I’ve had quite a few people over the years at my horsemanship clinics ask me about bits, and what I use. I’m actually a very simple person when it comes to bits, because in my opinion, bits come in 2nd place behind good training. I’ve seen people over the years use shank bits that had shanks so long you need wheels on the bottom just to keep it moving on the ground! I’m not against shank bits, I have a whole tack room full of them, but I am against the use of shank bits to MAKE a horse listen, or to MAKE  a horse stop or soften.

I’ll go into the progression of what I use for bits from when I first start training a horse, and how I upgrade the horse along the way:

 

The first thing I use when I’m first starting a horse is my Mundt Method Halter and Lead. I won’t throw a bit in the horse’s mouth for at least the first week in riding, because I have enough to teach the horse as it is, and I don’t want to be pulling around on his mouth, until I can get him soft and supple with just the halter and lead. Once the horse gets soft from only the halter on his nose, when you go to use my Snaffle Bit, half of the work is already done for you!

 

 

 

 

After the first week of riding the horse with the Mundt Method Halter and Lead, I’ll then progress the horse into a simple O-Ring/D-Ring Combo bit as seen here. This bit eliminates problems associated with an O-Ring—the tendency to pinch due to play within the joints. Copper inlay causes the horse to salivate more and tastes sweeter. A well-balanced, comfortable bit good for starting young horses and for use as training advances. Comes with engraved German Silver at the joints just for a nicer look. I’ll use this bit for 99% of my Training, even my Advanced Horses use this bit when we progress to the advanced stages of The Mundt Method. Once you get a horse to collect vertically and soften to just this type of bit, once you progress into the next bit, your horse will be as soft as butter!

 

This next bit is a simple Tom Thumb Snaffle, used in some aspects of competition, and is made to be used with one hand. It’s made out of sweet iron, and has copper inlay in the mouth piece to encourage the horse to salivate, and aid in softness. This bit is simply a snaffle bit with shanks on it, making it a great transitional bit for one-handed maneuvers required in certain types of competition. I won’t ride a horse in a shank bit like this one, or any shank bit for that matter, until I’ve been riding/working with them for at least one year! I want the horse to be soft and supple laterally with the previous bit, before I transition them to a shank. Shank bits allow you to encourage vertical flextion with your horse without the use of both hands. Having a horse that neckreins is a must before you use this bit.

 

I always encourage people to open their mind to training, and how to get your horse to be soft and supple, not use mechanical means to MAKE your horse listen to you, or become soft. A horse’s mouth is simply a ‘telegraph station’, telling you how stiff or soft his body is. Remember: horse’s don’t have ‘hard mouths’, they have hard stiff bodies. Once you get the body soft, the mouth follows.

 

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Understanding your horse’s personal nature, will help you to tailor your efforts to his way of being. Understanding this law will help you avoid frustration, and keep your training efforts moving forward in the direction you seek.

There are only two types of horses in the world when it comes to personality types, and those are: hot blooded horses, and cold blooded horses. Knowing the difference between the two, and how to interact with each type, will skyrocket your success in your training, and allow you to teach the horse much faster, in a shorter period of time.

Let’s look at each one of these:

Cold Blooded horses: cold blooded horses are more laid back, relaxed, and generally more docile. Belgians, Fjords, some bloodlines of Quarter Horses and Gaited Horses fall into this category. They don’t have a lot of “get up and go”, and are very easy to desensitize, and take much longer to catch on to a lesson or a concept. But once they understand what you’re asking of them, they will never forget it. A good example of this type of horse is my personal horse I use for demonstrations Vegas. He’s very lazy and dreams about sleeping, and usually takes a bit to get up and start moving. He’s very easy to desensitize, and remembers everything I teach him. When I give him his “winter vacation”, I normally do groundwork with him the first time I start working with him in the spring, and that usually lasts about thirty minutes, and we go to riding just like he did when I put him up for the winter. He has an incredible memory.

I’m amazed at how easy it is now to read my horse. Your Method makes things so easy, and knowing how to approach my horse with your techniques makes things go so much faster now that I know how to deal with his personality. ~ Jennifer M. , MN

With cold blooded horses you’re going to spend more time getting them to move their feet and go forward. This horse says, “Hey Justin, what’s the big hurry. You look stressed. Do I look stressed? I didn’t get this figure by running around. Let’s take a break”. This type of horse is also very easy to desensitize, and keep desensitized. Adding new objects such as tarps and plastic bags are accepted rather quickly because of their laid back nature.

