Bitless & Natural Equestrian Centre

27/08/2024

⚠️Strong words coming… suck it up Equine World.

Vets, farriers, barefoot trimmers, and even research scientists have been misled for too long - and are therefore misleading others.

Rotation of P3 (coffin bone) is ALWAYS human error - every single time.

There's no such thing as P3 "rotating" or "sinking" within the hoof capsule. NO SUCH THING.

Typical vet statement 👉“You must box rest your horse or P3 will come through the sole.”

RUBBISH. If you (vet) had been taught correct hoof care you’d see how ridiculous that statement was.

More utter poppy c**k 👉 “A heart bar shoe can support the frog and P3 to prevent it from sinking” - this is a myth.

It ‘supports’ nothing. Absolutely NOTHING.

Stop nailing (or glueing) them onto already compromised hoof capsules (that you or your colleague screwed up in the first instance).

Equine world irony 👉 Hang on, how about a clog or two, rockering it would be even better - how about resecting the hoof wall, yeah, great that’ll fix it - set the shoe back - increase break over - stop lever forces (everyone ignore the heels).

Sigh. 😔

Every single time you see P3 in the wrong positon in the hoof capsule - it’s INCORRECT TRIMMING that caused it.

You see the red lines on this x-ray?

That’s where the hoof capsule should be.

All that material left at the heel and removed at the toe? Your equine ‘pros’ did that.

Millions of dollars spent on laminitis research and they haven’t even spotted the most simplest of causes.

Vets, farriers, barefoot trimmers - they’re all doing it.

It’s not laminitis - it never was - p3 rotation is human error.

You, the horse owners, are being duped to believe that X-rays like this are a dreadful act of cruel nature.

That the laminae got inflamed, fell apart and left P3 dangling about in the hoof capsule, rotating and sinking at will.

That’s not true.

P3 got like this because humans caused it. The HUMAN HAND with their rasps and nippers, and mythical ideas.

Chopping off toes endlessly, thinning soles, disorienting hoof capsules - this is all improper unnatural hoof care.

HM have a saying 👉 “Do unnatural things, and expect unnatural things to happen”.

Poor P3 - poor, poor P3. The most humungous great big RED HERRING. Forget P3. Look at the HOOF CAPSULE.

P3 is busy doing nothing inside that hoof capsule, minding its own business just waiting for someone who knows how to read a hoof capsule to keep it in balance.

Vet schools, you should hang your heads in shame for failing to teach your students even the most basic principles of hoof care. You know you don’t - we know you don’t - and this is a worldwide problem.

Typical vet statement (with no prior knowledge of hoof care): “remove more toe”

LOOK AT THE X-RAY - that’s where your “remove more toe” got this poor pony.

You should have said “get those heels down, leave that poor toe alone, stop thinning the sole!”

Farrier and barefoot schools, stop listening to bogus science and stop teaching your students to chop off toes.

Every time you do that, you lose the balance point, take off too much sole, cause growth rates to go into chaos, leave too much heel, and rotate P3.

Then you X-ray and shout - L-A-M-I-N-I-T-I-S

STOP IT NOW.

This isn’t just misguided - it’s maiming, laming, and killing horses.

It’s embarrassing, it’s wrong, and it has to end. We are SO DAMN tired of seeing this happen, and having to correct it.

And sometimes we’re just too bloody late.

Equine world you should be saying ‘My Bad’ 😑



HM.

p.s. if your horse is being diagnosed with rotation, get into our rehab group now and learn how to fix it before it’s too late: The Phoenix Way: Path 2 Hoof Health

p.p.s. these videos on this YouTube channel are TOTALLY FREE - educate yourself: Lindsay Setchell Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/

27/08/2024

Welcome to a young unwanted female mule (called a molly) who joined our herd yesterday 💖🥰

19/08/2024

19/08/2024

Bitless all the way... Bits cause discomfort, pain & confusion https://bitless-equestrian.co.uk/why-horses-hate-the-bit/

17/08/2024

Please help to support this rescue in his twilight years

11/08/2024

We are gradually moving products from our Animal Self-Healing website to our Bitless & Natural Equestrian online shop - very best quality aromatic waters, tinctures & herbs
https://bitless-equestrian.co.uk/product-category/horse-health-feeds/natural-remedies/

11/08/2024

Discount on bitless bridles!

