A bit guard ( cheek guard in Australia) is a specialty piece of horse tack : a washer , usually made of flexible rubber, that is sometimes used in pairs on a bit .

Reasons for using a bit guard include:

• to protect the horse's lips from chafing or pinching by the bit rings
• to provide a better fit when the bit is too wide for the horse's mouth
• to prevent the bit rings from being pulled through the horse's mouth

A pair of bit guards is placed on a bit by stretching them to pass over one bit ring. Then the bit is attached to a bridle . The bridle is then put on a horse so that the bit guards lie outside of the horse's mouth. Bit guards are used with loose ring snaffle bits , gag bits , and pelham bits . Bit guards are used more often in jumping events, such as eventing and show jumping , and in polo . They are not permitted in competitive dressage , and are not used in horse show hunt seat competition.

A pair of bit guards with an integral forked strap, to suspend them from the browband or crownpiece of the bridle, are known as cheekers (see Frentera ).

Bit burr [ edit ]

Resembling a bit guard is a bit burr (sometimes burr bit , also bubble cheeker in Australia), which has teeth laid against the horse's cheek. The burr bit was for a time widely used on coach horses in New York City, until the use was stopped in part through the efforts of Henry Bergh circa 1879. ^[1] Bubble cheekers are approved for use in thoroughbred racing in Australia. ^[2]

References [ edit ]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bit guards .