Can you use a martingale with a hackamore

The process is rather similar to that recommended by Pat Parelli, who trains his horses in a rope halter before finally introducing them to a Western style curb bit. The trick is to start first training a horse without a bit, in order that the horse should not develop any one of a hundred aversions to the bit before it has learnt the basics. Schooling will proceed more smoothly, with fewer problems and learning will be faster if the horse is not hurt with a bit.

The better the hands, the easier will be the transition. If a rider can transition from bitless to bit without triggering any negative, bit-induced behavioral changes they can be congratulated on their equestrian skills. If a horse resists a bit, this exposes a weakness of the bit as a method of communication, as it is a method that only a master horseman can use without causing a horse discomfort. One has to ring the changes during the latter stages of training and accustom a horse to accept a bit.

But there is a greater chance that if the same horse had been brought up on a bitted bridle it might have exhibited even more resistance and developed far more problems. My feeling is that there is less risk in the bitless option. I do not think that your concern represents a reason for not giving the horse the benefit of a pain-free introduction to training.

Far better, surely, that a horse should learn the basics of training while it is happy and pain free, rather than to learn at an early age to associate training with hurting. One of the many advantages of the bridle is that no harm can be done to the horse. No such reservations apply to the Bitless Bridle. This means that a novice can now have the pleasure and educational experience of riding a fully schooled horse and benefit by having the horse do much of the teaching.

USEF and FEI rules at present require that a snaffle or a double bridle with curb bit depending on the class is used for dressage but, paradoxically, there is no such requirement for the more dangerous disciplines of cross country and show jumping.

Actually, this does, on second thoughts, have an unintended logic. My research tells me that the use of a bit constitutes a hazard to both horse and rider. As the presence of one or more steel rods in the sensitive mouth of a horse is the source of many accidents, it is appropriate that bits should only be permitted when a horse is worked on the flat, in an arena, and exercised at relatively slow paces!

For competition work, we suggest that you place a second bridle over the top of The Bitless Bridle. This way you do not have to raise the noseband of The Bitless Bridle in order to hang a bit from the Bitless Bridle itself and so you retain full bitless control. The second bridle should have the least offensive bit possible. The bridoon component of a standard double bridle will be fine.

Obviously, you will not be using the bridoon and so the bridoon rein is kept slack throughout the test. For dressage competitions, the regulations currently require a snaffle bit for the lower level competitions but a double bridle for the more advanced levels.

So a bridoon bit as above will satisfy the snaffle requirement. The double bridle presents a more difficult problem. You could place a double bridle over The Bitless Bridle but now you will have three pairs of reins to cope with which could make life complicated.

An alternative approach to this problem, and the one that I commend to you, is to request permission from the judges to take part Hors Concours. You will be automatically eliminated but you will be scored. You will have the satisfaction of demonstrating to the judges and others how well your horse performs without a bit in the mouth already one rider has been awarded the highest score!

The judges will become familiar with the new bridle and, in due course, will add their support to the pleas that are already being made for a rule change.

The drooling of frothy saliva at exercise is neither a virtue nor a vice; it is the physiological result of placing one or more foreign bodies bits in the mouth. Salivation is only one of a number of reflex responses that can be expected from such a step. The bit also breaks the otherwise airtight seal of the lips, admitting air into the oral cavity and, in the absence of food, allows the foamy saliva to escape. Apart from reflex salivation, other responses include movement of the lips, jaw, and tongue.

Often the bit results in a mouth that is frankly open and a horse that makes occasional swallowing movements. All of these are normal digestive system responses. They are entirely appropriate in a horse that is feeding. But if a horse is exercising, none of these responses are appropriate.

For the deep breathing of exercise, an entirely opposite set of responses is required. The mouth should be shut and the lips sealed. There should be no air in the mouth and the mouth should be relatively dry, not wet. The jaw and tongue should be stationary in order that there is no interference with the airway from constant agitation of the soft palate and larynx.

Finally, with regard to something that bit pressure is regrettably good at bringing about, the poll should not be strongly flexed, a position that further interferes with breathing. From the above it can be seen that the bit method of control sets up a fundamental conflict. It confuses the exercising horse neurologically by stimulating inappropriate digestive system reflexes, and it seriously impairs breathing.

Like ourselves, horses can either eat or exercise. They have not evolved to be capable of doing both at the same time. Drooling is an outward and visible sign that digestive system reflexes have been initiated. It is an inappropriate activity in an exercising horse.

But the horse should not be blamed, for the fault lies with the method of control. Fortunately, The Bitless Bridle permits improved control and allows dressage horses to perform better, without having to contend with the many handicaps of a bit. Being a painless method, it cures many a horse that suffers from bit-induced trigeminal neuralgia the headshaking syndrome.

