More "Legal" Trouble

A week or two ago, I shared my new plan for alternating the legal bit with my go-to bit. I can't say whether the plan was a good one or not as I've already scrapped it and formulated a new strategy. Let's call it Operation Legal Every Day.

Legal on the left (upside down), non-legal,on the right.

Yep. You heard me right. I've put the legal bit on my everyday bridle - which, by the way is no longer my every day bridle. I'll explain why in a minute.

After my last lesson, I realized that Izzy is well on his way to becoming fantastic. The problem is that I can't show him in the bit that he finds the most comfortable. This horse doesn't just go a little different with a new bit. He needs to be trained all over again.

I did the same thing when I switched from the correctional bit to the medium wide-ported bit. They're all Myler bits.

The same thing happened when I left the correctional bit behind for the medium wide-ported bit with the Kimberwick cheeks, the bit he now loves. It felt like starting all over. I realized that if I kept going with the bit he likes, I was going to be even more frustrated by starting over with the show-legal bit. It seemed better to get it over with and just yank the band-aid off. 

​Chemaine Hurtado, owner and trainer at Symphony Dressage Stables, and I talked it over. Izzy wasn't necessarily being a jackass in the show-legal bit. It was more like he was honestly anxious about being ridden in it. Gone was the affable, hard-working gelding that I've come to love. In his place was a hot mess. We hatched out a new plan of attack that gave Izzy some independent time to make friends with the bit.

Not very funny, guys.

Instead of riding Izzy in the bit, I bridled him up sans reins and let him wear the bit while he had his breakfast. At first, I felt bad leaving it on him for several hours, but then I remembered that my endurance horses would wear their bits all day long, never complaining about it. While he ate, I rode Speedy.

It really did seem to make a difference. Rather than grind his teeth and crunch on the bit while I rode, he was more willing to listen to me without being so distracted. That worked for several days until be broke the throat latch while I was busy with Speedy.

Don't believe that innocent face.

I guess he wanted a new bridle to go along with his new bit; It should be here tomorrow. In the meantime, I've been riding without a throat latch. While he's not as fabulous, he's at least 80% back to where he was with the other bit. My fingers are crossed that he makes the switch pretty quickly.

​I sure like that easy going fellow I was riding last week.