06/05/2026
“A better comparison would be the same horse going bitted and bridleless.”
This has been a common theme that I’ve seen in my comparatives of conflict behaviors in horses.
Ironically, this is something that I have done with my own horse and it ruffled a lot of feathers because people felt that I was attacking any use of bits.
Personally, I think it speaks volumes if people are uncomfortable when they honestly look at someone’s journey away from using bits if that is what is best for their horse.
Milo has not been an easy horse.
I initially built a social media following off of his antics.
He was explosive with bucking, especially while jumping.
He had all sorts of acrobatics.
And, throughout all of this, I was still able to ride him bridleless and it took me way too long to clock how much quieter he was without a bridle.
That said, a lot of his issues were related to underlying discomfort, particularly in his hooves.
And then, also the chronic stress of being made to push through his anxiety and me employing the whole “ride him through it” mentality instead of actually working on his internal emotional state and helping him achieve relaxation.
But, that said, this idea that only calm horses can be trained bridleless just simply isn’t true.
My best bridleless horse is Milo.
He is also my most sensitive horse.
But, that sensitivity makes them highly trainable and reliable.
Now that we are dialled in and that I actually listen to him, things have gotten even better.
One of my favourite things to do with him is trail riding bridleless.
It is so cool seeing how he uses his neck and body, how he takes in the environment and how settled he is.
We have even encountered things that he is afraid of on the trails without a Bridle.
And it is so cool to see him process and work through it.
It doesn’t become a dangerous endeavour because he is never being pressured and forced to approach something closer or quicker than what is best for him.
Taking the tack off and allowing him time to process means that he goes at his pace.
And while someone will insist that it’s a slow pace that interrupts our ride, that is not the case.
Usually, it just involves him, angling his head and neck differently, maybe a little bit of snorting and doing a slightly wider berth around whatever he’s afraid of.
But, it’s a lot less drama than what many people see while fully tacked.
What Milo has taught me is that many times, our desire to vye for control and try to suppress behavior creates a lot of the problems that we wish to avoid.
People feel safer with more equipment, harsher equipment, and more perceived control.
But, really what is endangering them the most is the desire to suppress unwanted behaviour instead of looking deeper at why it exists in the first place.
When you resolve the underlying cause of unwanted behavior, you actually get a more permanent fix.
Milo is now barefoot.
I haven’t ridden him with a bit in 6 years.
While we don’t always ride bridleless, when he is ridden in a bridle it is now a bitless bridle.
Because that is where he is happier and more comfortable.
He can be responsive in a bit.
But he was notably less happy than he was in other equipment.
For years, I felt pressured to use one anyways, because I kept being told that I needed to use one for him to be a functional horse or “just in case” he ended up with someone else who wanted to use one.
But, in recent years and realizing how ridiculous these excuses are.
Why should I center the equipment that I use around some imaginary future person that might acquire my horse?
Why should my horse have to forfeit his comfort for a hypothetical situation?
Milo is a fantastic horse.
Being perfectly blunt, in the event that I did ever have to sell him, which I never want to do, I don’t think I would have a hard time finding a fit for him that would be comfortable using the equipment that he likes.
Because the truth of the matter is that it’s pretty damn cool that he can be as responsive as he is with less equipment.
This idea that people need to conform to industry norms in order to keep their horses safe just simply is not true.
Especially in an industry where creating a relaxed and well regulated horse is not viewed as a necessity.
What keeps Horse is the safest is training in an ethical manner and providing them with lives that actually meet their needs.
Yet, many people are failing to do this while also criticizing people who don’t want to follow industry norms.
At this point in my career, I have trained many many horses to go without a bridle.
And contrary to popular belief, I do not think that it is just lucking out and getting a quiet enough Horse.
I think the patience that you have, the belief that you have and your ability to actually address what is driving unwanted behaviour in horses is ultimately what defines your reality.
So, if you believe that you can never ride bridleless, that will be the case.
But, if you’re open to the possibility, and you put the work in to make it happen with your horse, you can.
I have taught every horse that I have owned to go bridleless.
The vast majority of horses I’ve started under saddle I have ridden without a bridle at some point.
I once put a first ride on a racehorse fresh off the track bridleless.
It is much more possible than people think, it just often isn’t given a chance.
This doesn’t mean that you should just try it without doing adequate preparation, but it means that if you prepare adequately, more is possible than what you think.
For me personally, I’m going to keep making the equipment choices that clearly keep my Horse happier and more comfortable without feeling pressured to conform to industry standards.
If you don’t want to ride in a bit and your horse is happier without one, that should be the end of the discussion.
The level of defensiveness we are seeing towards bridleless riding is ironic when you consider how many people are pressured to use harsher equipment that they’re not comfortable with.
