Bitting a halter

In Switzerland, Austria and Germany is/was the use of halters with bits common for work harness. A little metal piece in shape of a “T” is with a short chain atached to bit. It’s way easier and faster, specially if you really work with horses. Since the hitch is not bigger then a team, there is no reason to use blinders…

I have a combination halter/bridle that I have used for riding before. It is similar to the photo below. My horse doesn’t think she is working unless she has blinders on, and I haven’t felt like curing her of this as yet so this combo simply collects dust now. It is indeed very very handy for tying. Taking the bit in and out (at least with this design) is not as easy as it might first appear. It looks like you can attach one clip, swing the bit through the mouth and then attach the other clip. My horse (at least) detests this and insists the bit must be put in strait. It takes a little practice to be able to aim the bit into the mouth while holding onto both clips to attach the bit holders to the headpiece. I hook the ring ends over my pinkies while holding onto the clips with my thumbs and pionter fingers. That allows me to gently and precisely place the bit without having to regrab the clip ends. After I get the bit in, I let the bit holder straps (name?) slide between my pinkies and ring fingers while moving my hands up to clip in the straps. It sounds more complicated than it is… Once I got bit placement down, the setup was pretty slick.