Equestrian Bridles: 11 Tips On Bridling Your Horse.

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May 28 2010

Equestrian Bridles: 11 Tips On Bridling Your Horse.

Published by Russell under Horse tips and general

: Image via Wikipedia

These tips well help you to correctly bridle your horse?

Irrespective of what you may call them: equestrian bridles, horse bridles, or just plain old ‘bridles’, bridling a horse is not as easy as it may seem. If you do something wrong, it may be do long term trauma to your horse. And you may may be affected or injured as well.

Before putting a bridle on a horse, you must be aware that there is an area in a horse’s mouth known as the “interdental space”. It is an area with no teeth found on the lower and upper jaws. The area is between the back teeth, which are the “molars” and the front teeth, called “incisors”. The bit rests on this interdental space when your horse is bridled correctly. Horse lovers also call this area of bare gums, particularly on the posterior jaw, bars.

The interdental space is also a spot where you or your horse trainer can insert a thumb when you want to ask your horse to open his mouth. An example of this is to ask your horse to accept the bit when the bridle is being put on.

Horse Bridling Tips

1. Tie up your equine in a comfortable place with a halter on. Do not have your horse tied without wiggle room in case he has a habit of pulling back when scared. Although your horse can be bridled without the halter on, it is still best to bridle him while his halter is in place until you completely understand your horse and his needs.

2. Stand on the near side of the your horse, which is normally the left side, when mounting the bridle.

3. You may make use of schooling aids to make bridling easier for you. A running martingale may be used to keep your horse from throwing his head upwards. Drop nosebands can also make it easy to keep your horse’s mouth shut. Ideally you won’t need this type of equipment as your horse develops trust in you.

4. Allow your horse to lower his head and make sure the bridle is untangled and ready to put on. Put your arm over your horse’s neck and hold the bridle loosely on the opposite side of thyour horse. Put the bridle on the lowest setting possible to make sure it can fit on your horse’s head easily. You can adjust it once it’s on your horse.

5. Next, remove the halter from his face. Then replace it around his neck so your horse isn’t able to wandering off.

6. Be sure that you can reach the top of your horse’s head. If not, you can use a mounting block to make it easier.

7. With your right hand, grab the head stall. It is the piece fitting over your horse’s head. Then hold the bit with your finger and thumb so that it is stable. Introduce it to your horse’s mouth gently, placing a finger in the crack of his mouth to ask him to open it. A well trained horse should unthinkingly open his mouth. If you have a cue or command to get your horse to open his mouth, use it.

8. Gently slip the bit into his mouth. Never force it. When the bit is in place, slip the top part of the headstall over your horse’s ears.

9. The length of the face strap should be adjusted. Ideally, there is one small wrinkle at the corner of your horse’s mouth. Make sure his forelock is pulled out of the straps and none of the straps are tangled or broken.

10. Next would be the adjustment of the chin strap if your headstall has one. Keep this loose as it is a tool for pressure.

11. Your left hand should hold both reins while undoing the halter with your other hand. When walking with your horse, make him value your space. Never tie your horse with the leather headstall reins.

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