Sore Mouths We are constantly asked for advice on how to help a horse with a sore mouth. There are many reasons why horses get sore mouths but more often than not it is down to the bit. Firstly, it is important that the bit fits correctly, too small and it will pinch, too large and it will slide around both causing sores by friction. If the bit isnt suitable and you have to drag and pull the horse around to stop or steer then this will cause mouth problems. Change the bit for a bit that give you more control. Certain materials can cause a sore mouth. Quite often the nylon or plastic bits can cause rubbing as the material can catch on the soft areas of the skin inside the lips as it does not slide as easily as a metal bit. It also may be that the horse has an allergic reaction to certain materials that the bit is made of, so experiment with different bits. Horses that have pink or very sensitive skin may be better with a fixed cheek bit rather than a loose ring which has less movement. Swap to an eggbutt, full cheek or Dee ring and see if that helps. Some people have had success using a Micklem Bridle or a hackamore to help with the rubbing. Obviously prevention is better than cure so try to protect your horses mouth by using products such as Bit Butter, Mouth Butter, Glymol Astringent, Vaseline, Sudocreme, before you work you horse rubbing it around the corner of the lips and the side of the mouth where the bit sits. The Acavallo Gel bit guards are great as they wrop around the actual mouthpiece and then sits in the corner of the mouth to protect the inside of the lips. Haemarroid cream is also something which is worth trying on sore lips as it helps to harden the skin. Once the lips are split or sore it is essential to let them completely heal before riding again, this could easily take up to two weeks. If any one has any tried and tested ways of helping or solving this problem please share it with us.
Posted on: Fri, 24 Oct 2014 16:06:23 +0000
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