New quality padded leather cross-under (Cook style) bitless bridles and occasionally a used original Dr Cook bitless bridle

05/08/2024

05/08/2024

Reducing the chemicals given to your pet (dog, cat, horse - all animals) https://bitless-equestrian.co.uk/product/four-seasons-anti-parasitic-herbal-homeopathic/

01/08/2024

01/08/2024

OPEN LETTER to the FEI
Date: 16/04/2024 09:13 BST
Subject: Bit-Free Bridles in FEI Competition

Dear Göran

Urgent Repair request

Thank you for your email of the 8th of April. Our initial thoughts are that we are very disappointed by your brief communication, we first raised the matter of the impact on horse welfare relating to bit-induced mouth pain to the

FEI’s Equine Ethics and Wellbeing Commission (EEWC) in September 2022, and then,
We wrote again to Catrin Norinder on the 10th of March 2023 who informed us that the matter would be discussed in a meeting, with yourself, Roly Owers of WHW, and Olivia Robinson.
We wrote to you, Goran, with further evidence on the 27th of March 2023.
We wrote to you again on the 16th of February this year and you responded with this comment
‘Please be informed that equipment and tack is now managed by the FEI Equipment Expert Group. Your message has been forwarded to the group and they will come back to you’.

We received no such response from the EEG’
Therefore, we wrote to you on the 22nd of March, asking for an update and supplying further evidence and information
We wrote again on the 4th of April asking for a response to our earlier communications.

At no time were we advised to take this matter through a National Federation, Technical committee or a Stakeholder with an MoU, certainly not by Gonçalo Paixão as you seem to infer.

We understood that welfare was a priority for the FEI and as the governing body that the FEI would act according to your policy and rules concerning horse welfare.

Why has it taken over a year for the FEI to suggest that we should follow a technical route for rule change?

This is at odds with the communication on the 23/06/2023 from Gonçalo Paixão who wrote:

"Thank you for this information and input, we are currently reviewing and working on the current sets of rules on tack and equipment for the different disciplines, aiming at harmonizing the regulations where possible, while assessing its implication on matters such as welfare, level playing field and security, this includes the rules on the use of bits and bitless bridles. The data and information you have provided will be taken into account in this process. Any proposed changes will then go through the regular consultation and approval processes that will allow for further feedback from the stakeholders."

I should like to raise the following items with you for clarification by the veterinary or legal teams of the FEI.

Firstly that World Bitless Association has raised the issue of bit-induced mouth pain / injury as a serious welfare risk and we have supplied unequivocal evidence of the impact on the health of the horse. Our request for the FEI to review, is based on urgent welfare grounds – we do not consider or raise this request as a ‘technical’ matter.

In the link you have provided relating to the FEI GA ‘rules-revision-process-new’ the rules clearly state that:-

'The other set of FEI Sport Rules, as mentioned in the Policy, can only be modified in the following cases:

1. Urgent repairs, i.e., changes in the Rules that cannot await because of their impact on the welfare of the Horses or the safety of the Athletes.'

So that we can understand exactly how this process works, are the FEI stating that Urgent repairs can ONLY be referred by National Federations or by stakeholders with an MoU?

We draw your attention once again to the matter of the clipping of vibrissae, we understand that the recommendation for the ban on clipping was generated by the FEI veterinary department and not by a rule request by a National Federation?
Can you please urgently confirm the facts surrounding this rule change?
The impact on the health and welfare of the horse from bit-induced mouth pain/injury has far more evidence to support the scientific assertions that bit-free bridles should be an option offered to every horse, in all sporting disciplines.

