracking his right hind to the right. That issue is getting better as well, does anyone think the two are related. RH, tongue to the right? He is light and pretty steady now in the bridle, it is hard to tell for me riding alone when he is doing it.
I’m thinking the tongue pressure could be it, because he sticks his tongue out more going right and because he is sooo crooked, I do have to correct more with the rein. Interesting, thanks again!
Some horses just do this. My trainer’s OTTB always sticks his tongue out when he is hacking around relaxed and happy. He’s not nervous or busy mouthed. He just sticks his tongue out. Eventually, she decided not to fight it. But she doesn’t try to compete at dressage with him. He is a jumper so it doesn’t really affect her scores.
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