io RIDING 



the cause of most of the bad mouths in horses. In grooms 

 and second horsemen bad hands are in some cases caused, in 

 many made worse, by the habit of taking horses to exercise 

 in a watering bridle ; they have to pull at the snaffle as hard as 

 they can, and they get such a habit of it that they fall off if they 

 cannot hang on to a horse's head. They then do just the same 

 when a horse has a double bridle on, and they bring up the 

 second horse, who may naturally have a light mouth, with a 

 mouth quite dead, and who, having had his head carried for 

 him by the man on his back all the morning, expects the other 

 man to carry it for him all the afternoon. I have had many 

 horses that were charming to ride and quite light in the mouth 

 as first horses, who if they happened to drop into being second 

 horses were detestable to ride, and hung and bored on your 

 hand all the rest of the day. It has already been said how 

 difficult, how almost impossible, it is to give a man good hands 

 or to improve them when really bad. Whatever may be done 

 with horses that have bad mouths, it will probably be found 

 that a constant change of bridle (both in riding and driving) is 

 the only real and effectual remedy. To change about con- 

 stantly during the day from the bridoon to the bit and back 

 again to the bridoon keeps the horse's mouth fresh. Often a 

 man cannot hold his horse on the bridoon, but there are 

 moments when he can do so, and if he drops the bit for ever 

 so short a time he will find it of benefit to himself and his horse's 

 mouth. If you ride a horse that pulls hard always in the same 

 bit, he gets a groove in his mouth and gets accustomed to it. 



For a puller you must have a strong bit, but change it often. 

 Sometimes a bit with a port sometimes one that shifts up and 

 down on the cheek sometimes one with playthings on the 

 tongue sometimes with only just bend enough to allow of 

 the tongue passing comfortably under it, but always a good 

 long cheek. Unless absolutely necessary the curb should not be 

 tight; that deadens the mouth very much. With a nice-mouthed 

 horse a snaffle, or, better still, two snaffles; if he gets his head 

 down, a gag and snaffle. Many a hard puller in a bit will go 