Please see Jennifer Hall, BVSc, MRCVS, Chair of the FEI Veterinary Committee’s quote and comments below, in equestrian media ‘The Horse’ concerning the rule implemented on welfare grounds

“An integral part of the responsible use of horses in sport is for every rule to be designed with the express purpose of raising the standard of horse welfare around the world,”

“The ban on the trimming of equine sensory hairs, which will be implemented from July 1, 2021, does just this, as this practice was purely for cosmetic purposes and overlooked the important role that these hairs play in a horse’s sensory ability.”
said Jennifer Hall.

The FEI sought to “align its regulations with those of National Federations (Germany, Switzerland, France) which had already banned this practice,” said Hall.

“We were pleased with the support the rule received through the Rules Revision process in the lead up to the November vote at the FEI Online General Assembly,” she told The Horse.

The calls for change to allow bit-free continue unabated, only last week, FEI 5* senior Judge and Veterinarian, Hans-Christian Matthiesen, told equestrian media that he wants to see long overdue welfare changes in traditional equestrian sport, and that he believes,

“It should be completely voluntary what equipment the horse wears when at a competition.”
“If you want to use a snaffle, double bridle, or ride bitless, you should be able to. Even if you want to ride a dressage class in a saddle pad, that should be fine.”

It feels that the WBA is being stonewalled by the FEI welfare committee, who it seems, is both reluctant to acknowledge the evidence, or engage with a legitimate horse welfare charity.

We hope that you will reconsider this request as a matter of urgency, we believe it is a welfare issue that cannot wait.

May we ask formally today, that the FEI recommends to the National Federations and its stakeholders a change to the rules on welfare grounds, (to allow bit-free bridles in all disciplines) that Bit-induced mouth pain/injury has a significant impact on horse welfare, based on the highest levels of expert evidence submitted.

If you do not accept that the evidence supplied by the WBA is a welfare issue, please can you provide counter evidence to support your inaction on this matter.

Lastly, may I refer to the message from FEI President Ingmar De Vos concerning horse welfare

” Horse Welfare is at the core of everything the FEI does and stands for”

From the FEI website this quote: –

‘The FEI also recognises that ensuring the welfare of competition horses requires regular review, analysis and the ability to react quickly to any changes to the status quo.‘

Kind regards

Johanna

Johanna Richardson
Operations Manager
World Bitless Association






Photo credit Hanna Ryles

12/07/2024

10% off - all crossover bitless bridles...Summer has been a washout so far this year, cheer up & enjoy 10% discount on all crossover bitless bridles!

New quality padded leather cross-under (Cook style) bitless bridles and occasionally a used original Dr Cook bitless bridle

04/06/2024

8 years and it still goes on.... yet another example of pure abuse of horses that goes unchallenged - what hypocrisy, two hearts indeed; the horse is the only one with a heart and that is severely broken

http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0154179www.horsetrainingcourse.com

04/06/2024

Wise words from Dr Andrew McLean, it's not rocket science, but when will riders / trainers actually understand?

In horse training, the greatest amount of tension arises from the blocking effects of rein(s) and leg(s) at the same time. Animals simply can't accelerate and decelerate simultaneously so the horse learns that aids are only "aids" when they occur from pressures above the tight-pressured contact. Such a training regime means that sharp rowel spurs and double bridles with crank-up nosebands become mandatory items of training, yet commonsense would dictate that riders at the higher levels should demonstrate more finesse and less force.

When the horse is undergoing simultaneous rein and leg pressures, the horse may perceive one pressure as more salient than the other, which is known as overshadowing. Usually, it's the mouth that hurts, more especially with curb bits that work on a lever-action to squash the lower jaw of the horse and overshadow the "go" aids. Curb bits should be phased out and extra points given to those who can train horses right up to Grand Prix in a simple snaffle or even a bitless bridle. When the mouth response overshadows the "go" response from the rider's legs, the rider typically responds by driving the horse forward with strong spurs and thus emerges a modern training doctrine: ride your horse forward, forward, forward to fix all your problems – this practise should be abandoned for the sake of the horse's welfare.

15/05/2024

https://chng.it/vLRQWYFhHG

Katie's law (Enforce Highway Code Section 215 as Law for Safer Horse-Riding)

29/04/2024

Spring Grass - is EquiNectar useful for my Horse?
In the context of managing spring fever, EquiNectar can be a valuable addition to your horse's diet. By providing essential digestive enzymes, EquiNectar supports the efficient breakdown of starches and fructans in the small intestine. This reduces the likelihood of undigested sugars reaching the hindgut and negatively impacting the gut microbiome.

