A Ruined Mouth
Have you ever seen a horse with a ruined mouth? It’s easy to spot.
The WORRIED MOUTH is when the horse will GAP his mouth whenever the rider applies the reins, or at it’s worst, when the bridle comes on. He might also CHEW or CHOMP on the bit anxiously or GRIND his TEETH (not to be confused with healthy, relaxed mouthing of the bit) He might stick out his TONGUE The horse with a FALSE MOUTH, AVOIDS any and all contact by being permanently over bent The rock-hard, RIGID JAW or HARD MOUTH.
I see these mouth problems a lot because they are common and I hate to see them because they are problems that could easily be prevented. In most cases, these mouths aren't really RUINED, they are just damaged and depending on the circumstances, some of these horses can be helped and of course, some of them can't.
Either way, an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.
Worried Mouth Worried mouth is a condition usually found in young horses. With correct handling, it passes within a few Days! It is normal for most horses to have a worried mouth the first few times they get a bit in their mouth, just like we feel awkward with a foreign object in our mouth, after having a filling in our teeth. A week later we’ve totally forgotten the fact that it’s there. Older horses can also have a worried mouth, but the problem most probably originates from when the horse was just being started.
These horses will gape or open their mouth whenever the rider uses the reins or applies a little pressure to the horse's mouth or in very bad cases, even when they don’t. In the very bad cases just wearing a bridle sets off the worried-mouth-coping-reaction. They also nervously chew or chomp on the bit.
The problem is usually caused by PRESSURE being applied to a horse's mouth BEFORE he has become ACCUSTOMED to the feel of the bit in his mouth.
The other practice that is a cause for the worried mouth is where the handler ties the horse's head around to the side, anchoring it to the side of the saddle, in the name of “suppling”. A few sessions like this and the young horse will be convinced the bit is going to hurt him and he'll start looking for ways to evade the bit to prevent the pain. He'll open his mouth, and/or stick his tongue out in an attempt to get away from the bit.
A person DRIVING the horse from the ground in long lines and putting too much pressure on the horse’s mouth can also cause a WORRIED MOUTH.
Another common cause, is the rider putting too much pressure in a green horse's mouth with a strong, STRAIGHT-BACK PULL on BOTH reins at the same time or a SAWING ACTION.
Every horse needs the opportunity to relax with the bit in his mouth. I would recommend you let the youngster wear the bit at least several weeks before ANY pressure is applied to the bit. Also, the trainer should stand besides and in front of the horse and teach him how to respond with just his HANDS FIRST. I suggest to not use any pressure in his mouth from the saddle until he thoroughly understands the bit from the ground!
Some horses can overcome the "worried mouth" syndrome with time, patience and correct handling of the bit. However, their mouth will never be as good as it would have been if started more carefully.
Rigid Jaw No need to do much explaining as to what rigid jaw is. I’m sure every rider in the history of the world has experienced it at one time or another. Whenever I get on a horse and feel that hard, rigid mouth, if the horse won't soften up and give to my hands, I know that I’m really dealing with a horse that I can’t do anything with beyond mediocre basics. What causes a horse to have a hard, rigid mouth? The number ONE cause is... the horse is consistently being ridden by a rider who doesn't know how to use his hands correctly. I know that's brutally blunt, but it has to be said, as it's the most important part of horsemanship. And yet, most people pay absolutely ZERO attention to it. They focus only on the training techniques for the horse, which are meaningless unless the rider APPLIES them correctly... with his HANDS, LEGS and BODY.
False Mouth If your horse gives to your hands by bringing his chin all the way back, with a “light” feeling in the reins, he has a condition referred to as a "false mouth". In other words, the horse has learned to EVADE the bit. It's also not uncommon for a horse with a false mouth to tuck his chin and run right THROUGH the rider's hands.
The problem can be caused in several ways. Here are a few... 1. Driving a horse in long-lines the WRONG way. Basically, turning, stopping and backing, literally pulling the horse's chin to his chest. Unless I was an expert at driving a horse in long-lines, I wouldn't do it.
2. Checking a horse up in side-reins and adjusting them too tight. The horse has no place to find relief except to tuck his head.
3. Using draw-reins - Using too much leverage, forcing the horse's chin to his chest.
4. An incompetent rider trying to teach a horse to be “on-the-bit or to “collect”.
To collect a horse, the rider must BALANCE the horse. This balancing act is what allows a rider to compact the horse's body, shorten his stride and regulate the degree of collection. The false-mouth problem starts when the rider over-flexes the horse with his hands and then uses too much leg pressure. Do this on a consistent basis and you'll develop a horse with a false mouth that will simply tuck his nose and keep on tuckin' right through the bit.
Once the horse has learned this, it can be very difficult to correct. The only worthwhile thing to do is to go back to the basics and re-teach the horse a good foundation. Keep in mind though... the horse will probably never be as good as he could have been had this problem not occurred.
When a horse gapes his mouth or chews the bit excessively, many riders will then put a noseband on the horse to keep his mouth shut. Or, they will put the noseband on right from the get-go, hoping to prevent the gapping problem before it starts. I have NEVER seen this work. Not on any horses.
Why?
The noseband is merely masking the problem - treating the SYMPTOM and NOT the ROOT CAUSE of the problem. When the noseband is removed from a horse that gapes (without fixing the root cause) he'll go right back to gapping.
We've all seen training demonstrations where a YOUNG HORSE is taught a BUNCH of stuff in ONE training session. To the uninitiated, this can be very impressive to watch. However, that is the best way I know to get a youngster worried, and if a snaffle bit is used in this process, mouth problems are likely to occur. There are horsemen who are expert starters who can do this accelerated training and not cause any problems whatsoever. There are also certain types of horses that can take the accelerated training with no problems. However, there are plenty of people and horses that can't.
