The Myler Combination Under Attack
Horse & Hound, 27 March, published an article by the rider, trainer and judge, Eric Smiley, pointing to Myler Bits, along with the Mikmar Bit, Elevator Bits and Dutch Gags, as a prime contributing factor in accidents during the Cross Country phase of Eventing.

Mr Smiley suggested that the problems with Combinations arise from the Western origins of the bits, and accused them of:
o Being unsuitable for riding with direct and constant contact
o Producing steering problems due to their design for use with neck reining
o Causing such discomfort on sensitive areas of the head that horses run through the bridle and jump hollow, leading to rotational falls or a delay in response to the riders signals.

Belstane obviously should not, cannot and will not make any comments about the other bits mentioned, apart from saying that by grouping them together in this way, it seems that Mr Smiley has been misinformed about the Myler Combination Bit and we hereby attempt to put the record straight:

No bit is a substitute for time, patience and repetition. Bits do not train horses, - a bit is nothing more than a training device to improve communication between rider and horse.

Equally, bits do not hurt horses. It is the rider’s hands, coupled with poor training and a misunderstanding of the way bits work that cause bitting problems.

Condemning Myler Combinations because of 2 isolated incidents seems a little hasty and unscientific to say the least. Have all the other possible factors been excluded?

Myler Bits were introduced to provide a kinder, more effective way of communicating with horses. The Myler Combination Bit is one of the kindest and most sympathetic communication & training aids available.

Firstly, unlike Hackamores and Hackamore combinations, the Myler Combination does not work by restricting the passage of air through pressure on the soft tissue of the nose. Nor does it have a Gag action, whereby the distance between the bit and the poll shortens, pulling the bit up into the corners of the mouth. The Myler Combination works by sharing the pressure exerted by the rider over several areas, initially between the bony part of the nose, the poll and the back of the jaw, and then, if the rider continues to increase rein pressure, between these areas and the tongue and bars. There is therefore less pressure on any one area than with traditional bits, so there is no reason why a contact would cause any greater problem with a Myler Combination Bit than with any other.

How much contact and how it is used, is obviously a completely different issue, but poor riding is nothing to do with the choice of bit. It is possible to cause more pain and damage with an ordinary single-jointed snaffle than with almost any other bit, and certainly any Myler Bit.
(See the end of this article for ways to compare how different mouthpieces feel to your horse.)

Secondly, it is not necessary to use any neck reining with a Myler Combination. The design of the noseband, and the Independent Side Movement, (a feature of all Myler mouthpieces), allows the rider to use a much clearer lateral signal with less rein pressure than any other type of mouthpiece.

Thirdly, pressure on any sensitive area can indeed produce pain and even insensitivity, with all the accompanying dangers Mr Smiley mentions. However, there are far more nerve cells in the tongue than the rest of the areas used by a Myler Combination put together. As well as being a highly sensitive part of the body, the tongue has to move in order for the horse to swallow properly. The automatic swallowing reflex, and the amount of saliva produced by a horse in the cross country phase, is a critical area in bit resistance, so the less tongue pressure the better.

It is obviously critical that every effort is made to reduce the number and severity of accidents in this fantastic sport and Myler Bits support 100% Mr Smiley’s comments about the dangers of covering up training inadequacies. Surely, then, we should first look at the common use of restrictive training aids such as martingales, and flash, crank and other “corrective” nosebands?

The only purpose of such equipment is to prevent the horse trying to evade the discomfort of a badly chosen, or used, bit. It is without a doubt the prime culprit in covering up training inadequacies. Why do the Governing Bodies not look at the use and promotion of this unnecessary and often painful equipment?

Christopher Bartle, a founding member of The Myler Team, has had and observed considerable success with the Myler Combination Bit, which he puts down to the comparative mildness of its action in spreading the rein pressure over several areas. He stresses, though, that any bit, like any tool, is only as good as the rider’s hands, and he emphasises the importance of bitting each horse individually.

Team Fredericks use the Myler Combination on many horses in the cross country phase specifically because it gives better control whilst minimising discomfort. Lucinda Fredericks says they have never had a split mouth with a Myler Combination, sadly something all too common with other bits. She points out that many people’s initial impression when they first see the Myler Combination is that it is a scary and therefore severe gadget, but once riders understand how it works they realise it is completely the opposite.

