Cob Jockey

Last winter, we played with switching his bits up, but by the time show season started and the work got harder, it was clear that we needed to go back to the Bombers Happy Tongue Loose Ring Straight.

In one particularly frustrating April lesson in which he didn't even give me a chance to ride well before getting his tongue over the single-jointed nathe, I remember CGP puzzling through it with me. "It's so weird, because he actually goes BETTER once he gets it over. He lifts the base of his neck when it's over." "I know," I said, "It's part of the reason you see me get so anxious when he's going well, because if he going well and the contact isn't super heavy, it probably means he's got it over or he's about to get it over."

 

The more common version of the Bombers Happy Tongue Loose Ring has a forward curve (top), but Connor strongly prefers the straight version (bottom).

So we switched back to the Bombers in April, and although he was initially a little backed off the contact in it (probably because he was trying to figure out a way to suck his tongue back and get it over!), he soon started going really well in it. 

(Side note: Mary cannot square herself with the idea that you can have finesse and subtlety of aids with a straight bar bit. To the point that it's kind of adorable, lol. I keep telling her she needs to check her biases at the door, because if I can ride Second/almost Third level Dressage in it, she has all the finesse she needs to get him around a 2' jump course.)

It's physically difficult for him to get his tongue over in the Bombers, which has a very high port (and he has a low palate as well). He didn't get his tongue over in it again until he did it once with me during a virtual lesson in June, and then did it on CGP last week.

The post-solstice summer coat shed has begun

 

Her approach in the past has been to assume it's an expression of pain elsewhere in the body, or related to my heavy-handed riding, but she knows him well enough now to know that last week, he did it just to get out of the work, which is a habit I've reinforced over the years by getting off to put his tongue back once it's over.

"So I rode the pants off of him with it over until he put it back, which took about 25 minutes," she said. "I said okay, if that's your choice you're going to work HARD as long as its over, and then as soon as he put it back under we quit. Then the next day's ride he was SPECTACULAR. I don't think he's going to try that again anytime soon."

Unrelated Hank pic

"I'm so glad you did that," I said. "I've often wanted to do that myself because I hate that my reaction to him getting it over has to be to stop what we're doing, get off, and put it back under, it's like a reward and it's getting him out of the work," I said, "But I don't have the timing or skills you do to be confident enough to actually push through it and I never know if continuing to work with it over is the right answer or not, like I don't want to normalize that behavior."

As I said in the past, this problem is never going to completely go away with this horse, but the fact that I can count on one hand the number of times he's done it since last winter, and the fact that CGP keeps giving me more tools in my toolkit to deal with it, are both wins in my book.

Connor's tongue-over-the-bit issues are not something I've fully documented on this blog. I've mentioned them every so often, but not as often as it happens.

To find a picture to illustrate the problem, I picked a random Year/Month photo folder in which I thought I probably showed, picked a random photo to look at to see if his mouth was gaping open, and found one immediately. If that doesn't tell you how prevalent this problem really is, I don't know what will. Photo from September of 2017.

I created it initially with my heavy-handed riding, and then it turned into a habit, his default reaction to the work getting hard, which, in retrospect, probably held us back as much as anything, because I was afraid of asking him to step up his game for fear of triggering an episode. As soon as things got challenging in a ride, he'd get it over, no matter what trainer we were riding with or what bridle we were riding in.

At this point, it's as fixed as it will ever be, so I wanted to share what worked and what didn't in case any of you find yourselves in this unfortunate situation. In chronological order:

 Riding in the Bombers Happy Tongue Loose Ring, straight bar version

 

The bottom bit

This is the only bit that he wouldn't - or couldn't - get his tongue over, and it gave me an opening into breaking the habit. We rode in it for a year after the bit fitting clinic at CGP's, and it helped to break the habit, although I'm not riding in it permanently - CGP eventually said I needed more finesse for Dressage than the straight bar gave me.

 

Kissing double jointed bits goodbye

 

Connor has very short lips, and double-jointed bits, especially loose rings, seem to hang low on his tongue and were an invitation to him to get his tongue over. At this point, I can't imagine ever going back to a double-jointed bit with him, we've had so much more success with a single joint.

 

Fixing myself

 

This, obviously, is the biggest thing. I had to identify what pulling was (it wasn't what I thought it was), why I pulled (because I didn't have enough core tension to keep me stable in the saddle, so I used my hands to compensate), what I needed to do to break that habit (rediscover some dead neural-muscular connections, strengthen my core AND make my newly-strengthened core my brain's default unconscious go-to) and how to do it (Pilates).  

