Question
ring head noseband
hello sir. there was a trainer who worked at our local racetrack training thoroughbred racehorses in india. he never used a bridle with noseband on his stable wards in the race. all the horses which didnt require a shadow roll as well as figure 8 noseband, he put on a ring head noseband as the one i attached below. on asking him, he told me that noseband irritates the horse. is he correct? do horses really require a noseband which is properly fitted over its nose?
can you please explain me?
AnswerThe nose band gives a rider more control over the horse who does not respect the bit. A well trained horse may not require a nose band as yes it may irritate the horse. A bit in a horses mouth or a person on it's back irritates a horse as well, so this statement is a very interesting one. If a horse can open it's mouth then he can escape the pressure the bit puts on him asking for direction. So a nose band or figure eight will help the rider with bit control by keeping the horse's mouth shut.
Christopher Crocker
Crocker Racing Stable and Horse Racing Partnerships
http://CrockerRacingStable.com