It is easy to blame a noticeably different piece of equipment for all sorts of inadequacies which could actually be even more apparent and damaging with a “traditional” approach.
Clayton Fredericks, Chairman of The Event Riders’ Association, ERA, agrees, pointing out that riders do not normally look for a more “complex” bit unless they are already having a problem. The new bit hasn’t caused the problem, even if it hasn’t cured it. Clayton says that blaming bits for cross country falls is like blaming cars for causing road accidents. “Whilst no stone should be left unturned in the efforts to improve rider safety, it all comes back to rider education in the end. Legislating effectively against poor training or riding; ill-fitting tack; an unfit horse; or the thousand other contributory factors, is very complex and nothing can be tackled in isolation.”

ERA is currently working on improving the system for rider education and training


Ways to Compare How Different Bits Feel to Your Horse

How Tongue Pressure Effects Swallowing:
Put the tip of your finger onto the centre of your tongue (as shown in the image) and press down with just a little pressure. Try and swallow. Imagine trying to run round a cross country course like this!
NOW imagine replacing you finger with a pound of cold steel and replacing the pressure with the full body-weight of a rider standing in their stirrups and hauling on the reins!
NOW imagine this pressure if your mouth was strapped shut with a restrictive noseband like a Flash or a Crank.

Horses and humans both have to twist and elevate their tongues in order to swallow. Bit Resistance is the result of too much tongue pressure and the inability to swallow.

The average horse produces around 38 litres of saliva every day, - the equivalent of 2 of those office water-cooler bottles, - a vast amount of saliva to swallow! The highest rate of salivation occurs when the horse is eating, and also when he is exercising (just when we start restricting his tongue with the bit.)

To appreciate the effects of different sorts of tongue pressure, press the blunt end of a biro into the centre of your tongue and try to swallow. Then try it with the biro sideways across your tongue. You should find it is less uncomfortable and less difficult to swallow with the pressure spread across your tongue than it is when concentrated into one area. This gives a very clear feel of the difference between Myler Level One and Level Two mouthpieces.


Traditional Snaffle Nutcracker Action versus the Myler Curved Mouthpieces:
You will need:
1 good friend
1 single-jointed traditional snaffle bit
1 MB02 Myler Comfort Snaffle (or a Myler mouthpiece as close to this as possible.)

This demonstration puts paid to the myth that the Snaffle is a gentle mild bit. It also shows how Myler Bits´ curved mouthpieces suit the shape of the Horse´s mouth and allow him to swallow freely.

Hold your bare arm bent upwards at a 90 degree angle as shown in the image. The arm will now represent the horse´s tongue, (the tongue obviously goes down his head from the throat to the mouth, so it will be as vertical as the horse´s head carriage.)

Get a friend to place an ordinary single-jointed snaffle mouthpiece on your arm as shown. They should stand directly in front of you, take one ring of the snaffle in each hand and pull backwards and slightly upwards as if they were the rider pulling on the reins; (this mimics the degree of pull from the rider´s hands to the Horse´s mouth.)

Make sure it is a good friend who doesn’t get carried away, because the centre of the mouthpiece will drive into the middle of your arm, and some skin may get caught and pinched in the joint. The 2 sides of the mouthpiece will ´nutcracker´ in on your arm

This shows clearly what the Horse’s tongue and bars feel in a traditional single-jointed snaffle. Remember that most English Riding Horses are asked to work with constant rein pressure, which usually means a constant pinch. Now think about how the Horse can swallow if the bit causes constant pinching pressure. (See Finger on Tongue Demonstration above.)

Now your friend should take a Myler 02 Comfort Snaffle and repeat the same arm pressure demonstration. You should find that there is no severe drive into the centre of the arm and the joint doesn´t catch the skin. The bit does not pinch or ´nutcracker´ like the ´´ordinary´´ snaffle, but only closes to wrap the sides of the arm.

Pressure is distributed more evenly, the shape of the mouthpiece now compliments the shape of the mouth. The Horse has less pressure on his tongue and consequently has more room to swallow freely.


Independent Side Movement:
Get your friend to place an ordinary Mullen Snaffle on your arm as in the last demonstration. They should pretend they are trying to bend the Horse to the right, by pulling backwards and upwards on the right-hand cheek ring. You will feel the whole bar of the mouthpiece rotate and press into your arm and it will not feel like a clear turning signal on the right side.

Then get your friend to place an ordinary single jointed Snaffle on your arm in the same place. They should repeat the same action by pulling and lifting the right side of the bit as if they were turning the Horse to the right with the rein. The mouthpiece will only be able to lift slightly before the centre joint locks and then drives the joint down into your arm (or tongue if it were a real Horse). Does this feel like it would be a clear turning signal?

