This is an archived Horseadvice.com Discussion. The parent article and menus are available on the navigation menu below:
HorseAdvice.com » Training & Conditioning Horses » Tack and Training » Bits and Bitting Horses » Bridle Topics Not Covered Above »
  Discussion on Young horse bit question
Author Message
Member:
Kthorse

Posted on Monday, Mar 24, 2003 - 1:19 pm:

Hi, I have a question. Everyhorse I have ever owned has a slight am mount of froth at the mouth when ridden. This is normal to me. However my young arabs mouth is dry. Is this a concern? I have never seen a horse that does not slightly froth. It to me means their mouth is nice and moist. Any suggestions. He is ridden in a loose ring snaffle.
Thanks Katrina
Member:
Hwood

Posted on Monday, Mar 24, 2003 - 5:57 pm:

Hi, Katrina,
In my experience, there are some horses who salivate more than others . . . some make enough suds for a family-sized wash load, and some don't get frothy at all . . . unless the horse seems uncomfortable and unresponsive with the bit, I would not be concerned. If it is something that will make you feel better, you may want to put him in a copper mouthpiece, as this will normally stimulate salivation.
Holly
Member:
Chrism

Posted on Monday, Mar 24, 2003 - 6:19 pm:

If you want to promote salivation, try feeding him a lump of sugar after bridling.

Sometimes horses seem to have dry mouths because of tension. The TTEAM folks would suggest some mouth work and ground exercises to build his confidence.

Does he show any other signs of concern?
Member:
Kthorse

Posted on Monday, Mar 24, 2003 - 6:46 pm:

Thanks Holly, He is very responsive to the bit. I do tend to ride with very soft contact as I want him to balance himself because he is young..I only have to close my hands and he feels it and responds. I tend to ride with a looser rein than most prefer.
Christine Thanks also, The only real tension he has is he would rather not work. He is young and and arab and very smart he also spooks tries to bolt which is the only time I have stronger contact.(one rein only).He is very responsive to the slightest touch. He understands all aids I have taught him. He actually responds like an older horse. He seems confident to me. Its just the dry mouth thing. I just thought it was unusual. Most horses play a little with the bit etc. What mouth and ground work do you suggest.
Thanks again Katrina
Member:
Chrism

Posted on Tuesday, Mar 25, 2003 - 5:41 pm:

The TTEAM folks have you wet your hand and do gentle massages in circles around his gums. If you have someone show you, you can even massage the tongue from the side. The idea is that a horse chews and has a wet mouth when he is relaxed. A good example is when you unload a horse off a trailer in a strange location - many take a while to feel comfortable enough to graze.

Since your horse sometimes spooks/tries to bolt, this would suggest he has some tension/fear to work through.

Sometimes this is from a lack of confidence in a young horse. Maybe he is being asked to progress to0 quickly, or some building blocks of his knowledge have been skipped or assumed. Often a very cooperative young horse fools us into moving along his training too quickly. I've done this in the past and have to restrain myself.

The fact that his mouth is dry may mean nothing. But it may be a tip off to slow down his training a bit and make it in easier chunks for him to understand and absorb.

As far as ground exercises, I'd use the TTEAM ones - leading from both sides, standing square, working through a labyrinth, ground poles, etc. The idea of the work is to allow the horse to build confidence and find "another way" when presented with something unusual.

For more information on TTEAM, check https://tteam-ttouch.com/

For other types of ground exercises that I like, too, check Ginger Long's book: https://www.equetec.com/pages/730594/index.htm

HTH.

Chris
Member:
Kthorse

Posted on Tuesday, Mar 25, 2003 - 8:46 pm:

Thanks Chris,
Thanks for your help. I will check out the web sites. His training has been very slow as I have all the time in the world. We had a bad winter so I could not ride very much at all. We did tons of ground work and went for walks(leading) to all sorts of places. At the moment we are only walking, a little trotting, backing and DrOpping his head. We have been doing these things about 6 months now.He is very nervous some days and calm others. It is his age and breeding. I will definatly take your advice though. Thanks Katrina
Member:
Chrism

Posted on Wednesday, Mar 26, 2003 - 11:35 am:

Katrina,

You can also work through the labyrinth while under saddle. This helps a nervous horse, too.

Oh, and since he is young, keep a good watch on the saddle fit - it may be that as his body changes and muscles up, the saddle fit isn't as good as it once was. Or, after a long winter off work, he's not as muscled as he once was and needs some extra padding for a while.

Watch that you don't reassure his nervousness or spookiness, trying to get him over his concern. Sometimes people actually encourage it. I try to ignore all the spooky stuff and just keep going as if nothing happened. If I can anticipate it, I start making requests to occupy the horse's mind - lots of direction changes, a bit of leg yield, etc. The idea is to keep him focused on his work so the spookies don't take over.

BTW, after watching and training my dog as well as a foals, I've decided our animal friends have stages of mental development just like children. I also believe that their minds are like muscles and the puzzles we pose them create increasing focus, attention span, comfort with obedience, etc. Finally, I think they exhibit latent learning - i.e. what is hard today becomes easier tomorrow because the animal has a chance to digest the situation in his stall or at home. The key thing is to have lots of good, small successes and end on a good, confident note. Show the animal what it can do, not what it can't.

It will come with time and patience. Good luck.
Home Page | Top of Page | Join Us!
Horseadvice.com is a BBB Accredited Business. Click for the BBB Business Review of this Horse Training in Stokesdale NC