Jessica Jahiel's HORSE-SENSE Newsletter Archives

English Riding With Western Bit

From: Kerry

Hi Jessica,

Fairly recently I bought a 16yo Appy mare (Bo). The mare is primarily Western trained - she's actually a _very_ good Reiner - , although I ride English. She goes pretty well English also, although we have one big problem. When I change her bit from the short shank snaffle that she seems very comfortable in (but is a "Western" bit) to various "English" bits (I have tried an Eggbut snaffle - which she "runs through" at a canter - a Dr Bristol and a Kimberwicke both of which she is very unhappy and uncomfortable with) - she becomes a very tense and rather difficult mare to ride once you ask for more than trot. At the moment, I ride her in my English tack with her Western shank snaffle - a combination which seems to work very well and results in a very happy and willing horse who works nicely and in a good frame and responds to the lightest of aids. I don't have a problem with this particular combination except that for showing I am stuck. Can you please advise how I can make the transition to an acceptable bit without causing a frustrated and unhappy horse, at least for the showring (huntseat) ?

Hi Kerry! First of all, the bit you're using on your mare isn't a snaffle, although many Western trainers call it one. A snaffle can have a straight, curved, single-jointed, or double-jointed mouthpiece -- but it's a bit that works by direct pressure. Whatever amount of pressure you apply with your hands is what the horse feels in its mouth, and the bit applies pressure to the horse's lips (or if you pull downward, to the horse's bars and tongue). A curb has shanks and works on leverage -- the pressure you apply with your hands is multiplied by the time it reaches the horse's mouth, and the bit acts on the horse's poll, jaw, and sometimes the roof of its mouth.

Still, this in itself isn't such a big problem, but Western horses are trained to go BEHIND the bit and stay there, working off a loose rein. English horses are supposed to be ridden on constant contact -- the rein may be LONG at times, but it will rarely be LOOSE, and the horse is expected to move up into the bridle and accept that constant contact happily. Switching from Western to English can be very confusing for the horse. When the rider takes up contact, the horse is uncomfortable, and tries to push away from the sensation, which of course just makes it worse, and discomfort becomes pain -- at which point the horse will "run through" the bit, just as you describe. This means that the horse has to be re-educated and taught a different way of dealing with the bit -- it means a new bit, a new set of expectations, and -- here's where the rider comes in -- a LOT of time.

If the kind of showing you want to do permits the use of a Kimberwicke, you may find that your mare goes better in a jointed- mouth Kimberwicke with a slightly loose curbchain. This will be more familiar to her, as it will remind her of her Western bit. But the best thing for you both would probably be a series of lessons with a good dressage trainer, if there is one in your area. It isn't easy to "convert" a horse from Western to English -- the saddle usually won't present any problem, and horses can learn about rider leg pressure very quickly. And many Western horses will go calmly in just about ANY bit, as long as you don't ride on contact -- but when you do, they are confused, because under normal circumstances, a Western horse would not be ridden on contact, and if there IS contact, it's for a brief moment, as a punishment!

Your mare will need some kind, quiet, systematic retraining before she understands exactly what you want. YOU aren't doing anything wrong, but your horse has been trained one way and now needs to learn a new way to carry herself -- she's still working by one set of rules, but the rules have changed, and she doesn't know the new ones yet.

The lessons will be helpful for you, too, because the way your mare carries herself under English tack will depend on the way you ride her -- it's also much more difficult for the RIDER to switch over from Western to English, because there is a lot more for you to think about and do. So don't be discouraged -- it's not easy, but it certainly sounds as though you have the right attitude and the right horse to make the transition.

Good luck!

- Jessica

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