Hot blooded horses: these horses are more athletic and have a big motor, and like to go forward. This type is very intelligent. Arabs, Thoroughbreds, and some bloodlines of Quarter Horses fall into this category. These horses are very easy to sensitize, because they have so much energy, and take much longer to desensitize. They catch on to a concept very quickly, and become bored at their job quickly because they are so smart. Adding variety to this type of horse is key to excel with them.

Hot blooded horses take very little coaxing to get them to move forward. Normally just a little tap and they come unglued and want to run forward. When working with this type of horse you’ll also have to do lots of changes of direction, to get their mind to start dialing into you. You’re not going to get to this horse’s mind by just running them around and knocking the wind out of them. With this type it’s like my dad used to always say, “you have to be smarter than the horse”. So with this type I’ll normally spend most of my time desensitizing them, and when I sensitize them, I’ll do more changes of direction so they don’t get their motor ran so much. Always remember to start out gently with this type because they will be more sensitive to pressure, and already want to start moving even if you’re thinking about it. So a little more desensitizing, and changes of direction in the beginning will help to dial in this horse to get him on your team.

As an end result we all want what I call a “goldilocks” horse. One that’s not too hot, and not too cold, but just right. To build the “goldilocks” horse, we have to remember to balance our sensitizing and desensitizing exercises. If we were to sensitize a hot horse too much, pretty soon we would have a renegade on our hands that would run and jump at everything that moves. If we were to desensitize our already cold blooded horse, he would stand completely still even if an atomic bomb went off, but if we were to get on him and tell him to canter, he’d more than likely buck us off because he’s never been taught how to move forward properly.

So the key to knowing what type of horse you have will help you to know what you’ll have to do more of in the beginning. With the proper balance of exercises, and tailoring your exercises to your individual horse, you’ll soon end up with a horse that will go when you say go, and a horse that will stand still and relax, when you tell him to relax. This is the key secret to getting what people refer to as a “push button horse”.

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Law #4: Pressure

April 16, 2012

Pressure simply motivates the horse to look for a better answer. Anytime we are working with our horse, we are applying pressure in an active form or a passive form. As the old saying goes, “diamonds are not made without pressure”. Pressure in relation to horses refers to movement. Anything that moves creates pressure. You [...]

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Training Tip: horse ‘problems’; why they happen, how to prevent them, and how to fix them!

April 9, 2012

The majority of horse “problems” aren’t really problems at all; they are really just symptoms of an underlying cause. Ninety-five percent of all the problems you will ever have to deal with as a horse owner will fix themselves if you do the groundwork and build your horse’s respect. Most people think that their horse’s [...]

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Fear – how to turn fear into confidence when training your horse

April 2, 2012

At horsemanship clinics and private lessons, I come across people from various backgrounds with horses. Some compete, some show, and some like to simply enjoy trail rides and fun days with friends. Horses are beautiful creatures with big hearts, are incredibly intelligent, and can bring many positive qualities to our lives. On the flip-side, horses are [...]

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Self-taught; taking control of your horsemanship brings results

March 26, 2012

When talking with me at Clinics, or just conversation in general, people often ask me where I get my ideas, and way of thinking. I’ve had people say, “You have a very different view of how the world works, and your ideas and way of thinking are very different. It’s very refreshing!” That makes me smile! [...]

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Flexing – Power steering for your horse

March 19, 2012

When people watch me ride Vegas and see how I can control him off just a feather-light touch, they often ask me how I got him to be so light and responsive. The answer is I started teaching him to soften to pressure from the first day I started working with him. The sooner you [...]

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Don’t Take Life Too Seriously

February 6, 2012

One thing is for sure, life is too short not to have some fun with yourself and the people around you. When you take your horsemanship so seriously that you can’t laugh at yourself for making a mistake or you can’t laugh at a situation, life can get pretty darn boring. My family has a [...]

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Horse Training Requires Hands-On Experience

January 30, 2012

What is experience? Experience means more than just having read about it, heard about it, or even seen it. Experience means that you can not only talk the talk, but you can actually walk the walk. You can actually do it. Nothing beats hands-on horse training experience. I know people who can write five books [...]

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JMH Stick and String

December 12, 2011

Justin has used his deep understanding of the equine mind gained from training hundreds of horses to develop training tools, tack and equipment that get the job done! Working with horse owners at expos and clinics across the United States, Justin has had the opportunity to develop and refine products that make training easier for [...]

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