All too frequently when we see folks ride their horses with a snaffle bit, we see them using it incorrectly. This blog looks at the proper and improper fit and use of the snaffle bit.
What is a snaffle? A snaffle is a non-leverage bit. It can have 2 or 3 joined pieces, and comes in many shapes and sizes including: d-Ring, off set d-ring, rubber d, o-ring, French link, loose ring, egg butt, gag, full cheek, smooth wire, twisted wire, straight, curved, thicker, thinner, hollow...jump down turn around pick a bale of cotton. They can be made of all types of metal, copper, brass, stainless, and steel. Which snaffle you choose to use is a personal preference.
Like all bits, a snaffle is meant to fit in the diastema (space) between a horses front teeth (the canines,) and the back teeth (the molars.) A proper fit is essential to having a happy horse and good communication. There is an old saying that a snaffle should be fit in a horse's mouth with either one wrinkle or two in the lips. We suggest to people that they leave the wrinkles out of the equation all together. Rather, find where a wrinkle starts and then back it off just a little. The photo above this blog is a good illustration of a properly fitting snaffle.
As far as function is concerned, the snaffle bit is a lateral device. It is meant to be used in a lateral, or side to side motion, left or right. Proper use and understanding of a direct rein and an indirect rein is essential if one is to use the snaffle in the way it is intended.
A snaffle is not meant to be used the same way that a shank bit is used, which is used in a vertical fashion. A common error folks make with a snaffle is to neck rein with it, usually one handed. (keep in mind that a snaffle can be used with one hand, but it must be used properly and with the idea that either the left or the right rein should be activated at one time.) When someone neck reins with a snaffle, what happens is the person would like to turn to the right, but the horse's nose turns to the left. The horse can and will travel to the right, but it will do so in a physically challenging and inefficient position.
If you are unsure how to use a snaffle properly, it is best to get some basic instruction. Snaffles can hurt horses even though they are often touted as less aggressive. If used improperly they can cut a horse's tongue, injure the bars in the horse's mouth or damage the sensitive tissue on the roof of the horse's mouth. Choose your bit wisely, but use your hands even more wisely.
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