Bridles Without Bits

Are bridles without bits for you? for your horse?

New information and studies will help you decide; articles by theHorse.com:

A New Breed of Bridle (Bitless)

Bitless Bridles Touted as Safer Alternative for Horses

Jessica Jahiel: "Beginner riders often use the reins for balance..." observes Jahiel. "All of this is painful for the horses because by jerking, pulling, and water-skiing on the reins, the riders are putting strong and erratic pressure on the bit."

"Horses in bitless bridles don't have to hesitate for that initial moment of evaluation, 'Is this going to hurt me?' " she says. Quicker response times can be had without a bit.

If a *horseman* is riding a horse, more than likely, he has little use for the reins, communicating with the horse through his body and natural aids. Cook believes that a supposedly simple snaffle in the uneducated hands can be an instrument of torture for the horse.

I ride my Icelandic Horse bitless, and throughout the world, there is a growing number of other Icelandic Horse owners following suit, turning away from the icelandic-style riding and training, in lieu of the more natural ways, which are considerate of the horse.

Icelandic Horses in Portugal

This is a demo of Icelandic Horses in Portugal, using natural horsemanship, operant conditioning (clicker training), and riding without heavy contact on the reins. (There is some fighting of the bit, which may need to be changed out for a bit with a different mouth piece).

Icelandic Horse Castration

Here are several Icelandic Horses being castrated.

Icelandic Horse Self Carriage

From a trainer on a gaitedhorse list:

"A horse must self-balance and have release when he's moving correctly so that he may do so. First I want them to achieve balance and learn to freely move in response to my cues "asking" for particular movement.

Like the toddler that must learn to walk before he can run, jump and skip; the horse must first learn to self carry his gaits with a rider on board, in balance and *without rider support* or framing. If you "have" to hold a horse up in the front to achieve a correct walk then he is dependent on you and not self-carrying."

An Icelandic Horse should be trained bitless, and then move into a small curb with an unjointed mouthpiece or a mullen-mouth snaffle.

I believe that the jointed snaffles are torturous to Icelandics if they are ridden icelandic-style, and of course the shanked jointed-mouth bit (i.e. icelandic bit) compound the problems for them.

Misty in Alaska / Sutton Summer Fest

From Misty and her Icelandic Horses in Alaska:

It has been hot all week and today is like a sauna.

Here's hoping for a thunderstorm.

Duke & I spent all day Friday and Saturday giving pony rides at the Sutton Summer Fest. Today I took everybody down to the neighbor's to help with fire prevention. Here are a couple of pictures of my Removal Squad.

Misty

Riding Icelandic Horses Bitless

Here's another progressive Icelandic Horse owner who rides bitless with her Icelandic Horses.

Icelandic Horse Riding in Neck Rope

This Icelandic Horse is being ridden in a neck rope.