What kind of bit can i use?

Question

what is a good bit to try on a 10 year old quarter horse mare that i am starting to train barrels? she has a light month but need some pressure to help her turn better! she has a great whoa on her and i have all ready tried the wonder bit with the rope over the nose! that seem to work but she wasn't turning very well! will a hackamore help? what did will help her turn better?

Answer 1

Myler has a comfort snaffle with any combination of rings and an optional roller, it keeps the horse's tongue from getting pinched and allows her to feel the difference in a light directional pull without the whole bit moving.  

Answer 2

I say a D ring french link.  

Answer 3

If she has a light mouth, then it's not a problem a stronger bit will help.

With an older horse, it's probably a conditioning problem.  She's not flexible enough to turn on a dime, no matter how much she wants to.  Work on lateral flexibility issues, turns and circles and serpentines and such.  Ground exercises are good, too - hold a carrot where she has to really bend to get it.  Give her a bit only when she's flexed really well.  

Take her out in the field or woods and calmly get her to bend around anything you find - a clump of weeds, a tree, a rock, anything.  Stay calm, do it at the walk until she's bending really well.  This will keep her relaxed while getting her flexing, keep it fun for her, and so on.  Do the unexpected - never bend the same thing the same way all the time.  Once she's flexing well, try it at a slow trot, and work up from there.  You don't want to get her all hyper doing this; that's not good in aany horse, and barrel racers are better when they don't waste their energy being hyper!

You don't need a huge bit or a ruined mouth to run barrels.  You need a fit, flexible horse that can turn and run easily, and that means you need to condition her.  

Answer 4

Something simple. No twisted wire, long shanks, etc. Tom thumb bits are actually a quite harsh bit, so I would recommend some kind of snaffle, possibly a french link, to do the trick. I haven't personally tried a full cheek snaffle, but I have heard from many people that they are good for horses who need some turning help, since it adds pressure on the side of the head as well.

Answer 5

to make her turn better use a d or o ring snaffle, only if she has good whoa. if you want to use a hack don't use a mechanical if you want her to turn good. those are really only good for stopping, not turning. use a reg. hack that has about 4" i use this on my barrel horse, it really helps him turn and has a pretty good whoa.  

Answer 6

I used to run barrels....I used a full cheek snaffle...it is great for the turns...I also use it for just about everything.  If you use it with bit keepers, you'll get a mild pressure on the poll as well, which is how I used it for barrels.

Answer 7

I would think a broken snaffle or tom thumb snaffle would work best. I had the same problem with my throughbred and used the tom thumb on her and she turned on a dime so to speak! I left the noseband on her for good measure. Once, I even connected a bit to a hackamore by rawhide strings and it did help only for a bit. The tom thumb worked for us!