Bits

Here is a photo of Showing Up frothing at the mouth in the saddling paddock before the Hollywood Derby. Is the frothing related to the type of bit material used? Is this frothing desirable pre-race? The bit material copper--as opposed to steel or aluminum--promotes salivation. Copper is lately touted as the bit material of choice. Ever had copper in your mouth? Relevant questions as I search for a first bit for our new Y.

Over the years i've read every book on bitting mostly to dissapointment. The Myler book and video are of some help in teaching basics. I've used a Myler (long) lozerenge snaffle---egg and D-- for several years in training and racing. Are Myler Stage I Snaffles more comfortable for the horse? I think so. They're a little weird to use at first as mouth contact is less than with traditional snaffles. You get used to this quickly. Yet, I have a horse with mouth problems, and the Myler makes the problem significantly worse. Additionally, these Stage I Myler's are heavy and imo add some unwarranted pressure to the tongue. I never see any point in putting a pound of iron in a horse's mouth. Earth to Mylers--please manufacture a light weight racing bit.

Progress is being made in bitting. The German manufacturer HS Sprenger features several smooth (very expensive) bits with double jointed tilted lozerenges advertised to prevent uncomfortable palate contact and tongue pressure. The new Sprenger "Dynamic RS D Ring" appears as the most comfortable bit i've laid eyes on. But, all the Sprengers are made of a copper alloy called "Aurigan".

As too many other things in this business, in bitting logical phalacies hold sway. Horse people, as humans generally, refuse to carry thought to logical conclusion. ("Man commonly is blind throughout his life, so my Faust be blind than as you end it") The thought with regard to bitting materials is as follows: (see Hillary Vernon Website--Ms. Vernon comes as close to someone that really does understand bitting as I've found): dry mouths in horses are undesirable because when the bit moves it will rub, irritating the sensative mouth--and one may imagine in the show disciplines where the horse might be in the arena for an hour, that bitting comfort and dry mouth would be a concern.

So, the inductive reasoning goes: copper causes horses to salivate, salivation prevents dry mouth, and thus copper would be the bitting material of choice.

Phallacy #1: Because copper makes horses salivate it does not follow that horses have dry mouths with other bitting materials(which is other than to say that there is some bitting material out there that might serve to dry out the mouth). Don't horses salivate REGARDLESS of the material used? The truth probably is (and i've got the question up tonight on one of the forums), horses NEVER have dry mouths. In fact I've yet to notice any of my horses suffering dry mouths using conventional steel or alluminum alloy bits. So, why bother with copper.

Phallacy #2: Do we really want our horses to salivate? Answer: probably not. Reason: bits make it difficult to impossible (depending on the bit) for horses to swallow. Excessive salivation would seem to add to discomfort by creating the gag reflex of needing to swallow but being unable to.

Phallacy #3 (for racing only): in this discipline im supposing that we want our horses to salivate as little as possible. Yes marge, we want the horse neither to swallow or light up a cigarette at the quarter pole.

Thus, i've talked myself out of the $150-$200 Sprenger copper alloy bits. Now, perusing my new "Dover Saddlery" catalogue: whoops--there are hardly any bits available small enough for Y, thus my final decision--a Stage I Myler (Small) Barrell Dee--because its one of the few available. And, on further thougth, i've ordered a Sprenger Dynamic RS D Ring on the premise that I'll poo poo the Aurigan material further after i've actually tried it.

Friday 12/1/06: OMG its December. I arrived home last night and the snow had missed the farm completely. This morning we have the running paddock lumped with frozen mud covered with an ice sheet and ice sheet pastures from the ice storm. The saddling area is a mess. I passed on saddle work this date, though tomorrow i'll move the whole shebang, mounting block and all, out to the grass. Today's remaining option is riderless pasture work with the human trainer running behind the horses--we're planning on at least 20 min of trot. What in fact occurred with good luck our fat one and also the herd boss were hepped, and we got about 3x3f snappy gallop at about 2m pace with our little Y darting about trying to get the lead and being alternately driven away. And so, Y wound up with some significant and much needed fast twicht work on a day when the best I had hoped for was a bit of trot. As a significant aside, the trainer fell on his posterior but once. As a second aside, the little fellow is now strong enough that the former worries that this sort of work might pop a splint have passed.