When and why did you start using a double bridle for your horse

[CanteringCarrot]

I’ve been thinking about this lately. I’ve been going to clinics and noticing that 90% of horses seem to be in double bridles. Some, IMO, don’t seem ready or are still quite green in their training. My horse is further along than some of these horses.

At the level I show, one can use a double, and most do. I do not. A fellow boarder just introduced the double to her younger horse and told me mine is ready and that I should try it as he should know it…but I don’t have a reason to quite frankly and my horse is a pain in the bum to fit as he is a hodgepodge of cob and dull. Therefore, I am not enthused about fitting another bridle to him. :winkgrin:

Never mind the bit situation.

I’d just like to go as far as possible in his simple snaffle bridle. He’s light and easily lifts in the front. I’ve ridden with a double before, but I just don’t feel I need to yet with this horse. Trainer(s) haven’t commented on it either way, and I haven’t asked.

I understand the purpose of the double, and this is just sheer curiosity.

Anyway, at which point in your training did you begin using a double bridle and why? Maybe the age of the horse is of interest too.

[Rerider54]

My horse is 14 this year (semi-rescue, she was started then stood for 3 yrs.) and last year we went out Second level. We are not super fabulous but I did get my scores for my Bronze. My instructor who got on my girl once a week in the fall instead of my lessons asked for the double. My horse has a cob head but needs a large brow band. I had a 30+ y.o. Brown double and only had to buy a new brow band… oh, and bits too as the horse has a smaller mouth then all previous horses. The way we introduced it was for me to hack in it one day a week and then the ‘lesson’ was in a double.

I won’t bother buying a black double till I feel it will be worth it in the show ring (and we get to Third level). I am happy with the way she goes in her snaffle. Maybe we could get it quicker/better with the double but it can wait. I suppose the real thing was getting the fit… it took two weeks to order the bits. But now that I have them I am checking out the second hand tack shops and if I find something I like I might be persuaded to own a black double.

The horse that used the brown double was young and crazy. I used it on him when we took him out on trail rides so I had a bit more control. I evented the nut case(I was a lot braver then) and we went cross country in a full cheek snaffle for steering… he never stopped at any jumps… mostly he just didn’t stop.

[atlatl]

Horses are individuals too. Of all my horses, over roughly 30+ years, only 1 got/gets ridden regularly in the double. He’s not a brave soul and seems to be reassured by extra weight. Frankly, when scared he can and has run through the snaffle like it’s not there so not unlike @Rerider54 it’s nice to have solid brakes. Not a mean bone in his body, but not a brave one either.

[netg]

My mare has been in rehab for what we think was a stall injury 4 years ago and she hid from us until she couldn’t anymore. She was just ready to start in the double.
Very sensitive horse who prefers clarity above all else. My trainer has put clear but strong riders on her when they had lame horses because she doesn’t object to overriding, just objects to muddy aids. She was about ready to show 3rd, working tempi changes, half steps, canter zig Zags, full pirouettes. She did not need the double at all, but we believe she will love the clarity of it. If we get vet approval we start riding again next week, and I expect she’ll be in a double this year.

[Goforward]

I think some horses just simply go better in the double. Others are never really comfortable in it.
There will always be some people who think every horse must go in a snaffle every day and that somehow they’re more worthy of their status by being only in the snaffle bridle. I think, as long as the rider has an independent seat and the horse has a strong basic foundation, the double is a good tool for more precise communication. It can help a horse understand how to stay more upright and can give the rider better control of the shoulders.
I start horses in the double around the time that second level is well understood. If the horse goes better in it, I add the double into each week once or twice. If they dislike it, I hang it up and call the bit fitter. Most of the time they just need a better fitting set of bits.

[CanteringCarrot]

@Goforward

I think some horses just simply go better in the double. Others are never really comfortable in it.
There will always be some people who think every horse must go in a snaffle every day and that somehow they’re more worthy of their status by being only in the snaffle bridle. I think, as long as the rider has an independent seat and the horse has a strong basic foundation, the double is a good tool for more precise communication. It can help a horse understand how to stay more upright and can give the rider better control of the shoulders.
I start horses in the double around the time that second level is well understood. If the horse goes better in it, I add the double into each week once or twice. If they dislike it, I hang it up and call the bit fitter. Most of the time they just need a better fitting set of bits.

Yeahhhh, I don’t think that of the snaffle at all, but I just thought it was interesting to see the various rider and horse skill levels that were going in the double.

This horse is past the American 2nd level, and maybe it is time for him soon. He is naturally upright, responsive, and quite easy to control. So this could be why I’ve taken a longer road to it with him.

In reality, I should start fitting one now because it will probably be a chore with this horse! We don’t have any “bit fitters” but I have a rough idea of what may work for him. I’ll probably go with a bridle I can piece together due to his mix match of sizes.

He’s a sensitive and responsive guy that does like precise communication, so I am curious to see what he’ll think of it.