As it is also compatible with the physiology of exercise and does not interfere with respiration, it represents a significant advance in equitation and the welfare of the horse. As no bit is required for the more hazardous cross-country or show jumping disciplines, the rationale for imposing a bit on a dressage horse is difficult to understand. It is to be hoped that the USEF will soon consider revising the dressage regulations and correct this anomaly. The mandatory use of a bit is a tradition founded on Bronze Age usage.

It is not consistent with the objectives of the USEF to advance the welfare of the horse. There will be those who regard Dr. Understanding that this suggestion will bring unrest to many who believe that use of a double bridle is an indispensable part of dressage, and that its use is sanctioned by the highest authorities, he calls as witness William Cavendish, Duke of Newcastle.

I dressed a barb at Antwerp with a cavesson without a bitt, and he went perfectly well; and that is the true art, and not the ignorance and folly of a strange-figured bitt. Yes, The Bitless Bridle will provide all the poll flexion you require. But perhaps this should be phrase differently. The point is that if you wish to achieve true collection, which includes but is not limited to poll flexion, you should strive to do this through seat and legs, rather than by means of your hands.

By degrees, with the emphasis on seat and legs, your horse will develop the necessary strengthening of its back and abdominal muscles so that it will gradually become fit enough to carry the weight of the rider and adjust its own balance. Appropriate poll flexion is part of this roundness but not its cause. False collection, limited to poll flexion only and achieved simply by rein pressure alone, is not true collection. Sadly, because the bit is painful, it is rather easy to achieve false collection by hand aids.

All this is well explained by Dr. When turning, be sure to direct with the inside rein and clearly lighten your contact on the outside rein. Such reservations are often made about the ability of The Bitless Bridle to communicate subtle messages. But with all due respect, such doubts are unfounded. Also, be sure to ask her if she has ever used The Bitless bridle herself.

Many of these criticisms come from people who have never tried the bridle. Your trainer can best refute her own argument by using the bridle herself. She will be able to communicate the most subtle of signals, yet without the risk of triggering resistance. The skin at the corner of the lips is more sensitive than the skin in other parts of the head. Nevertheless, when gentle pressure is applied to the skin over one half of the whole head steering or to the skin over the whole head stopping there is no shortage of signal.

Recall that any part of the skin is sensitive enough to feel a fly landing. So a whole-head-hug or a half-head-hug gives more than an ample signal. The bit is too crude an instrument to permit such finesse. Furthermore, the assumption makes no allowance for the many different reactions and responses of your horse.

The gentlest squeeze of the finger can put pressure on bone, tongue and skin. It is not possible to signal one without the others. The hope that a gentle squeeze of the fingers is transmitted only to the corners of the lips and not to the rest of the mouth is a myth and not based on reality. Similarly, if the horse chooses to retract its tongue, relatively more pressure will be placed on the bars of the mouth. The only contraindication for using the Bitless Bridle is nothing to do with whether or not it is a sufficiently sensitive method it undoubtedly is but the purely administrative reason that it is not possible to use it for competition work under the current FEI regulations.

But you could choose to use the Bitless Bridle and ride Hors Concours. This would give you the satisfaction and feedback of being scored, though you would be unable to claim the ribbon that with a bit you may not have been eligible for anyway.

The Bitless Bridle is a pain-free method of communication. The same cannot be said of the bit, no matter how skilfully employed. I am sure that your trainer would not choose to use a method of communication that inflicts pain or the threat of pain when a more humane alternative is available that is actually a more effective method of communication.

So please ask your trainer … has she actually tried the bridle? And has she used it long enough, on a range of horses, to become familiar with what it has to offer both rider and horse? Even one ride may be a revelation and could change her life. A martingale is a mechanical aid often employed as an accessory to a bitted bridle, in order to prevent a horse from throwing its head headshaking.

But as most instances of headshaking are caused by the bit, if you remove the bit you do not need a martingale. A running martingale is preferable to a restrictive standing martingale or tie-down as the standing martingale does not allow the horse to gain proper balance and cannot be loosened in an emergency.

I watched the Equestrian Coach video on properly fitting a Hackamore and Mr. Gardiner seems to imply he always rides them in a running martingale. I have seen many top jumpers going in a similar set up. I did like the suggestion Mr. The standing martingale should only be used with a cavesson noseband. The standing martingale can restrict the horses movement, especially if it is not fitted correctly…. How to use this guide. Standing Martingale Additionally, it can help prevent a horse rearing too high.

Stateside Well-Known Member 29 December I have used on a number of horses over the last 30 years. Joined 22 April Messages 4, Location Sussex. All of ours that had to jump in hackamore's wore martingale's with them no problem, from novice right up to advanced. Here's a pic of my old boss on one of them at Burghley a few years ago - is not the best angle to see it but he is wearing a hackamore and a martingale:.

Joined 10 February Messages 4, Location Nottinghamshire. Debbie Well-Known Member 7 June Joined 27 May Messages Hii use a standing with my English hack, just a separate ate noseband fit it to attach to, works well. Jeni the dragon Well-Known Member 7 June