Ring bit
Encyclopedia
A ring bit is a bit
Bit (horse)
A bit is a type of horse tack used in equestrian activities, usually made of metal or a synthetic material, and is placed in the mouth of a horse or other equid and assists a rider in communicating with the animal. It rests on the bars of the mouth in an interdental region where there are no teeth...

 (horse tack
Horse tack
Tack is a term used to describe any of the various equipment and accessories worn by horses in the course of their use as domesticated animals. Saddles, stirrups, bridles, halters, reins, bits, harnesses, martingales, and breastplates are all forms of horse tack...

) that includes a ring passed through the horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...

's mouth and encircling the lower jaw. There are different designs. The most common ring bit design today, sometimes called a Dexter ring bit, is used in conjunction with a snaffle bit, while a historic ring bit design was also used on some spade bit
Curb bit
A curb bit is a type of bit used for riding horses that uses lever action. It includes the pelham bit and the Weymouth curb along with the traditional "curb bit" used mainly by Western riders....

s in certain vaquero
Vaquero
The vaquero is a horse-mounted livestock herder of a tradition that originated on the Iberian peninsula. Today the vaquero is still a part of the doma vaquera, the Spanish tradition of working riding...

 traditions originating in Mexico.
Today, the Dexter ring bit is the most common, used primarily in horse racing
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

. Most snaffle-based ring bits have a jointed mouthpiece
Bit mouthpiece
The mouthpiece is the part of a horse's bit that goes into the mouth of a horse, resting on the bars of the mouth in the sensitive interdental space where there are no teeth. The mouthpiece is possibly the most important determinant in the severity and action of the bit. Therefore, it should be...

, with the ring linked to the bit ring
Bit ring
The bit ring is the ring on the side of a horse's bit, particularly on a snaffle bit. It is used as a point of attachment for the cheekpieces of the bridle and for the reins. It also has an effect on the action of the bit...

s or lower cheeks.

In parts of western North America influenced by the vaquero tradition of Spain and Mexico, a spade bit called a ring bit had a metal ring that fastened at the highest point of the port or spoon of the bit mouthpiece
Bit mouthpiece
The mouthpiece is the part of a horse's bit that goes into the mouth of a horse, resting on the bars of the mouth in the sensitive interdental space where there are no teeth. The mouthpiece is possibly the most important determinant in the severity and action of the bit. Therefore, it should be...

passed through the horse's mouth, and surrounded the lower jaw. This design was more common in the Southwest than in the Northwest, and gradually disappeared from both areas, but remained in general use in Mexico.

Another form of ring bit is the circular metal bit that is known as a Tattersall (or yearling) ring bit which attaches to the headstall and used for leading young horses. A variation of this bit has metal players (or keys) hanging from it.
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