hey guys!!!! i need your help. do you think i need somthing harsher in my horses mouth? you see, somedays he gets realy fast over jumps, and i mean realllllly FAST, wich he souldnt do bcause he is a hunter. anyways, im asking this because after jumping him and cantering him when hes like this, my hands are really sore. and i would think be used to this by now but im not. he also pulls and throws his head somtimes too. but you see, he dosnt do this all the time, so somthing not too harsh if you have any ideas. i know some of you will say all needs is training but my trainer has got on him maney times before to try to fix this problem, but nothing works. and she uses the same bit he always has, a dee-ring snaffle. hope you can help!!!

anyone?

mabey u should try a d ring happy mouth it works good for my horse it is not harsh but it makes him happy so he listens

maybe... but i have never used a happy mouth before but i know tons of people whos say there are no breaks with happy mouths, what i need.

there really nice easy to keep u also can get pink ones which is amazing i would get the 1 but since i show i have to get boring white

do they help you slow down your horse, because some people say there are no breaks, like i said. if not, do you know any other bits that will help?

sry i cant think of anymore but i have ridden him in a happy mouth and in another bid and it seemed like i had more countrol in the happymouth

it seems like u kno a lot and i was wondering if u could help me out
i keep getting a head of my horse and then sit down in the saddle to early after the jump and i have a big show at ludwigs corner tthis weekend if u had any advice i would really really apriciate it

Have your trainer and maybe a vet check to see that the bit fits alright and he's not uncomfortable. You could try a rubber or a happy mouth (the horse I train has one...it's lovely for him) or maybe a slow twist snaffle. It's important that you don't go and get a drastically different bit (like a pelham) right away. Some of my friends say their horses just get too accustomed to their bits, and switching them around keeps them light and soft. Like the D-ring some days, a rubber on others, and a slow twist when you think you need it.

Another good bit is the Mikmar series. They make a snaffle that is still soft and not at all harsh, but has the build to get a "pull" if you need it. Worth checking out. But first, make sure something's not bugging your horses' mouth.

well, i learned the hard way! i used to get ahead of my horse. but if you get ahead of your horse sometimes, they dont have the power to get off of the ground. at a show last week i got realy ahead of him at a fence hight hes not really used to jumping(he is only 4). anyway, he fell to the gound while i was on him.i was still on him at the time but i was hanging off the side. he got back up to his feet and spun to the side while i was trying to get back up( i know you should let go, but it was one of those cases when you thought you could stay on). well, i did come off. i flew off the horse did a spin in the air and landed on my back. my back still hurts and this was last week sooooo... sometimes ya learn the hard way!! so just trust your horse because i think most riders get ahead because they sometimes worry about thier horse stoping so have trust in your partner.

i trust my horse with all my heart i only got him in april though and he has onl been jumping for a year he is 7 but was a pony horse on the raace track before i got him i got ahead of him once and he tripped but he stayed on his feet somtimes i do not get ahead i just put my shoulder forward and if i wait i feel like i get left behind

so did i but, it dosnt look ike that. you just gotta get use to it. you see, when i started waiting more thats exactly what i felt like. but i got a first and my trainer said it looked asome. so it may just feel like that untill tou get used to it.

yeah my friend always switches her horses bits. My horse has the same bit all the time. Have the vet check his teeth. when was the last time he got them done? most horses need them done once a year.
Also talk to your trainer if she wanted the bit changed she proubly would have said we are going to change the bit. plus bits are expensive! If your trainer is like mine she has enough bits for a tack store you can borrow till you find one that works and then go out and buy it.
and happyh mounths are good all your horse might need is a change.

my horse does that 2 liek he gets exsited after a cuple high jumps and practicing i use a 3 ring snaffle.. it is SOO good i love it!but hte thing is u can't use a 3 ring in a hunter class.. so what i do is i use a different kinda a bit at the shows and he TOTALLY knows that is is buisness at the shows so he calms down. it works REALLY well

you said your horse is only 4. It is possible you are rushing him. He is only a baby, and putting a harsher bit won't fix matters. Go back to low fences and fault isolate the problem. The odds of him rushing because is getting confused, because of his young age, or because you are doing something wrong are the best bets.

thanks for ur help a rode my horse tonight and my trainer said i stayed back good so thanks

rocksmysocks, i dont think hes confused, or the jumps are too high. you see, he rushes even more with smaller jumps, he also gets confused with them, too. i also disagree with you when you said its me. ive started horses before who are so far very good. i dont think im doing anything wrong. if i was my trainer would of said somthing because she is very picky.

He is probably scared.. you can put a harsher bit in his mouth but next month you will have the same problem over and over until you run out of bits. basically a bigger bit is not the answer. More knowledge is. If a horse 'misbehaves' is because of the rider. bottom line.

well, hes not scared. you can tell hes just playing and trying too have fun, which its not!

[quote]rocksmysocks, i dont think hes confused, or the jumps are too high. you see, he rushes even more with smaller jumps, he also gets confused with them, too. i also disagree with you when you said its me. ive started horses before who are so far very good. i dont think im doing anything wrong. if i was my trainer would of said somthing because she is very picky.[/quote]

that's even worse if he rushes the smaller jumps. It just sets up a bad example and gets him in the habit should the fences go up. I'd get another set of eyes (maybe another trainer at your barn, or from a neighbor barn) to look to see if they can see anything else. Having only one trainer, can mean problem get missed. It's always good to get an extra set of eyes.

9 times out of 10, it's rider error on any problem. According to the British Pony Club Blue book, two of the biggest causes of rushing are fear/confusion and rider error. Just because you started horses before doesn't mean every horse will react the same. I'm not saying this to be mean, but problems originating from the rider are far far more common than from the horse.

If you want, you can run this question by the Hunter/Jumper/Horse show group on myspace. It's a far larger pool of advice to gather from.