[CanteringCarrot]

Odd Spam but I am actually buying a robot lawnmower this summer. :lol:

[eponacelt]

My trainer’s general rule of thumb is that when your horse is starting to learn the changes, or just before, is a good time to introduce the double. When I’ve introduced one before, we did it when we were second level, looking at third, and I started out by just hacking in it for a week. Then we schooled in it once a week. With that horse, he went better in the double the higher we went. A small pressure on the curb and he’d lift and stop pulling, whereas the self-carriage in the snaffle was just harder.

My new horse will likely get an introduction to it this summer, as I’m thinking she’ll be in about the same place. Whether it makes the difference with her that it did with my last horse remains to be seen. She’s a very different type and ride (KWPN vs. Welsh Cob).Schedule

[Samantha37]

I started the double using it just for “hacking” (my older OTTB doesn’t hack so it was arena strolling) when I was at Second Level. I needed the extra half halt to get clean changes at Third Level. He is stepping down now and doesn’t do changes anymore but I still use it every couple of weeks. He goes much better in the snaffle after being ridden in the double.

My new project OTTB is very fussy about his mouth and bridle so I don’t know that he will ever go in a double. He also is not naturally low and heavy like my older dude is.

It’s not required unless you are showing internationally (CDIs) so I’ll worry about it if we ever get to that point.

[mjhco]

Started Shade in a double when he was competing Third level. Just once a week or so. And intermittently when hacking to let him get used to the feel on his own terms. He never did object (he had been a Zone Champion Working Western Horse early in his career so to him a curb meant FUN!) I showed him a couple times in the double at Third. More at Fourth. And definitely at Prix St. Georges on up because at that time a snaffle was not an option. He was very happy in the double. VERY light.

I had been cautioned that to be ready for a reaction of being backed off because of the curb. But that did not happen because of his history of wearing a curb for working western. He would grab the bits out of my hands when bridling because he was so eager to go.

[SillyHorse]

@Rerider54

I had a 30+ y.o. Brown double and only had to buy a new brow band… oh, and bits too as the horse has a smaller mouth then all previous horses. The way we introduced it was for me to hack in it one day a week and then the ‘lesson’ was in a double.

I won’t bother buying a black double till I feel it will be worth it in the show ring (and we get to Third level).

Is the fact that the 30 year-old brown double is showing its age the reason you feel you’d need to buy a black one for showing? If it’s still in good shape, it’s perfectly acceptable for the show ring.

[J-Lu]

I’ve gone to the double because of show requirements. The leverage of the curb has it’s merits.

A friend of mine went to the double early because her Friesian x Clydesdale used his large size, huge head and jaw against her. He goes really lightly in it - it’s a perfect choice for him.

[Lucassb]

@Goforward

I think some horses just simply go better in the double. Others are never really comfortable in it.
There will always be some people who think every horse must go in a snaffle every day and that somehow they’re more worthy of their status by being only in the snaffle bridle. I think, as long as the rider has an independent seat and the horse has a strong basic foundation, the double is a good tool for more precise communication. It can help a horse understand how to stay more upright and can give the rider better control of the shoulders.
I start horses in the double around the time that second level is well understood. If the horse goes better in it, I add the double into each week once or twice. If they dislike it, I hang it up and call the bit fitter. Most of the time they just need a better fitting set of bits.

This.

I have one horse who was started in life as a driving horse. He is perfectly rideable a snaffle but he is MUCH happier in the double. My other horse doesn’t seem to care at all what you put in his mouth. He is seems equally happy in a snaffle or the double but as noted above, I feel like I can better manage his shoulders with the double. They are both going third level currently.

[Jackie_Cochran]

Let me say at the start that I do not ride dressage, I ride Forward Seat.

I am now riding an absolutely horribly conformed QH that has no hope of ever doing dressage because his neck muscles above the throatlatch are too thick, I swear they project almost and inch beyond his jaws on each side. He had been started as a Western horse (failed barrel racer) and it was obvious he had never had any advanced training.

I asked permission from my riding teacher to introduce the double bridle. She was doubtful it would do any good at all since she was really pleased with the progress I made with this horse with the snaffle. I really was not expecting much either, in fact I expected a melt down from the fact that, for the first time in his life (mid-20s) he had two bits in his mouth.

From the first step in the double bridle this unsuitable horse quieted down. He had been obeying the snaffle bit better but he seemed confused most of the time. When I introduce the double I ride with a sagging curb rein, and occasionally I softly close my fingers on the curb rein with immediate release by softening my fingers.

This horse stopped being confused about bits. Everything became clear to him. I could “hear” him saying “OH, you mean THIS” in the double instead of his usual guessing with “I just do not understand you” with the snaffle bit alone. He has never shown any discomfort in the double (I made good and sure the two bits FIT and were in the correct place in his mouth), we never have had any trouble bridling him with the double, and he acts like he can understand the whole universe better with the two bits in his mouth.

I really like riding in the double bridle. This horse is the fifth one I introduced the double bridle to in my life. One mare I introduced the double to was young and green, green, green, and she also did not “understand” bit action at all, after a few rides with the double she stopped having problems understanding what I meant.