 

One rein riding

I do this less and less these days, but CGP telling me to ride him with one rein in small circles when he gets fussy with his mouth really helped. It changes the physical and mental paradigm of the moments before he'd normally get it over, and it also gives me an "If x happens, do y" type of tool that I can remember to use on my own.

 

Letting someone else earn back his trust of the contact

Temporarily giving up the ride had to happen. Four straight months of someone with amazing hands and great timing had to happen. I caused this problem, but I could not have solved it on my own.

 

Taking the bit away

I don't have any pictures of the sidepull, so how about a picture of a dog pulling at my side?

She only rode him in the sidepull a few times, but it was enough to break his ingrained habits. His relationship to the bridle was truly different after a few times in the sidepull - not to mention he was PISSED at having his favorite pressure release valve taken away.

Learning to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

Two months ago, in a ride in which I distinctly remember CGP saying "You did a good job not freaking out about his mouth being busy today," and me saying "Oh I was freaking out on the inside."

He may not be getting his tongue over these days, but when the work gets hard he still defaults to a fussy mouth. CGP is adamant that I have to ride through it, that I can't interpret him mouthing the bit as a sign to back off, that I can't live in fear of him getting it over or we'll never progress. This is a work in progress - I know she's right, but this isn't something I'll rewire in my brain overnight.

Chiro, Massage and Ulcer Treatment

Best boy deserves the best treatments

I do think there's something to CGP's theory that pain elsewhere in the body makes him more likely to express his tension via his mouth. At this point he's been treated for foregut and hindgut ulcers, and he's been getting both chiro and bodywork at CGP's with great success. Bodywork in particular has made a huge difference, although that's a story for another day.

Finding a noseband he likes

Stillllll waiting (three months after I ordered it) for my Schockemohle drop to come in, thanks COVID.

I had basically ridden this horse in everything BUT a drop over the years, but it turns out he really prefers the drop. It also turns out that Micklem =/= drop, and he prefers the bit hangers not be attached to the noseband. Who knew?

This problem will never go away after he's done it for years, but at this point we can work with it and manage it, at least to the point that I can confidently say it won't happen in the show ring.

Let me preface this post by saying that I'm not a bitting expert.  I'm going to be able to show you some comparison photos and tell you in my own non-expert words how my horse went differently in each of these bits and that's it.  I could be totally wrong in some of the stuff I'm about to say.  But I have had a request for a comparison post, so let's do it!

Top: Happy Tongue Loose Ring Curved.  Middle: Shires knockoff.  Bottom: Happy Tongue Loose Ring Straight.

Shires Knockoff
Leah let me borrow this bit while I waited (and waited, and waited) for my clinic bit to arrive.  It has some similar features to the real thing, such as sweet iron, loose rings and a center port, but that's where the similarities end.  The mouthpiece is the same round diameter from end to end without the subtle carve-outs the Bombers bits have.

Connor did like this bit well enough, definitely better than his old bit (Neue Schule French link Baucher), but he also got his tongue over it once.  Additionally, given his low palate and thick tongue, I have to wonder if the non-flattened somewhat pointy port was poking him in the top of his mouth. 

The Shires mouthpiece is slightly oxidized here, which all of these bits will do if they're sitting around and not in use.  Bombers says to "lightly scour" the bit and rinse clean if that happens.

The port is almost as high as the Bomber bits, but because of the consistent round diameter of the Shire's, there's less room for his tongue under the port (as opposed to the Bombers, which you can see the top and sides of the port are flattened compared to the rest of the bit). 

I have a feeling if you have a horse with a smaller tongue and higher palate, this bit would work just fine.


Happy Tongue Loose Ring Curved
This is the "default" version of the Happy Tongue Loose Ring, and is the "less strong" version of the straight bit Connor preferred.  It's curved forward, so that if you lay this bit on a table, most of the bit doesn't make contact with the table.

It's the one in the center

When we tried this bit at the clinic, Connor reacted to it almost the same as his NS Baucher.  He wasn't quite as comfy and pliable as he was in the straight version, and the clinician saw it immediately.  My barnmate let me borrow it; she'd ridden her Arabian gelding in it at a show once and he had a "meltdown" - not sure if it was the bit's fault or not, but I got the impression she thought it was and she wouldn't be trying it again.

The brochure describes this bit as being "softer on the bars" and "slow to exert tongue pressure" just like my straight bit.  The difference is the curve, which put the front of the bit further down his tongue (toward the tip).

Top: Happy Tongue Loose Ring Standard (has forward curve).  Bottom: Happy Tongue Loose Ring Straight (does not have forward curve)

This bit was an improvement over the Shires, which was an improvement over the Baucher. We had some great rides in it, but he also did get his tongue over once - and I wonder if it's because of his short mouth + the forward curve.  More on that in the next section.

