"First the mouth..." Part 1

Hey everyone!

Thanks for the great response on the last few posts, a special thank-you to those of you from Peru, Germany and Sweden who have been kind enough to send me e-mails (dressage.blog@gmail.com).

I'm writing this post on the concept of 'getting the mouth first' before attempting anything in dressage (or riding for that matter) after an encounter I had with a coach a little while ago that completely revolutionized the way I ride/think about riding. Although I had been riding for quite a few years before this conversation, and understood to a certain extent that the horse's mouth was important, it wasn't until I was told (quite vehemently and with a lot of gusto) by a very cool trainer that if I didn't get my horse's mouth everything I did was basically useless and counter-productive (pretty harsh stuff really, especially if you've been invested in a riding style for many years and then are told something that makes you feel like a horrible rider/human being/coach/trainer/person - I'm a tad sensitive). As if this conversation wasn't mind boggling enough, the horse I was riding that I thought was so wonderful and light was apprently doing nothing more than (and I quote) "avoiding the bit entirely and holding his head in a 'pretty' position like a trained monkey -- you MUST get his mouth! -- He is no better than the horse which takes the bit between his teeth and pulls with all his force to avoid your hand"

The mouth is the single most important and sensitive part of the horse - it is a direct center of communication, it is the source of relaxation and it is the source of pretty much everything you need to get your horse to do just about anything. The mouth is also a very easy thing to hurt, ruin, make oversensitive and/or dull. Let's just put it this way: I don't allow any of my beginner students (or anyone with an unsteady hand or bad balance) to ride in a bit. They all go in bosals (when not on the lunge) or have the reins attached to the noseband or cavesson (when on the lunge) until I (and my horses) can trust their hands not to hurt the horses' mouths.

An anatomical sidenote here, the way the jaw of the horse is shaped is somewhat different to the way in which the human jaw is build (shocker, I know). The horse's lower jaw is rather pointed at the tips and is shaped somewhat like a 'U'. The tips of the jaw (i.e. the upper ends of the U) are narrow and pointed and therefore much more fragile than the rest of the jaw. The gum is thicker as it reaches the tips of the lower jaw and as a result the number of nerve endings and blood vessles increase towards the ends of the U. Alright, so where does the bit rest? Only a few mm away from the most sensitive and fragile point of the entire jaw. * When our hand pulls the bit downward (either through pulling or by riding with our hand in our lap/knee/anywhere lower than the bellybutton) we exert incredible amounts of force on the very fragile points of the jaw and the pressure in pounds/sq. inch becomes rather impressive. * Now, we have to remember here that when the bit is resting kindly in the mouth it is only a few milimeters away from this point, therefore just about any pulling action will case the bit to land on a very uncomfortable spot in the mouth.

Let's back up a second here. I have nothing against bits - even stronger bits (if the rider is skilled enough and the horse is well trained enough). Nor do I have anything against a hackamore, bosal or any other bitless option (albeit I tend to use these options only for beginner riders because I feel that you don't get the level of communication you do with a bit). Lastly, I don't think we should all ride in the circus with our hands above our heads and our eyes blindfolded while hoping (praying?) that our horses will stop out of their own volition.

So, the mouth is important, and avoiding the bit isn't lightness... so how do we fix this problem sans gimmicks?

1. Re-introduction to the bit from the ground using a series of flexion exercises. From what I understand many trainers use this system, but the clearest explanation on how to perform these (in my opinion) comes from a book written by Philippe Karl called Twisted Truths of Modern Dressage.

2. Re-introduction of bit and rein aids under saddle with clear definition between "action-reaction" and "demi-arret" (also adapted from Philippe Karl but present in other works by Descarpentry amongst other french classical masters)

3. Flexions under saddle.