Wizard Ride 276: These Arms of Mine

Tuesday, 9/6/11

Before work, I rode Wizard in the indoor arena. The horses have not spent a lot of time outside due to the rain, so Wizard was quite powerful. Our trot work was really nice, and he got himself onto the bit pretty nicely. Still lots of straightness issues, but we’re working through them. Our canter work, however, was tiring! My arms were aching by the time we were done. Wizard has a soft mouth, but he goes wayyy behind the bit when he gets revved up, so I was holding him when he tried to duck behind the bit, as well as check him when he tried to rush at the canter. The canter work is much more difficult indoors since the arena is a little smaller and the footing is harder than the outdoor ring. I don’t think Wizard was tired by the end of the ride, but I sure was!

I Wanna Be Sedated: Wizard’s Veterinary Appointment

After a relaxing and enjoyable long weekend in Georgia, it was time to get back to business with Wizard. Yesterday, the veterinarian did a lameness exam and floated his teeth.

The exam began by watching Wizard trot on a longe line. I probably should have anticipated that Wizard would be a little fresh since he is fit and has had so much time off, but instead I was surprised when he came close to pulling me off my feet as soon as we began longeing! The halter with the longe line snapped to the chin ring is normally just fine for control but he was feeling his oats yesterday. The vet pronounced him sound in both directions. I asked her about his high action and she said it’s likely a combination of animation and a loose, flexible way of going.

She performed flexion tests on all four legs and the prognosis was good. She heard a little creakiness in the right front knee when she folded it, but it is probably a touch of arthritis and nothing that should keep him from the level of work we’re doing. His left hip is dropped a bit, which is in line with what the chiropractor mentioned about the tight muscle tissue in his hamstring and pelvis. I’ve known horses whose hips are dropped far more than his and they have gone on to perform well with correct strengthening work. The vet recommended more work with ground poles to help Wizard’s topline and hind end strength. His right hind leg also showed a little stiffness with one of the flex tests, but nothing that caused concern for his current workload. Wizard quite enjoyed the jogs on the dirt road and was arching his neck and throwing his head playfully.

The vet examined his back and carefully went over his acupressure points. No back pain and just a little tightness in his pelvis. She evaluated my saddle fit and said it looks good.

The veterinarian’s advice? Get back on Wizard and try riding again. If he still is showing signs of distress under saddle, treat or test for Lyme Disease. She also suggested doing another 4-day bute test (as a diagnostic tool, not as a treatment). If both fail, further evaluations will be needed, like x-rays or blood tests. But so far, everything looks good.

Wizard also had his teeth floated. All of the hooks have been fixed and more corrections were done to his wave mouth. She was pleased with the way his mouth looks and said he can have his teeth floated next in a year- hooray!

While Wizard was under sedation, I cleaned his sheath, clipped his bridle path, and pulled his mane. I LOVE how he looks with the pulled mane- it does my hunter/jumper heart good :^) I did a combination of traditional mane pulling and a little thinning with scissors by teasing the mane up and cutting the excess vertically with scissors. I did not want to subject the poor guy to an entire mane pulling- he had almost a foot of hair and now it’s the length of a pulling comb.

Thursday, Wizard has a farrier appointment. I hope to be back in the saddle very soon.

Racehorses: Bits Commonly Used in Thoroughbred Horse Racing, Sales & Breeding

I receive a lot of inquiries about the tack used in racing. My hands-on riding experience is with hunter/jumpers, but I’ve learned quite a bit (ha!) by watching and shooting so much horse racing. The basic principles of bitting and horsemanship cross disciplines and continents. The age-old sentiment about even the mildest bit being dangerous in cruel hands is just as true in horse racing as it is in dressage, reining, or endurance riding.

Due to the sheer quantity of bits available to trainers, I’ll share more bits in future posts. Here are five to get you started:

1. The Chifney Bit. The Chifney was invented by a jockey named Samuel Chifney (1753 – 1807). Used for leading in hand and commonly seen at Thoroughbred sales. It’s also called an anti-rearing bit and it can have a straight or ported mouthpiece. Click here for a view of a chifney with a curved mouthpiece. The bit has three external rings: two attach to the horse;s halter and one attached to a lead line. When I see young horses at sales, I’ve noticed that the chifney has an added benefit: the horses play with the mouthpiece, which can be calming for them. During the time when young horses are prepped for a sale, they are trained to lead and stand, but these skills are put to the test in the unfamiliar surroundings of a sale.

2. Regulator. Also known as, “what the heck kind of bit is Curlin wearing?” You can see the leather-covered mouthpiece here. In training, Curlin tended to tilt his head sideways (he did not seem to have the same problem on race day- perhaps it was only at slower gaits). A bit like helps keep a horse travelling straight. Although Curlin always smoothly navigated his turns, I’ve also seen this type of bit on horses who bolt or drift out on turns.

3. Dexter Ring Bit. You can see the mouthpiece here. The ring bit has two mouthpieces: one jointed snaffle mouthpiece and one ring that encircles the horse’s lower jaw. The snaffle portion of the bit can have metal, plastic or rubber coating and the ring is metal. The cheekpieces are of varying shapes, as are the metal “spoons” below the mouth. A ring bit is commonly used on strong horses since it adds stopping power. The bit also increases steering power since a rider has the added leverage on the horse’s lower jaw.

Big Brown raced in a ring bit. Jockey Kent Desormeaux used the bit to rate the strong and powerful horse in the beginning of his races.

Note that Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown trained in a loose ring snaffle in the mornings:

Which brings us to:

4. Loose Ring Snaffle. Dressage riders, you’ve seen this one, right? Jumpers? Western riders? This is one of the most universal bits. It’s also considered one of the mildest bits.

Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey commonly trains and races his horses in a fat loose ring snaffle. This is Offshore, half brother to the brilliant and ill-fated filly Pine Island.

5. Full Cheek Snaffle. Ahhhh, show and pleasure riders, another familiar bit, eh? A full cheek snaffle has a round ring on each end, with a straight piece that rests on the horse’s cheeks. The straight pieces help with steering on green horses and also prevent the rings from passing through the horse’s mouth with one-sided rein pressure. Full cheek snaffles are not as common on track as some other bits but I do see them every once in a while.