I did not get the rapid understanding about what the bit actions meant with the horses with much better head/neck connection (part Arabs, Arab),they all understood the snaffle bit just fine, but they all got a little bit lighter and did not seem to mind having the two bits in their mouths.

It also helps with horses who get really bored with ring work as it gives them something to think about while they slog around the ring, which means the horses often lighten in response to the bit while at the same time they become a bit more venturesome in their ability to do slightly more expressive gaits.

[Aeris]

@Goforward

I think some horses just simply go better in the double. Others are never really comfortable in it.
There will always be some people who think every horse must go in a snaffle every day and that somehow they’re more worthy of their status by being only in the snaffle bridle. I think, as long as the rider has an independent seat and the horse has a strong basic foundation, the double is a good tool for more precise communication. It can help a horse understand how to stay more upright and can give the rider better control of the shoulders.
I start horses in the double around the time that second level is well understood. If the horse goes better in it, I add the double into each week once or twice. If they dislike it, I hang it up and call the bit fitter. Most of the time they just need a better fitting set of bits.

I agree with this (with my anecdotal evidence). I started my horse in the double when we were schooling all of 3rd level and she just prefers it. I can have the weymouth rein completely slack, but the added weight seems to make her feel more secure. She’s percheron x dutch harness so I think it just balances out her stronger front end. However, I’ve certainly ridden horses that never felt comfortable with that much hardware/weight in their mouths, and that’s fine too. I’ll put my horse in her snaffle if I’m just going to hop on her bareback (yes, I ride my FEI horse bareback lol) because it just seems silly to ride bareback in a double, but otherwise, the double is sort of the signal that we’re doing Big Girl Work.

[ASB_Stars]

I started out in Saddleseat. So I’m very comfortable with two sets of reins. I’ve had two horses over the years who didn’t need to be in full bridles for their level of training necessarily but went to work so much better in a full bridle. Both were very talented, but we’re just much happier with me being able to adjust Where I wanted them in front of me. I will say that it’s very important to be able to differentiate between those reins, And ride accordingly.

[Dutchmare433]

My mare I started in the double when she was showing second and third with me. She had previously shown through third and had not been started in the double. I hesitated to start her in the double because she had the tendency to get short in the neck, and not at all strong in the bridle, and was always willing to take a half halt. I did at the encouragement of my trainer, and she went way better in the double from day 1. Happy to go longer in the neck and actually stretch down and out. I didn’t start showing her in it until I showed 4-3 with good results, so now that’s what she shows in (I did 3-3 and 4-1 in the snaffle).

My youngster I started in the double last summer while he was schooling 2nd and 3rd plus half steps. He took a little bit to warm up to it–he did a month of just either hacking or doing a stretchy/easy ride in it 1-2 times a week. He is another one who is quite soft in the mouth, and when tired or nervous can get behind the vertical. If not for the experience with the mare, I would have waited, but it’s actually been quite helpful, it gives me access to his hind legs and I can thus ride him very up in the poll and out in front of the vertical. As he has gotten stronger, it’s gotten easier to get this in the snaffle.

[CanteringCarrot]

Hm. After some discussion (fellow riders and trainer), and contemplating I am going to give it a go with this horse.

A fellow boarder has a double I may be able to borrow and it just might fit for trial purposes. I don’t have a double that will fit this one, as I said he’s kind of a mix of sizes, brand dependent. I’ll also see what my trainer has in her inventory. When I do purchase the whole ensemble, I’ve narrowed down my selection as far as bridle, I just need to find reins, and a curb. I have the bradoon sorted. It is a hefty investment, so I will play around with what I have access to from my trainer and fellow boarder friend. I may utilize the bit bank too.

”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹I have experience with the double myself and feel comfortable with it. I can relate to what @Dutchmare433 said… As my horse is of similar type and tendencies.

[PonyApocalypse19]

My older gelding went in the double bridle as soon as we had goals to show third level. I didn’t ride my first year at third in the double since it was my first time using one. But it was obvious to me that he had been in one prior to me owning him.
My young huge dutch gelding started in the double when he turned 6 (now 9). He’s a laid back guy and didn’t care what he was wearing one way or another. But him being so huge, I’ve used it to find tune the connection during changes and it really makes the hind end engagement or lack thereof obvious. I use it now because he’s become a handful after 9 months off.
My 10 year old dutch gelding has only been in the double a little over a year and we’re expected to show PSG this summer. I have not shown him in it yet and have never felt the need to. It does help again with engagement and finding the littlest bit of resistance. He’s one of those that sucks back in the double. He’s a tricky horse and hates change. So this was a big change for him and we had to go super slow. I tried to make it no big deal and back off when the pressure got too much. Now he’s comfortable in it and it is part of his routine. I only ride him in it during the weekend. I’m trying to move up to 3 days a week in it to simulate a 3 day show. Honestly, I never thought this horse would go in a double and I had no issue showing up to GP in a snaffle and I still don’t. But he does “look the part” so to speak in the double vs. the snaffle.