{"id":5832,"date":"2015-05-31T12:06:05","date_gmt":"2015-05-31T02:06:05","guid":{"rendered":"\/?p=5832"},"modified":"2025-08-01T18:33:34","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T08:33:34","slug":"bitless-bridles-and-lipstick-foam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/naturalhorseworld.com\/stage\/bitless-bridles-and-lipstick-foam\/","title":{"rendered":"Bitless Bridles and ‘Lipstick Foam’"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Yvonne Welz<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Just
Just for comparison, here is a photo of my mare Belle in a regular snaffle bit last year, looking quite foamy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Does the bit cause foaming? Maybe not…
\nIt has long been assumed that a horse chewed and salivated because there was\u00a0a foreign object (a metal bit) in its mouth. And right now, I’m not here to\u00a0debate whether bits should or should not be used on horses. I just want to\u00a0talk about the foaming.
\nIt is important to note that I’m talking about light foaming, what classical\u00a0riders call ‘lipstick foam’. NOT the buckets of drool that sometimes show up\u00a0in modern competition photos, but the light froth that coats the edge of the\u00a0lips. For dressage riders, this is something desired, coveted, and admired.
\nWhy? Because it means (as we’ve been taught) that the horse is working\u00a0correctly from behind ‘into’ the bit. And so, there was always a bit\u00a0involved…
\nI began to ride exclusively bitless in December 2013, and I rode my\u00a0horse exactly the same way I had previously ridden her sans the bit. And\u00a0when I had her going really well, through her back and working well off her\u00a0hindquarters, I would look down… and see the same foamy mouth!<\/p>\n

\"February
February 2014:
Here I tried her out in the Dr. Cook Bitless Bridle, and the results were\u00a0the same: when she was working well from behind, she was foaming in her mouth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Someone suggested this might be an after-effect of using a bit, and that it\u00a0would go away in time. As the photos show, it did not. As I explored the\u00a0reasons behind this physiological side-effect, I came across an extensive
\nexplanation for the biomechanics of chewing in Dr. Gerd Heuschmann\u00b9s book ‘Balancing Act’.<\/p>\n

He explains that when the back is relaxed, the activation\u00a0of the lower muscle chain results in a chewing mouth. The lower muscle\u00a0chain, including the abdominal muscles, are what permits the horse to lift\u00a0its back and become ’round’.
\nDr. Heuschmann goes on to explain exactly why this happens, bit or no bit:\u00a0“A back that is working well allows the antagonists (inner lumbar and\u00a0abdominal muscles) to work rhythmically. This lower muscle chain activates\u00a0the temporomandibular joint and the horse begins to chew. This effect is the\u00a0same regardless of whether the horse wears a bitless or a\u00a0conventionally-bitted bridle, which allows the lower jaw to move when the\u00a0reins are taken up. When the mouth is active, there is always suppleness of\u00a0the poll, which is critical to the quality of the contact.”<\/p>\n

\"June
June 2014:
After a particularly good workout, there is even blobs of foam. Keep in\u00a0mind, hacking around won’t produce this. It is engagement: using the\u00a0hindquarters and channeling the energy through.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And chewing results in lipstick foam… Keep in mind, this will only happen\u00a0when a horse has a relaxed back, and the lower muscle chain is activated.
\n‘Dressage’ people call this ‘putting the horse on the bit’. Uh, I think it\u00a0really needs a new name!<\/p>\n

All photos this page: \u00a9The Horse’s Hoof\u00a0–\u00a0news for barefoot and better horse care.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Yvonne Welz Does the bit cause foaming? Maybe not… It has long been assumed that a horse chewed and salivated because there was\u00a0a foreign object (a metal bit) in its mouth. And right now, I’m not here to\u00a0debate whether bits should or should not be used on horses. I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5835,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_thinkrank_schema_form_data":"","_thinkrank_selected_schema_type":"","_thinkrank_additional_schemas":"","_thinkrank_canonical_url":"","_thinkrank_og_title":"","_thinkrank_og_description":"","_thinkrank_og_image":"","_thinkrank_twitter_title":"","_thinkrank_twitter_description":"","_thinkrank_twitter_image":"","_thinkrank_imported_from":"yoast","_thinkrank_focus_keywords":["Bitless Bridles and lip foam"],"_thinkrank_focus_keyword":"Bitless Bridles and lip 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