Bitless bridle???

The Dr Cooks bridle doesn't work on leverage in the same way as a hackamore - its a very gentle, kind bridle which uses pressure over the entire head, as such, the horse is EXTREAMLY unlikely to react by rearing if it doesn't like it, certainly no more likely than if you were to use a bit on a horse. They are suitable for use by novice and experienced riders.....

^^that's true...it's not a hackamore at all, but I'd rather have a snaffle and such for flexion. I still uses pressure points/leverage though I like bitless bridles a lot more than hackamores.

I remember my mum telling me she had a pony called inca who would not stand still for the world she could not ride her through heavy traffic or traffic lights as she wouldnt stand! She used a hackamore on her. Then she changed her to a snaffle and it worked. My mum fell off her numerous times and she said she would never use a hackamore again. Bits work!

I have seen great success with these bridles I know of at least 6 horses/ponies that go in them and they go very well. I put a student of mine in one. She had a young arab welsh mix who was very sensitve and she did not have good hands and kept hanging on him and he kept running through the bit. She was concerned at first about how she would stop but of course the pony went better becuase he had nothing to run away from. She commented at the end of the lesson how much easier he was to stop and turn.

I would say that you need to work slowly on the turning. They get it very quickly but don't put the bitless on and expect them to know how to respond to a turn. Do a lot of small cirlces and turns at the walk and even turning the head at the halt first.

If you one with your horse you can ride your horse in just about anything... I've not tried riding with out anything on my older mare, but I was able to ride her in her halter and her lead rope....

Aaaa those were the days. I still miss her and its been a year and two months.....

I can see how the BB wold work well on some horses but I can't see it working on all horses. I also don't agree with alot of the things that are written on the site. A well-fitted bit should never be causing pain to a horse and it certainly shouldn't be causing fear in the horse. If anything a rider using a bit incorrectly would be the cause of the fear and avoidance of the bit. The whole article seems horrible one-sided to me. As for the BB itself, I'd be interested to hear how it works in the hands of an experienced rider.

I have a Dr Cooks bitless and I love it. I also agree that a lot of things that the site says are incorrect. A well fit bit should never be painfull.

I'm a firm believer that the harshness of a bridle, (regardless of whether it has a bit or not) lies in the hands of the rider. If you hold onto your horses head for dear life, you should not ride a horse, or at least get some help and become a better rider. It's like when you give a piggy back ride to a little kid and they hold onto your neck for dear life...that gets old real quick.

I trained Bonny on a snaffle and I can do anything with her with the bit, but I can also do everything that I do with a bit with nothing (does that make sense?) so why use one. I don't even have to use my bitless to ask her to leg yield in a straight line or sidepass or stop and back up. I can do all of that with just a halter or even at liberty, so if you don't need to use a bit, and don't want to and your both happy with not using one, don't. It's less stuff to worry about in my book.

If you use the bitless, you do have to kinda retrain your horse to face pressure for turning and stopping, but most horses pick it up in no time. At least Bonny did, and she'll "give" too, without me even pulling on the reins.

I also believe in desensitizing your horse to everything and getting them used to everything, including driving, english, western,trail riding, bits and bitless bridles....(except for sidepulls and some mechanical hackimores....and doing cruel things like the TWH abuse and racing) Acclimating your horse to everything seems to make a better horse.

Most of the time I just ride Bonny bareback with the halter, I don't even make reins! She's learned to pick up on all of my cues no problem. I'll probably switch bridles, just to keep her head level, and to keep my hands familiar with both feels too. But I love my bitless.!

I had one of Dr. Cook's bitless bridles that I used on a 9 year old fairly quiet Arab, and he did very well in it. The way the bridle works sends very clear, concise signals to the horse--right rein affects pressure on the left side of the horse's head, and left rein affects pressure on the right side of the horse's head, so you are in essence pushing the horse's entire head in the direction you want to go rather than pulling on his/her mouth.. The only caveat I would like to share is the noseband must be lower on the horse than a bitted bridle, and it must be adjusted rather snugly, or the action of the bridle will rub a sore spot.

Instead of buying an expensive bitless bride, I have purchased a nylon sidepull. I rode Chance w/ it last Wednesday & he did pretty good. I think the more I ride w/ the sidepull, the more responsive he will become.

Once I see if this sidepull will give me results I am looking for, I will then purchase a leather bitless bridle. I am a beginner & I still do not keep my hands still. I try so hard to remember to do this but w/ everything else, I sometimes forget about my hands. I think going w/ a sidepull will benefit me as well as my horse.

He has a few issues but we're working on them. He does very well in the round pen & is so smart. He seems to get what I ask of him. He is very willing to learn & doesn't have an aggressive bone in his body. He was not treated very well before I bought him; he was underweight & very scared of everything. He doesn't trust strangers & is nervous acting around new things. He is only 5 so I know his confidence will build as time passes. He's made a 100% turnaround within the 7 months I've had him; in appearance & attitude.

I've seen the bitless bridles....but it didn't impress me much...i have been around horses for my whole ( 30 + years) , in fact we're breaking a 3 year old mustang with a hackamoore, I find her more relaxed ( a snaffle didn't go over to well with her)