Following on from my post in August about struggling with Vallu's weymouth and finding a new bit which I think is a good one for him, I've now just gone and bought him a new (well second hand) Sprenger Dynamic RS D-ring bit. Similarly with the weymouth, over the last month or so every now and then Vallu would play with the bit with his tongue as if to say he wasn't liking it, or then whilst riding he'd go way too light in the contact, open his mouth or then go behind the vertical so I knew it was time to find something else and quickly!
This bit combines an ergonomically created curved mouthpiece with an angled center joint, which is meant to result in soft and even pressure for the best possible bit acceptance. So essentially everything I need, right? His previous bit the Sprenger WH Ultra was also 14mm since anything thicker makes him stick his tongue out, but what I think the problem with that particular bit was that the centre lozenge contains a roller that is meant to give the horses a greater feeling of freedom with their tongue, but now this summer he's just started looking a bit uncomfortable with it. Maybe as he is getting older and his teeth are changing shape the bit that he's been so happy with previously is now not so good? 🤔
The reason I wanted to swap from a loose ring to a D-ring is because from what I've read I think the D-ring invites the horse more into the contact and is more stable than the loose ring. Vallu needs less things happening in/around his mouth, so I knew that a D-ring was the way to go. The joint in the middle is angled the same as the WH Ultra and then on top of that the D-ring design makes it very horse friendly according to my research aka reading through tons of blog posts, Facebook posts and all the different bit brand websites.
And apparently Aurigan helps promote salivation for a soft mouth. White lipstick anyone? ⬇️
And apparently Aurigan helps promote salivation for a soft mouth. White lipstick anyone? ⬇️
I've obviously only ridden in this a couple of times, and at the moment my riding consists of us doing just walk work. But I do think that you can see the difference in Vallu from just a couple of sessions, he is more foamy, there is less of that of that weird playing with the bit with his tongue thing going on and he's keeping his mouth closed 99% of time even without a flash! 🎉🎊 Today I learnt that the bit also has very good brakes, as Vallu resembled a giraffe high on speed when I rode him. Next week we get to do 5 minutes of trot a day so it will be very interesting to see how that works! If it doesn't then the search begins again...
Have you used one of these bits before? Any good/bad reviews?
I am very blessed with horses who don't seem to mind the bit I use on them. I occasionally use a stronger, more corrective bit, and Hot Rod just kinda gives me the side-eye. Western bits can get scary fast. They can get expensive fast, too, but I'm sure that's the same for english tack as well. I hope yours works out!
ReplyDeleteI think bits are expensive no matter what country and no matter what discipline!! But I'm always ready to invest in a bit if I think it will help, and if they don't work I can always sell it on!
DeleteNever used that particular bit before, but Pig required an eggbutt for a long time. He didn't like the instability of a loose ring very much at all! Good luck with the trotting!
ReplyDeleteI've seen so many dressage horses in eggbutt bits recently, which inspired me to try to it out! And thank you!!
DeleteThis bit sounds great! When I first started riding Baldur, I tried a couple of bits on him, and he was horrible on every single one. But the straight eggbutt(mullen mouth), he completely changed and became so soft. It's amazing how something so small can make such a difference!
ReplyDeleteOh wow, that sounds like it made a massive difference! Vallu hasn't been terrible in the old bit, but I do think he is happier in this one!
Delete