Moreover, EquiNectar's role in optimising the hindgut microbiome can contribute to overall digestive health, potentially mitigating some of the dietary challenges associated with the consumption of lush spring grass. https://bitless-equestrian.co.uk/product/equinectar-for-a-healthy-horse-hindgut/

26/04/2024

https://bitless-equestrian.co.uk/bitless-equestrian-livery/research-into-horses-stabled-24-7/

Visit the post for more.

26/04/2024

The grass is growing at last, but now some of our horses need restricted grazing... fleece protector now available for Ultimate grazing muzzle.
Had you thought of clipping your good-doer (horse or pony) to help manage weight gain? We have done it with a Section A and it is working well; hugely cuts down on the need for a grazing muzzle...

Woollen Fleece Chin Cover provides soft cushioning to the back of the Ultimate grazing muzzle and attaches easily to it One size fits all the Ultimate muzzles, can be trimmed to fit as necessary Pr…

26/04/2024

https://bitless-equestrian.co.uk/product/fleece-protection-for-ultimate-grazing-muzzle/ The grass is growing at last, but now some of our horses need a grazing muzzle... fleece protector now available for Ultimate grazing muzzle

Woollen Fleece Chin Cover provides soft cushioning to the back of the Ultimate grazing muzzle and attaches easily to it One size fits all the Ultimate muzzles, can be trimmed to fit as necessary Pr…

14/04/2024

🐎🐎🐎THE GRAND NATIONAL 2024🐎🐎🐎

The Grand National Meeting 2024 starts today, the 11th April 2024. It's one of the biggest race meetings in the world. In 2023 £150million was bet on the Grand National itself, with £500million across the whole of the 3-day meeting (Thursday, Friday and Saturday).

In 2013, Dr Jane Williams and I along with one of Jane’s students and Dr Tim Parkin and Dr Hayley Randle, published a paper entitled “The Grand National: a review of factors associated with non-completion and horse-falls, 1990 to 2012” in the journal of Comparative Exercise Physiology. In this paper we identified:

1. The probability of a horse falling in the race was 1 in 4.
2. The first fence, Becher's Brook and drop fences increased the risk of falling compared to plain fences.
3. Good-soft going increased the number of horses that completed the race and reduced the number of fallers suggesting this is the optimal ground condition for the race.
4. Races run at a faster than average speed increased the risk of horses not completing and falling.
5. Inexperienced horses and jockeys show a greater risk of not completing and falling.

Unfortunately, when we look at deaths of horses associated with the Grand National meeting as a whole, since 2000 there have been 63 horses deaths, 16 of these in the Grand National itself. And sadly there isn’t really any evidence that the number of horse deaths are declining. There was a period from 2013 to 2018 inclusive when there were no Grand National deaths and two years (2014 and 2017) with no deaths at the whole of the 3-day meeting. But in the past 4 runnings (5 years as there was no meeting in 2020 due to COVID), between 2 and 4 horses have died each year at the Grand National Meeting and at least one horse has did in each running of the Grand National.

We love horses and we have no agenda to stop horse racing; we just feel more needs to be done to reduce the number of horse injuries and fatalities.

WARNING - Emotive subject! Debate - fine. Questions - Fine! However, rudeness, aggression, insults etc will not be tolerated. Thank you.

Data on horse deaths: https://www.animalaid.org.uk/the-issues/our-campaigns/horse-racing/ban-the-grand-national/the-grand-national-meetings-horse-deaths/

Williams, J. M., Marlin, D., Langley, N., Parkin, T., & Randle, H. (2013). The Grand National: a review of factors associated with non-completion and horse-falls, 1990 to 2012. Comparative Exercise Physiology, 9(3-4), 131-146. https://doi.org/10.3920/CEP13013

14/04/2024

En forskargrupp, ledd av vår svenska Elke Hartmann och med andra välkända forskare inom hästvälfärd och etologi, som Janne Winter Christensen och Natalie Waran, har beviljats nära 3 miljoner kronor för ett tvåårigt forskningsprojekt om bett och munhälsa hos hästar. Det är ett mycket ambitiöst projekt som består av tre delar:

1) Ridskolors val av bett jämfört med bettlöst och hur de arbetar med detta i sin undervisning, samt hur ridskolehästar och -elever upplever en övergång från bett till bettlöst.

