The use of bits in horseback riding is a very controversial topic in the equestrian world. The argument that bits are “abuse” and “inhumane” can be found on any kind of horse related website or forum. Bits used in horseback riding are not detrimental to the horse unless they are fitted and/or used improperly. The use of a bit and the type of bit used depends on the type of riding, the horse’s comfortability, and the riders skills. Some horses are able to be ridden in the bit, while others are best ridden without one. A horse can have bad past experiences due to a person's poor riding ability or an ill fitting bit, therefore some are best ridden bitless. This does not mean the bit itself is abusive, but rather the hands of the rider are too …show more content…
When fitting the bit and bridle to the horse, several things must be considered including the shape, size, and sensitivity of the horse's mouth. A bit that is too large or too small for the horse can cause miscommunication and discomfort to the horse, and can even result in injury. A general rule is that the bit should not project more than a half inch or less than a quarter inch from the corners of the horse's lips (Bennett.) The ideal position of the bit on the bars varies from horse to horse and bit to bit. Dental work needs to be performed differently depending on the type of bit and discipline a horse is in. The premolars of a race horse tend to be more rounded than those of a western pleasure horse due to the fact that the race horse has to have his chin extended in order to achieve better running ability. The pleasure horse performs with a nearly vertical headset, and therefore needs different dental work than a race horse. If the horse's bit seats are not created in a way that the horse can comfortably carry the bit while being asked to perform tasks can have a detrimental affect on the horse's comfort and performance. Again, this is not a problem with the actual bit, but rather an issue with the incorrect use of the bit. A very popular rule of thumb in fitting the snaffle bit is to have the bit adjusted so there are “smiles”, or …show more content…
It is important to understand the types of bits and how they function in the horse's mouth. Bits are categorized into two categories: curb and snaffle. Snaffle bits tend to be more mild than curb bits and therefore are associated with starting young horses, while curb bits are more often used on horses with more advanced knowledge. Snaffle bits provide a direct line of pressure with no mechanical advantages. An O-ring snaffle provides the most signal out of all of the snaffles. This is because the rings have the ability to move through holes in the ends of the mouth piece, so when the reins are activated the rings will move before pressure is even applied to the mouth. D-Ring and full cheek snaffle bits do not have this ability and simply apply pressure to the horse's cheeks. The mouth pieces of the snaffle can vary between smooth to twisted, but they are all jointed, meaning that they break in the middle. Snaffle bits apply pressure to the tongue, corners of the mouth, and the bars (Freeman.) Curb bits, on the other hand, do not have rings but rather shanks that connect the reins to the bit and provide the signal to the horse. The mouthpiece can vary between jointed, ported, or solid unlike the snaffle bit whose mouth piece is only jointed. The longer the shank on the curb bit is, the stronger the signals from the bit are. This however is offset by the fact that a
Once you get them to settle down and get there mind focused on just walking and the rider then you know the bond with the rider and horse are strong. When it is time for the second run of the night you want to warm them up again but not as hard this time because he or she has already been warmed up once before this, so just a little warming up won’t hurt. When it is that time for the second run the rider will bring the horse him a set him or her up for their first barrel and make the most of the race. If you see the rider smiling then everyone knows she has done her job with this horse. The rider can make an automatic barrel horse where that horse know his job and she barely has to ask the horse for a turn or touch his face to go around that barrel. When the rider gets a horse to be like that everyone can tell they spent hours and days together. The rider worked with that horse but never made him sour or hate coming into the arena. They spent time working on flexing the horse and making sure he knew when to tuck his nose and leave it for an extra second. They will all see when they are running home how much they spend time they spend together if they are fast and smooth through the pattern and don’t have any blow ups before or after coming in and out of the arena. After the race is over and the announcer say who
The term ‘easy keeper’ or ‘easy doer’ is heard often in the horse world when it comes to animals that retain fat fairly easily or that simply maintain their body weight without having to be fed in large amounts. Most people don’t think much of it, while plenty are glad to have horses that are easy to feed. However, that ‘cresty neck’, fat on the tail head and on the sheath or mammary glands of horses can have a lot more to do with their health than most folks take into consideration. Yes, they’re overweight but, in most cases, it doesn’t seem like a very big deal. However, recent studies have shown that these ‘easy keepers’ may be a big target for a detrimental condition.
his leg a number of times. The horse was tested and passed, but what the
Young, Rhoria Lee, and Maggie Bracher. "Horsemastership part 2: Physical, psychological, educational and social benefits." International Journal of Therapy & Rehabilitation 12.3 (2005): 120-125. Web. 8 Mar. 2011.