Lastly your friend should take a Myler 02 or 04 Comfort Snaffle and place this on your arm, pulling and lifting the right cheek ring. This time, only one side of the mouthpiece will lift, and it will lift smoothly, leaving the other side completely still and unaffected. There will be no drive-down into the tongue, locking of the mouthpiece, or significant movement across the mouth.

This demonstration is also effective with a Myler 32 Mullen Barrel (a particularly good comparison for the ordinary Mullen mouthpiece: Both are solid, direct-action bits, but the barrel in the Myler version allows Independent Side Movement.)


Independent Side Action and Use of Hooks:
The same Snaffle-on-Arm demonstration is also helpful in emphasising the benefits to the Independent Side Movement from the hooks, or slotted cheeks. Use a Myler Bit with a cheek with hooks, eg the Low Port Comfort Snaffle on an Eggbutt cheek with slots (30045). Firstly, get your friend to pull up and back while they hold the cheek ring where a rein would be if it were running free on the ring (about half-way round on an Eggbutt cheek). This signal is still much clearer than with a traditional snaffle.

Then, however, they should use the same action but hold the ring at the bottom, as if the rein was fixed into the bottom slot. The leverage this creates will allow the mouthpiece to rotate down onto the tongue with far less backward pressure than was needed before. This demonstrates that fixing the rein into the bottom hook gives a clearer signal, more efficiently and kindly, without so much pressure backwards and downwards onto the horse´s tongue.


Independent Side Movement & Use of Hooks:
This is similar to the previous Snaffle-on-Arm demonstration above.
Do this first with a ´´traditional´´ single-jointed or Mullen snaffle, then use any Myler Bit with Independent Side Movement.

Hold out your hand, palm upwards as shown in the image. Your friend should place the single-jointed mouthpiece in your palm while you make a fist around it, curling your fingers upwards. Now, your friend should lift one side of the bit, as thought asking for a bend (again, be sure they are a good friend, the single-joint can cause quite a pinch!) You will feel the pressure all over your palm, and any joint will drive in and pinch.

Now, do the same with the Myler Bit. As one side of the bit lifts, you should feel the difference, with pressure only on the activated side while the other side remains still. Joints will not drive downwards into your palm, there will only be a concise and clear signal to the intended side.


How Hooks, or Slots, on Myler Bit Cheeks Assist Comfort and the Reward Signal:
The image of 2 bridles shows 2 bits with the same Myler mouthpiece, the one on the left on a plain Eggbutt cheek, the one on the right in an Eggbutt with hooks (or slots.)

As the image shows, the bridle on the right is fixed into the slots. This holds the bit completely off the tongue unless the rider is applying pressure with the reins, at which point the bit rolls down onto the tongue to give the signal. As soon as the rider releases the pressure, the bridle’s anchorage in the slots causes the bit to rotate back into its original position, giving a very clear reward signal.

The bit with the plain cheeks, shown here on the left, has no means of stabilising the bit inside the mouth, and the weight of the mouthpiece will quickly cause the cheeks to rotate through the cheek piece fastenings, leaving the bit lying on the tongue all the time, so there is a less clear reward when the rider relaxes the rein pressure.


Bit Balance and the Importance of a Balanced Mouthpiece:
Many traditional bits are not balanced, this applies especially to snaffles.

Hold your hand palm up, index finger extended, as shown in the image. Place a single-jointed snaffle on the outstretched finger, with the centre of the joint resting on the middle of it. Is the bit balanced, with the sides completely even? Does the bit sit comfortably on your finger without sliding to one side?

Traditional snaffles are not balanced. One side is always longer that the other due to the construction, creating more pressure on one side. The joint will not be completely central in the mouth. This can be seen even more clearly if the bit is held as shown on the right and collapsed completely.

People often complain that their Horse is one-sided or is very heavy on one side. The snaffle is actually a contributory factor to this! How can you expect the Horse to be balanced if the bit is not?!

Next, take a Myler 02 Comfort Snaffle, or other Myler jointed bit, and repeat the actions above. The bit will balance in the centre because Myler Bits are designed to affect each side of the mouth evenly.

For more information, visit the Brands / Myler section of our website, where there is more information about bitting in general as well as on Myler Bits. Alternatively, email myler@belstane.com