2) Hur användning av kandar påverkar tygelspänning, konfliktbeteenden och rörelsemönster hos dressyrhästar på hög nivå (Grand Prix), samt ryttarnas perspektiv på användning av kandar och inställning till bettlösa träns.

3) Hur vanligt munskador är hos svenska hästar som deltar i dressyr- eller working equitation (WE) tävlingar, samt vilken typ av utrustning hästen rids med hemma och ryttarens inställning till och erfarenheter av användning av bett och bettlösa träns. Dessutom kommer konfliktbeteenden att dokumenteras.

Att Vetenskapsrådet beviljar den här typen av forskning är oerhört glädjande! Bollen är redan i rullning kring en attitydförändring till bettlösa alternativ i Sverige, men i internationella sammanhang skulle debatten må bra av lite konkreta forskningsresultat (även om den som finns tyvärr hittills har ignorerats av FEI).

Vad hoppas du på att studien kommer att bidra till? Finns det andra frågeställningar inom hästvälfärd som du skulle önska att det forskades på? Kommentera gärna i tråden!

Läs mer om studien här: https://www.vr.se/swecris #/project/2023-00474_Formas

12/04/2024

Bit free riding - is a topic that can inflame debate, which I find curious. My introduction to bit free riding was when I purchased a young Arab mare who had all sorts of issues with the bit. She fussed with it, chomped on it and generally did her best to tell me she hated it. I wish I could say I noticed, I didn't. But lucky for us both, my tweenie daughter spoke up and said "Mum, I think she just really hates the bit." Seed planted, we spent a day or so testing out how she went bit free - it was like magic. A sensitive little horse, she was just as responsive to a head collar with reins (I didn't have a proper bit free bridle) as she was to the bit, plus she wasn't distracted by a bit. This is a photo of her in her blue head collar that I still ride her in occasionally, even now.
This was one of many seeds that set me on the path to researching ridden horse welfare. And this week I found out my research comparing bit free and bitted riding was the second most downloaded paper for the journal, Applied Animal Behaviour Science in 2023 - here's the link to the journal highlights for 2023: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2023.106148
We found horses ridden bit free displayed fewer signs of poor welfare while ridden, had more satisfied riders and there was no difference in rider perceived control of the horse. Here's a link to the paper: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2023.105855
Previous research has shown horses find bits aversive (they don't like them, they find them unpleasant). Of course, we know horses habituate to the bit, but that's a bit like us habituating to a pair of uncomfortable shoes - we get through the day, but we can't wait to take them off!
Its possible some horses are not able to be ridden bit free, but research suggests most horses with good welfare, and by that I mean a healthy mental state - so that means the horse is not stressed, fearful, in pain or any other negative mental state - can be taught to be ridden bit free.

12/04/2024

Looking for livery in Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

We have yards in Wales offering all types of livery. From natural living at ABRS+ approved Bitless & Natural Equestrian Centre, full livery with year round turnout at Ty Wyth Newydd Stables , DIY livery in the Black Mountains at Tregoyd Mountain Riders/Cadarn Bunkhouse , track/ equi-central style livery at Field and Forest Track Livery , or even to a BYO horse riding holiday at Pengraigwen Stables and livery ... and many more!

Start your search for your new yard at www.liverylist.co.uk

01/04/2024

Highly recommend Emma and her team, happy easter

01/04/2024

Charity Auction, please support Equine Market Watch Sanctuaries (UK)

17/03/2024

For me, 'the whole sport' needs tearing down 😡

British dressage Olympian Laura Tomlinson shares her views on why we need to be more compassionate online as abuse of top riders is rife