With over nine million types of horses in the United States, the need for quality health care for the horses has never been stronger. It’s certain that more equine veterinarians than ever before will be needed in the years to come to provide the care that owners want for their horses. According to the American Association of equine practitioners (AAEP), nearly half of the equine veterinarians are involved with performance horses(44.8%). The AVMA’S most recent employment survey of 2016 indicated that there were about 3,874 veterinarians in exclusively equine practice, with and additional 4,177 involved in mixed practices.
Today's rodeos consists of two types of competitions – roughstock events and timed events. Rough stock events include bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, and bull riding. In these competitions, a contestant must ride a bucking horse or bull for a certain amount of time. In bull riding competitions, the rider's only concern is remaining on the bull for as long as he possibly can. However, in saddle bronc and bareback riding, the cowboy must "mark out" his horse. "Marking out" a horse is when the cowboy must exit the chute with his spurs set above the horse's shoulders and hold them there until the horse's front feet hit the ground after the jump out of the chute. If he fails, he is disqualified.
...for each individual tooth which gave them the look and feel of brand new teeth. These teeth were fitted to the people’s mouth and mounted down with steel springs ("Technology Timeline.").
“I predict that the natural hoof care practitioner of the future will be less of a trimmer, than a diagnostician of healthy changes in the hoof and an expert at creating natural behavioral stimuli in the track that serve the adaptation mechanism”(Jackson). What I will be talking about during this research paper is shoeing horses. Contemplating the workings of horse hooves, I found that a horse being shod does not hurt the hoof like so many would argue because when a horse is working on hard ground, the wearing down of the hoof is greater than the hoof growth and the extra protection prevents soreness. My main points throughout this paper will be the history of horseshoes, different types of hooves, how natural selection has been prevalent
Equine-Assisted therapy so far has shown commendable results. “Equestrian Therapy” acknowledges that “it is a fairly new technique for autism and other disorders that has been providing promising results such that many are consistently utilize therapy animals in their treatment programs and only for autism but also for people with Asperger’s syndrome. Equine therapy for special needs is an animal-assisted therapy that helps children with a wide variety of disabilities. This type of therapy makes use of riding horses as an effective way of providing physical and emotional therapy as well as psychological benefits” (“Equestrian Therapy”). Equine Therapy helps develop the motor skills of a child while they learn to ride a horse. The calming
domestic horses (equus caballus). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 106(3), 947-951. doi:10.1073/pnas.0809127105
Making sure your horse is thoroughly groomed is the first step to making him comfortable. Assuring the feet are picked and free of pebbles or stones are imperative to prevent any injuries to your horse’s feet. Next, comb out any tangles or debris from the forelock, (the horses bangs) mane, and tail. Keeping in mind the horse uses his tail as a deterrent for insects we want this to be free flowing and free to swat with. Now let’s brush our horse. Using a curry comb, first and in circular motions work your way down the horse’s neck, across his body and around his rump. This will loosen any built up and ground in dirt. Using a hard course brush, brush out your horses coat to bring up and out all that loosened dirt. Taking a medium course brush you may now brush off any loosened dirt that may still be in the hairs. Finalize you...
First you should brush your horse. Brushing your horse is a very good way for you to let your horse know that you respect him or her. One type of brush that is used is a curry comb which is usually used to comb the mane and tail. Another type of brush that is used is a soft bristled brush, this type of brush is used for the body of the horse. You should always be careful when brushing the tail or the butt of the horse. When you brush the tail you should stand to the side of the butt and pull the tail to the side, this will prevent you from being kicked.
... have a crop (small whip) or peg spurs. Both of these do not hurt the horse, but are uncomfortable, so they know they are doing something wrong.
Equestrian Riding, also known as horseback riding is a sport. Some people may argue that is not because they think the horse is doing all of the work. However that is not true. People do not realize that it takes a lot of to ride a horse and the rider does a lot of work as well and its good exercise too.
Then, use the left hand to place the bit in the horse’s mouth, while the right hand holds the headstall above the bit, placing it over the horses ears. As a precaution, the rider must never walk away from the horse, after the bit is placed on the horse. A horse must never be led with the reins in any other place other than the handlers hands (not around horses neck, dragging the ground, etc) ("Western Training," n.d.). Once the rider and horse reach the final destination point, the reins can be placed around the horse’s neck with one rein on each side.