Why it’s time to rethink pony bitting for comfort and performance.
By Fiona Dearing, Bit Right Equine . Email Fiona: bitrightequine@gmail.com
Our amazing pony friends have for a very long time had very limited choices for bits. I’m sure you’re all familiar with the tom thumb single jointed bit that’s been a staple for ponies since I was at Pony Club!
It stands to reason our ponies are smaller in the mouth. Like our larger horse breeds there are different kinds of mouths. The Welsh A is likely to be fleshier in the mouth then a Welsh B in line with the change in body type. The Riding Ponies are going to be finer than other Native Pony types etc. Whilst I do see some ponies in my travels who are a 5” mouth, most are 4.5” or under with a correctly fitting bit.
As with all things bitting, options have increased since we’ve learned more about both anatomy and bitting materials and styles. Historically, bits were simply cut down in the bit canon (the part of the mouthpiece between the lozenge and the cheekpiece) to make the mouthpiece smaller. You can see in the photo both the lozenge, cheekpiece and diameter of the mouthpiece remain the same size in these generic bits.
The challenge for the pony in this scenario is the lozenge is likely to be sitting on the sensitive edges of his tongue and all the movement will be occurring there and on his bars (lower jaw). If we go back to my shoe analogy (I know….it’s my favourite!), it’s like we’ve just shortened the shoe but not taken into account the height of the arch, the breadth of the foot etc. Chances are, it’s not super comfortable!
If we look at a premium bit in the image below you see how these bits are scaled. The diameter is smaller to suit a smaller interdental space, and the lozenge and the cheekpiece are scaled appropriately for the size of the mouth.
The staple Pony Club bit, the tom thumb, has been around for a very long time and has served us well. Again, we’ve learned more so we can do better. These bits often have a very large join in its single joint. This, combined with the way single jointed bits close up in a ‘vice’-like manner around the bars/lower jaw means it’s not always the best option for our ponies. To have this bit fitted correctly we do need to ensure you have the old ‘little finger rule’ so your little finger can sit between the lips and the cheekpiece of the bit. This rule only applies to single jointed bits, again, due to the way they close up in the mouth. For all double jointed bits they should sit nice and snug to the lips to be fitted properly. I am also not a fan of the cheek pieces on the tom thumb. Perhaps I have PTSD from being stabbed in the leg or butt by them as a child? My concern as a bit fitter is they can get caught on things, a nice eggbutt or D ring is going to give the child steering and alleviate that risk through better design.
Over the last ten to fifteen years we’ve seen many manufacturers make a super effort to ensure our ponies are both comfortable and have options for bitting. It’s double important our ponies are comfortable as they’re carrying learning riders who understandably make mistakes now and then. We need to allow our riders to be able to learn and make mistakes without our ponies being made uncomfortable as a result.