bit selection

[Carol Robertson <roberc@pacific.net>]

While reading some of the reponses to the running martingale questions,
I have some questions about the bit I am currently using on my horse.  I
started him off in a snaffle, which worked fine in the beginning when we
were moving at a slower pace.  So, in order to have a little more
control when I really needed it, I switched to a Tom Thumb from the
advice of some friends who use them.  I have never used one before (I
use a curb bit on my mare) and I didn't understand the mechanics of it
until I read one of the posts about martingales, taking about how bad a
Tom Thumb bit is on the horse's mouth.  I don't want to use any bit that
is going to hurt my horse, SO, can anyone give me advise here?????  Do I
use a curb bit instead????  Please give me your reasons also.

My comment on martingales:  I have always used a running martingale
because I have had a very trained horse before spook and go straight up
and hit me in the face, NO FUN.  I don't feel that the martingale
interferes with the horse at a  normal pace, so I have decided to
continue using it.  Also, someone mentioned that branches can get caught
in it.  I looked at how my martingale hangs and it branches were to get
caught in it they would also get caught in my reins.  Yesterday, I was
riding on a very overgrown trail and I had a branch get caught in my
breastcollar.  I am going to continue using my breastcoller however and
my horse stayed very calm until I could remove the branch.

Thanks,
Carol Robertson
Kelseyville, CA