A Bit About Communication - Achieving Balance & Harmony - Meredith Hodges - Lucky Three Ranch 

• Different types of bits and the different metals used to develop in equine bits.
• Snaffle bits and the different types that are recommended to use on your mule or donkey. 
• Curb/leverage bits used in Western riding.
• The difference between a curb bit and a snaffle bit. 
• Bridles and headstalls for your mule/donkey. 
• Learning to go forward in the beginning of your equine's training in a snaffle bridle is paramount to properly developing his body.
• He will learn to carry a rider in a strong and solid frame and in a good equine posture. 
• The forward training teaches him to stretch his head and neck forward, to step well underneath his body to propel himself forward. 
• Elongate his overall frame to keep the vertebrae in his back from becoming compressed and rigid. 
• When he is moving correctly in a straight line, he will have more suspension and flexibility to his gait.
• When he turns, he will be able to bend easily through his rib cage. 
• When using the snaffle bit, the direct rein pull coming from the corners of the equine's mouth affords him a wider range of motion with his head and neck.
• He is able to stretch his head and neck forward and around in a properly executed horizontal arc through the turn.
• This opens the spaces between his vertebrae, allowing him to bend his head and neck into the arc of the turn, painlessly and with greater ease.
• The quine that is properly and conscientiously taught how to communicate through the snaffle bit will be a safer and more reliable animal to ride and to take into public places. 
• He has learned to stop and wait for cues (communication through the bit) and is less likely to bolt and run if frightened because he understands and trusts the communication coming from his rider. 

Mule Talk is an Every Cowgirl's Dream production - www.EveryCowgirlsDream.Com

www.MuleTalk.Net

Meredith Hodges Interviews:
www.LuckyThreeRanch.Com/Podcast-Appearances/