# QUESTION- Do I need a grackle?



## carly14xo (Apr 7, 2015)

when i'm jumping my mare she does get a bit excited towards a fence and sometimes can go full pelt then suddenly stop but mainly the arena floor thats the problem for that but anyway i have noticed as im going round her bottom lip is always back and her mouth slightly open and i feel that sometimes im not in control and im just frustrating her even more. i'm not very strong in my left wrist due to a previous injury/break 

is my horse crossing her jaw or not?

shall i get a grackle?


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

Hard to say without seeing her in action but trying a Grackle (aka Figure 8 noseband) won't hurt anything - other than your bank account if it doesn't make any difference
Maybe someone would loan you one or you could buy a used one?


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

It may be how she's dealing with stress if not confident in the footing. Years ago in Wpg., to save money, dirt was dumped on top of ice for the indoor rodeo. After the first day the bulls and horses would hardly buck. The barrel horses slowed right down. This is a quote from another web site, not my words but I'm inclined to agree. "I consider most pieces of tack other than a simple bridle with a comfortable bit to be shortcuts or compensations for incomplete or improper training. If a horse opens its mouth, it does so because it was not taught to respond correctly, or is trying to evade rough hands. If a rider needs to tie a horse's mouth closed or tie its head down, something is wrong with the rider, the horse's training, or the tack. Please note, I did NOT say that anything is wrong with the horse! It is not the horse's fault if it was not given correct training in order to respond correctly. When people start adding tack to force the horse to comply with riding that it is not properly prepared for OR just plain bad riding, it's another case of blaming the victim."


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

^^I don't disagree but when a horse develops a habit like opening its mouth the evade the bit then often the easiest way to break the habit is to stop them doing it 
One of the reasons many trainers use a grackle/flash/drop on a young horse is to stop them ever starting the habit - as in 'prevention is better than cure'
Obviously correct preparation for accepting the bit and ruling out things like dental problems and rider error first is the way to go but so often we buy horses that have existing issues that we then have to deal with


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## carly14xo (Apr 7, 2015)

i totally agree with everything both of you have said but she doesn't do it a lot only when she's getting overly excited like jumping etc and im saying no calm down she hates being told what to do, im not very strong with my hands so she does take off sometimes, any other kind of flat work i let her have quite a long rein but was thinking of getting a grackle just for cross country or jumping cause i dont want her to start crossing her jaw more often and me having to hurt her mouth because she wont stop and she's like it even when she in a really good arena

she accepts the bit lovely when doing flatwork its just when she wants to 'go'


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## Saskia (Aug 26, 2009)

When I was 12 my parents bought me a reasonably educated showjumping horse for me to learn on. 

He was great in the way that I learned so much, progressed a lot, won and place a lot and all in all it was good. However he was 16.1hh and strong. I learned to control him in the arena and out but when we went out cross country and at a fast canter he'd cross his jaw and run and I couldn't stop him, he'd just run and run until there was nowhere left to go, it was like something switched in his brain and he was off. He had raced so I think that had something to do with it. We got a grackle and it worked wonders in the way that he couldn't just grab and run but it didn't take away his urge and I had to learn to control that. It helped me control him before he got to that point, and take control before he ran. 

It can help, and yes it covers gaps in training but sometimes, especially with a horse in their teens, the gaps are so learned it's hard to fix. 

However it's not a magic fix all. It doesn't stop a horse being strong or unresponsive, it merely encourages them not to cross their jaw or open it too much. 

As far as your horse going full pelt and suddenly stopping - that sounds like simple disobedience and something that needs to be corrected. I also tend to feel that if these behaviours are present in an arena they are something you've got to work on before working on jumping. You say your horse hates being told what to do - well that's a training issue and taking shortcuts isn't really the best way. 

As I got older and stronger we could ride without it a lot. I think as a kid just having it there gave me some confidence, like I had something more on my side. Try it, but try not to rely on it.


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## BloodBay0103 (Jan 2, 2015)

She came to greet me in the pasture








When I was scratching itchy places, she decided it felt good enough to groom Pearl. Not the first time this has happened.








Watching the curious critters, Iggy-Britches the cow-cat and Snooki-wookie the she-wok (I'm a little creative), and Sweetie the... Sweetie.








Those bald spots on her face are in various places on her body. They happen every year around this time and it's been happening since she was a baby, so we're going with allergies. They're harmless, only itchy, and we're thinking of asking the vet if there's anything we can get for her to take care of it.


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## carly14xo (Apr 7, 2015)

Saskia said:


> When I was 12 my parents bought me a reasonably educated showjumping horse for me to learn on.
> 
> He was great in the way that I learned so much, progressed a lot, won and place a lot and all in all it was good. However he was 16.1hh and strong. I learned to control him in the arena and out but when we went out cross country and at a fast canter he'd cross his jaw and run and I couldn't stop him, he'd just run and run until there was nowhere left to go, it was like something switched in his brain and he was off. He had raced so I think that had something to do with it. We got a grackle and it worked wonders in the way that he couldn't just grab and run but it didn't take away his urge and I had to learn to control that. It helped me control him before he got to that point, and take control before he ran.
> 
> ...


thanks for the advice  she loves jumping when in a good arena but ours isnt very good which is why she stops but by she doesnt like being told what to do i mean that if i ask for something she doesnt want to do like stand still she'll just wont listen she doesn't do anything really bad, schooling she absolutely golden and same for jumping until she gets tired she wont do anything when she's tired. Mainly was going to use the grackle for jumping and cross country because she gets very excited and just doesn't listen to me what so ever like i'll try so hard to slow her down but she just opens her mouth wider and wider to ignore it, she is 11 so still time to fix it before it becomes a bigger problem but totally agree with not relying on it but if she doesn't like it i'll take it off straight away, dont want to force her into a piece of leather forcing her to behave but it does lower my confidence with her a little bit when i dont feel im in control because she's a 16.1hh irish sports and im only 5ft 6 and im not the strongest as i've been out of jumping for a year but if the grackle does work and she starts letting me take control i'll eventually take it off for jumping, probably keep it on for xc cause she loves it and just goes all out for it bless her :3


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## CandyCanes (Jul 1, 2013)

BloodBay0103 said:


> She came to greet me in the pasture
> View attachment 624233
> 
> 
> ...


 
Right thread???


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