Nurtural
Bitless Bridle
English Bridles
Manufacturer: Nurtural
Model: Bitless Bridle
Category: English Bridles
Purchase: My horse either hung on or ran through the bits I rode him in. I had his mouth checked and even had a massage therapist come out every week for a few months to work on him. I occasionally rode him in a halter for the sake of his mouth, which made him happy, but he would sometimes take advantage of this. I decided to try riding bitless and started doing research online. I liked the Nurtural Bitless Bridle over the others that I read about, so I decided to give it a try. I got a synthetic bridle from King's Army Saddler in De Leon Springs, Florida. The bridle is $119.99. (If you live in the USA, I would recommend buying one from a U.S. based supplier to save money on shipping.)
Likes: Once I got the unit adjusted, it was very easy to get it on and off my horse's head...just one buckle to undo and tighten! My horse used to turn his head away when it came to bridling, but after the first time of wearing his Nurtural, he actually thrust his head into it! I spent a couple minutes on the ground working with him...backing, turning his head both directions, walking and stopping...etc. Then I got on, walked around a bit, started trotting, then cantering, and headed out on the trail. He seemed to love it! He started getting a little fast and I pulled back on the reins. My horse seemed to be surprised (and maybe a little irritated, I'm sure he thought he was wearing a halter) that the Nurtural demanded his respect...that he couldn't just run through it and do as he pleased. He was a good sport though. I was happy, I had tried a mechanical hackamore with him in the past and he HATED it. He let me know that if I didn't get that thing off him he was going to buck. Not so with the Nurtural! When I tried to turn him around to go back home, he spun around to go back out on the trail....something he had NEVER done before! I ride lower level dressage and wasn't sure I would be able to use the bridle for arena work, but I was pleasantly surprised! Not only was he on the bridle, but there was far less weight in my hands than with the bit. He was far more willing to collect and felt like he was more comfortable. Another thing I really liked about this bridle is that when I pulled back on the reins, the rings that they attach to did loosen back up a bit when I relaxed my hands, then my horse started chewing and licking, which helped loosen the bridle even more, which helped the horse to relax more, which reinforced relaxation. This was an unexpected bonus! Another bonus is that after a ride, I can just hose my horse off with the bridle on him.
Dislikes: I initially didn't care for the price tag, I thought it was a little high, particularly for a synthetic piece of equipment. However, the fact that I don't have to buy bits anymore, I don't have to buy leather cleaner or oil for my bridle or spend a lot of time cleaning my bridle (Nurtural DOES make leather bridles if you enjoy such chores) joined with the fact that the synthetic bridle looks like it will last for a very long time...I'm thinking now that this bridle is a very good deal!
Quality: I loved the synthetic material. It looks like leather (if you don't look TOO close) and is SO EASY to clean! The construction is top notch and the materials used are heavy duty and of excellent quality. The design is innovative and appears to be made with the horse's comfort AND the rider's needs in mind.
Summary: This really is a very fine quality product. Nurtural has excellent customer support too. The people at Nurtural are very friendly and helpful and their website is awesome. It has information on fitting, pricing, and products. It also has videos of people and their horses using Nurtural bridles for everything from dressage and jumping to barrel racing and driving.
Rating: 5
Author: Happy horse girl
Date: 2009-11-20
Usefulness Rating: 2.90244 out of 5.
41 reader(s) voted.
Other Reviews You May Find Interesting
Vespucci Raised Bridle with Flash English Bridles
Vespucci Square Raised Flash Bridle English Bridles
HDR Plain Raised Bridle English Bridles
Hilsaon Bit Free Leather English Bridle English Bridles
Wintec Bridle (without flash) English Bridles
Suffolk Fancy Stitched Padded Snaffle Bridle English Bridles
FSS Dressage Bridle FSS German Square Crank w/Flash Padded Dressage Bridle English Bridles
Wylde Jumper Bridle English Bridles
Smartpak Harwich Fancy Padded Bridle English Bridles
Crown Padded Stitched Bridle English Bridles
Otto Schumacher Munich Snaffle Bridle English Bridles
Kincade Hackamore Noseband English Bridles
Somerset Black French Caveson Bridle with Flash English Bridles
Horseware Amigo Event Bridle English Bridles
Sabre Cordoba English Bridles
Stubben 1085 and 191 Bridles English Bridles
Kincade Lined Event Bridle English Bridles
Kieffer Maja II Snaffle Bridle English Bridles
Edgewood Fancy Raised Pony Bridle and Reins English Bridles
M. Toulouse Padjette Bridle English Bridles