Happy Tongue Loose Ring Straight
This is the first Bombers bit I rode in at the clinic and the one I ended up buying.  He feels amazing in this bit, and hasn't even thought about getting his tongue over.  Whether that's because he physically can't with this bit or because he doesn't feel motivated to, I'm not sure.

The best way I can describe riding Connor in this bit is the contact just feels "comfy".  He does mouth this bit a lot, but not in a "tongue whipping out of his mouth" way like he does when he's uncomfortable.  He also is more willing to elevate his front end in it, especially at the canter, although I can feel him trying to scheme ways to get around this charming and helpful aspect of this bit.

The brochure I posted yesterday describes the straight as being "slightly stronger" than the curved version and "suits a horse with a short mouth," which Connor definitely has.  Which got me thinking...

Short mouth = the distance from the opening of his lips to the back of his lips

In the moment when he gets his tongue over the bit, it's absolutely because of my bad riding, but I wonder if the combination of the French links I've always ridden him in plus his short mouth made the evasion easy for him to start in the beginning, anatomically speaking.

Raising the bit a hole after he gets it over always puts an end to the problem for the day - what if that had everything to do with where the center of the bit sat in his mouth?  And what if that's also why he gets his tongue over in the curved but not the straight version of this bit, because it sits further up the tongue?

If that's the case, French links may never be an appropriate choice for his mouth anatomy, which is mind blowing to someone who always considered the French link loose ring to be the gold standard.  I'm not writing them off for him entirely, but it's giving me something to think about for sure.

After six weeks of waiting, my new bit finally arrived on Friday!

Shame it won't stay this color blue forever

It's still amazing, although the instant forehand elevation he gave me at the clinic isn't quite as dramatic right now.  I have a feeling he's trying to figure out how to get around the new bit and me not letting him lean on me anymore now that my first instinct is to go to my core when he leans on me rather than my hands.  Turns out carrying your own head is, well, hard:


I don't normally do this in a review post, but the bit came with a very descriptive guide on the tag, describing the action my bit takes on the mouth and also quite a bit about Bombers bits in general, so I'm going to share that here in pictures.  Reminder that if you're reading this on RSS you may need to click through to my actual site for clear pictures.




My bit is the Happy Tongue Straight.  We tried the curved at the clinic and it was clear he went better in the straight.  I did end up borrowing the curved for three weeks from a barnmate though while waiting on my straight.









Coming soon - a comparison post between the Shires knockoff, the forward curved Happy Tongue Loose Ring and the straight Happy Tongue.

We're a month out from the clinic and parts of my clinic order have arrived.  (She did say it would take that long, which is fine)


That's not quite accurate.  The entire bridle has arrived, minus the reins, but the noseband arrived with a flash, so we're exchanging it for one without a flash, and rocking the western look in the meantime.

LOVE this crown design!  It lays so nicely over the top of the head.

I had hoped to replace the throatlatch with a smaller one, because he's on the last hole on both sides.  The throatlatch comes tagged and barcoded separately from the crown, albeit in the same bag, which made me think you could swap that part out, but sadly they don't sell them separately.  The horse crown is definitely the right size, so we'll deal.

Look how much room the little guy has for his ears, I'm so happy.

I'm going to do a proper review of it once I have the whole bridle, but even with all the hassle, I'm so happy with it.  Remember the whole reason I went down this bit/bridle fitting clinic path was because I knew the PS was too tight on his head, and then at the clinic I learned it was also resting on some sensitive nerves:






The properly fitted Schockemohle, compared to the PS, is practically loose over the top of his head. 


I'm not throwing PS under the bus here, I'm just saying mine wasn't the right size for him, and I don't think there was anything I could've done differently to get it sized correctly.  The straps are not sewn in the right place on the noseband for him on the cob, but the cob is already too big in diameter on the last hole, so the horse size wouldn't have worked either, even with a chin pad.  Bridle fitting is waaaaaaaaaaaaaay more complicated than I ever realized.

Our temporary loaner bit

Finally, the bit hasn't arrived either, but a barnmate had almost the exact same Bombers bit lying around, just with a forward curve to it.  We rode in that one at the clinic and it wasn't as dramatically life changing as the straight version, but it's still better than the baucher for him.

Our real bit

It's nice to know our improvements lately have NOT been due to my tack changes, BUT it's also nice to realize how much more comfortable he is in this new setup.  There have been multiple times lately when I thought he got his tongue over the bit, to the point I actually stopped him to check, only to realize that the lightness and movement I felt in the reins was due to him softly mouthing the bit with a relaxed tongue.  He hasn't even thought about getting it over in any ride with either of the Bombers bits, and that's a ringing endorsement from Connor.

Happy, happy pony