Bit or Bitless? The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

If you want to know what bitless bridles I recommend, please watch my video    • How to Ride Bitless Safely and With Full C...  . Are you interested in going bitless, transitioning from the bit, and overwhelmed and confused with the many different opinions and choices? Are you tired of hearing other professionals talk about the bit not being painful to the horse, telling us that it’s our hands and lack of skill that makes the bit painful? And, that if you are a heavy-handed rider in a bit, you will be the same in a bitless bridle? While I do agree with “hands make a heavy horse”, it doesn’t matter whether you ride bitless or with a bit. There is a lot to think about here and the better educated and experienced we become, the easier the decision will be. About Bits I studied this topic years ago and that’s when I transitioned into bitless training and riding – developing horses in all disciplines and levels. I will explain why I transitioned to bitless in this video and hope that it helps guide you in making the best decision for your horse. Here are the biggest issues I have with bits: 1. Too many people train and use them incorrectly. They are taught to use a bit to control the horse’s movement, speed, and performance. And, they couldn’t be more wrong. If you study the history of the bit, you will learn that it was designed for refinement only and used on educated horses meaning well-trained horses who were developed to be sensitive to contact, responsive, balanced and light. This means the bit was never used on a new, inexperienced horse or one that needed re-training. 2. “Heavy hands” is a result of a lack of education and skill of the rider. It is also about a lack of education and development in the horse. 3. Bits are often used to make the horse comply, submit, and is mostly used today to control (not refine) the horse. This is done through operant conditioning. 4. Because of the negative experiences and associations with bits, horses develop negative behaviors. These behaviors help them to cope with the pain and results in snatching, riding behind the vertical, bolting, refusing to supple, pushing through, spooking, etc. To summarize, rider’s need an education in the history of the bit, why it’s used and how it’s used and horses need to be taught correctly so they are responsive to light contact and physically developed to be supple and balanced. Bitless Bridles While bitless bridles spare the mouth, used inappropriately they can also cause pain - nose pain and swelling, particularly when constructed of harsh materials such as hard or thin rope or bands. Not to mention, a few of the bitless bridles use shanks, harsh chin straps and straps that do not release such as the side pull bitless bridle. While these types of bitless bridles don’t use bits, they are still painful, especially if we have to resort to pulling our horses around. In the end, training our horses means we develop and educate them through a series of repetitive exercises and until they create the mental and muscle knowledge (memory) to remember. Horses are quick learners who retain everything they learn, and they are sensitive emotionally and physically so why do we need harsh equipment such as bits, spurs, excessive force and manhandling methods to teach them? In the end, training takes time to learn and time to teach and most of us either don’t want to make the time or don’t care about the horse’s mental, emotional and physical welfare. Whether you use a bit or not, you can create the same issues with both. I personally prefer bitless and for the following reasons: 1. I follow the teachings and principles of the great classical horsemanship masters who trained horses to the upper levels without a bit – the bit’s purpose was to refine and re-balance only 2. I begin with a soft rope halter and use several aids to help the horse learn how to give, yield, to the pressure they feel around their pole and nose. Meaning I do not get heavy with my hands to teach. 3. I believe that these two reasons produce a happier, healthier and more trusting horse. In my years of re-training and developing riding foundations on thousands of horses, I’ve never had an unhappy bitless horse. This article is from one of my favorite magazines, Holistic Horse: Bit or Bitless? Bridles, with bits and without, have been used through history as various cultures sought to guide, control and communicate with the horse. https://holistichorse.com/health-care.... You can access more articles about the bit and going bitless from my web page, under “training” https://www.taoofhorsemanship.com/art.... If you would like to learn how to develop your horse holistically and classically, from the inside out, ground to riding, start to finish, I offer a step-by-step guide in my MasteryMembership Program. Please click here: https://www.taoofhorsemanship.com/mas... #equestrian #horses #carolinebeste #taoofhorsemanship #masterymembership