10/06/2026
👅 Let’s Talk Tongues! 👅
One thing I discuss with clients all the time during bit fittings is tongue size—and the variation between horses can be REMARKABLE.
If you see the same horse every day, it’s easy to assume all mouths are fairly similar. In reality, two horses of the same size can have completely different amounts of space available inside the mouth.
I was fortunate enough to spend some time shadowing my horse’s equine dental technician and managed to capture these photos to illustrate the difference between a small tongue and a very large tongue.
Both horses are drawing their tongues back slightly, but look closely at the larger tongue. To create that movement, it has to curl upwards and spill over the bars of the mouth. This particular horse also has a relatively low palate (the roof of the mouth), meaning a large tongue is already occupying much of the available space.
When you combine a chunky tongue with a low palate, there simply isn’t a lot of room left for a bit. That’s why understanding each horse’s individual oral anatomy is so important when selecting and fitting a bit. What works beautifully for one horse may feel uncomfortable or restrictive for another.
This is one of the many reasons why bit fitting isn’t about finding a “popular” bit—it’s about finding the right bit for the horse in front of you.
👇 I’d love to know—do you know whether your horse has a small, average, or large tongue? Let us know in the comments and let’s see just how much variation there is!
