[MintHillFarm]

I have used snap draw reins like that and the set up worked well at the time.

The snap went behind the poll and kept my horse from rooting me out of the saddle in the ends of the ring. They lifted his nose and head rather than him getting rolled over and behind the verticle.

And it was not used alone as a single rein...That I have never seen. There was a snaffle rein and the draw rein was in additon.

That being said, it was used along with trainer supervision and for only a short time.

I am not really a fan of draw reins though and have not used them in many years...

[emmrodge]

i think its called a cross check. draw reins go from your hands, out to in through the bit, then cross over the neck and hooked on to the saddle d rings. it works better if you have a breast plate and you can feed the draw reins through the breast plate rings before clipping them to the saddle d

[BLBGP]

Can I ask a silly question? Why ask this here? Why not ask "Hey [trainer name], I'm not familiar with reverse draw reins. What are they and how do you think they will help my horse with this issue?"

[SendenHorse]

try putting a deep/BTV horse in a shoulder in or shoulder fore and riding lots of transitions with some circles thrown in.

...And I mean GOOD transitions, with the horse stepping under and connected to the bit and STRAIGHT (relative to the exercize, no falling in and out).

Doesn't matter why the horse is low in the first place, this exercize usually works in one ride for me.

I have found a thick bean snaffle the best for these kinds of horses (I have one). They need something they can trust and "push into" not back off of.

Sometimes BTV is a strength issue and they grow out of it with more work.

Try a very elastic and giving hand! Give and give some more!

[findeight]

Can I ask a silly question? Why ask this here? Why not ask "Hey [trainer name], I'm not familiar with reverse draw reins. What are they and how do you think they will help my horse with this issue?"

You know, that's the smartest thing anybody on here, self included, has said.

Ask them what and why and then, if you don't understand? Come here and ask. And remember, the trainer is just somebody calling themselves a trainer. They may be right and know what they are doing based on years of experience. Or they may be wrong. Or they may even be nuts.

Ask.

[kmwines01]

Just trying to think out the mechanics for when people say they use them like a gag...

Where do you run them from and to?

When you put pressure on your reins do you still get that lifting action of the bit on the corners of the mouth? Or just poll pressure and bit moves backward in the mouth?

Maybe I'm just not picturing it right but it seems like the pull on the bit would be the same as regular draw reins just with poll pressure..

[melmda]

You know, that's the smartest thing anybody on here, self included, has said.

Ask them what and why and then, if you don't understand? Come here and ask. And remember, the trainer is just somebody calling themselves a trainer. They may be right and know what they are doing based on years of experience. Or they may be wrong. Or they may even be nuts.

Ask.

I did ask my trainer. We were having a whole conversation on things to try for my horse. I was at work (obviously not working) and wanted to see what other people thought of it because it was something new I had never heard of. It is interesting reading opinions and what people have done for their horses. I did my homework and picked my trainer for a reason and I trust her but I also like reading what other people are doing. Forums are for sharing and brainstorming...helping your learning process, next time I will rephrase my questions!

[Renae]

kmwines- you run a long rein or a piece of rope/cord from your hand through the bit and over the poll. This results in a rein that pulls the bit up in the mouth while applying pressure to the poll. It is not attached to the saddle or girth like a draw rein.

The traditional use for a gag rein would be for a horse that drops/ducks and gets bully or bolts. If the horse drops/ducks and loses go forward or gets rubber necking I would not use any sort of gag.

[naturalequus]

try putting a deep/BTV horse in a shoulder in or shoulder fore and riding lots of transitions with some circles thrown in.

...And I mean GOOD transitions, with the horse stepping under and connected to the bit and STRAIGHT (relative to the exercize, no falling in and out).

This, too.

[MintHillFarm]

How you put them on is:

Place the buckle end near the pommel. Each snap end goes thru the side of the bit inwards; then bring the draw rein snaps up on either side of the horse's head and snap together at the poll...

[Renae]

How you put them on is:

Place the buckle end near the pommel. Each snap end goes thru the side of the bit inwards; then bring the draw rein snaps up on either side of the horse's head and snap together at the poll...

I would not snap the snaps together over the poll, to me that creates nasty pressure points and unnecessary harshness. I would rather put the center of the reins, the buckle end, over the poll and deal with the snaps on my end.

[SmartAlex]

Or get yourself a training headstall with side check rings. You run the reins through the bit and fasten the ends up to the the side check rings. I do this with my long lines sometimes when I need to steady the rein action on the bit, but don't want the increased strength of a regular draw.

[leahandpie]

Instead of all the gadgets, you can just use a rein aid to "bump" her up. As she ducks, lift up both hands quickly and then immediately put your leg on. This isn't a slow lift of the hands, but rather a quick UP! Be sure not to pull, but lift up and slightly forward QUICK! It takes a bit of practice to get the timing down, but it works.

Praise and ride forward when she lifts her head, even above the bit.

Solving a problem created with gadgets is completely backwards to me. I'm totally shocked at how many people are offering insight about riding a horse like this in draw reins or a gag bit.

[SmartAlex]

I'm totally shocked at how many people are offering insight about riding a horse like this in draw reins or a gag bit.

Not a single poster suggested the OPs horse's issue would be improved by using them, nor suggested she try.

[findeight]

If one reads the posts here, one would see that almost all are wondering why the new trainer is suggesting starting with this approach. Unless the horse is pretty confirmed at it, which we don't know.

There have been some examples given of older horses that were totally screwed up by others, including having learned to bull down after landing a fence and drag the rider out of the tack. PROPERLY used when backed up by solid and correct training? Some of these things can help undo some rotten, learned habits when used on a temporary basis ina consistent program stressing basics.

In a perfect world all horses we get would be perfect and go around in a fat snaffle. But we don't live there.

[MintHillFarm]

I would not snap the snaps together over the poll, to me that creates nasty pressure points and unnecessary harshness. I would rather put the center of the reins, the buckle end, over the poll and deal with the snaps on my end.

Yes, for sure you could do it that way. Makes sense...

[louisem]

Sorry,I pop in and out of this forum every so often and this subject caught my eye.
For any horse behind the bridle,or one who 'curls up' I use a simpler way to get him to stretch.
Ride in a soft bit. Take an extra pair of reins and join the billets together making a large ring. Hang it round your horses neck,like a neckstrap. Ride with the normal reins and the 'neckstrap' reins like you would a double bridle,but take more contact on the 'neck' rein. You would be surprised how easily your horse responds to the 'neck' rein only. He should stretch down to it. Then you can take up your contact normally....
Hope it helps!

[melmda]

I enjoy reading what everyone has to say about the reverse draw reins. Thank you for the advice, ideas, and comments. Luckily my horse is young and had good training (minus the too much draw rein, but didn't go on for long, thank goodness). I wanted to update the things I have tried in the past week and seem to be working. Working with my trainer we have discussed lots of things. So we obviously started with the least evasive first. She goes in a plain D-snaffle. I put a flash on her bridle and everytime she curled up I gave more, ask for more forward, and lifted my hands. She has responded to this well and is curling much less. I also didn't use the standing martingale. She wants to please her rider so I think lots of pats & good girl have helped her understand. So far so good no "gimmicks" really needed. I have been the route of having to fix bad training with my other horse so I am very cautious with my girl since she was a fresh slate!