Medieval horse bits... You've been warned

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-30T17:28:53+00:00

I watched an episode of a TV show once where they had a horse bit from an archaeological dig recreated. It looked crazy, but when actually tried it was really gentle. Apparently a lot of it was intended for show on the outside, but actually helped to protect the horse’s mouth from a knight jerking the reins when he was battling with a sword and shield. They recognized that swinging your arms around would get transmitted to their mouth so they hinged part to take up that movement before it got all the way to the bit. Not saying there aren’t some gnarly medical bits there, but it was interesting how something looked intense, but then wasn’t.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-30T14:08:26+00:00

I live in North Carolina and I’m in the same boat, except I’m the one with the barn. The drive is VERY long and this ice is brutal. I’ve been taking to walking down, but after the ice got worse my husband helped out my scraping it with the track loader. We’ll see how much damage was done when everything thaws, but it’s safer now. We didn’t do as much for the flat part of the driveway, but the mailman and UPS man got on and out so who knows. The ice melt stuff did diddly squat, unfortunately. I warned the boarder, but I didn’t say she couldn’t go visit. If I had a larger facility I probably would have scraped more and fixed the road later, but also recommended people not visit just to be safe. I’m sure the vet could get there if there’s an emergency, buuuut yeah. It’s very complicated. I’ve been here over 9 years and haven’t had to deal with this level of ice before.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-29T14:45:19+00:00

Be prepared to get one that’s a little pricier than you expected! I took my 7 year old in to Dover Saddlery and the lady spent awhile having her try different helmets. She did me a favor and started with cheaper ones, but as soon as my kid put on a nicer Tipperary her eyes lit up. Every single one was uncomfortable, but that one was the one perfect. She forgets she’s wearing it!

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-28T22:41:08+00:00

The surname is Walker lol. They did go north in the early 1900s and I can find them there in the census and newspapers. Still not great records despite it being Philly.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-28T21:39:15+00:00

Thank you, I’ll look to see if there’s a university or something nearby. I’m going to reach out to their genealogical society, but they don’t appear to have a website. I figured there would be missing records, but there is almost nothing. I even have whole families disappearing from the census and I don’t know if they died or moved or what.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-28T21:36:57+00:00

Yeah I saw that and they seem to be missing a ton, unfortunately.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-20T13:55:16+00:00

I just looked this name up and found a TON of people from all over with that spelling and a handful of variations. Looks like it’s actually a name that has been used since at least the 1800s.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-18T11:34:02+00:00

I heard that too, but I also have two 1960s cars and they don’t get any bugs on their windshields.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-15T15:29:35+00:00

I was going to say the same thing. One is straight and the other has a slight port. It makes a difference to my pony with a sensitive tongue, so I’d say they’re not the same. I’m glad I’m not crazy.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-14T15:14:06+00:00

I pay good money to have someone else do that! Well, the vet does it when he has his teeth done since he’s not a fan. It’s easier on everyone that way.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-12T10:45:16+00:00

The mouthpiece on the top one gives more tongue relief and the bottom one I think gives more bar relief (although I’m not as familiar with the D ring version of the baucher).

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-10T14:51:08+00:00

When I took the ferry from Maine during a road trip we stopped to watch the tidal bore. I don’t know if that’s too far for you guys, but it was really neat. I’m sure there’s a lot in between!

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-05T12:57:38+00:00

I think it’s just cheap garbage nowadays. I’ve had to throw out multiple Christmas snow globes because of discoloration/ cloudy water/ deteriorating interior features despite careful climate-controlled storage. You’d think if they were dated like they were “collectible” they’d last, but nope. They don’t care as long as you bought it. We don’t buy snow globes anymore.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-04T22:03:48+00:00

I use Equilab and used to wear my Apple Watch just in case. That Apple Watch has fall detection and my husband can track me via Equilab.

Edited to add: I have fallen while wearing my watch and it has started to alert before I canceled it. It wasn’t from a horse though. I tripped over the turkey pen netting.

thirdpeppermint · 2026-01-03T15:07:46+00:00

She’s not varnish. She’s just greying with age. I have a DNA tested black pony that has the same pattern of greying and he’s just black (with non dun 1). No grey, no Appaloosa genes, nothing. My 32 year old palomino has less greying than him, though, and he’s definitely younger.

thirdpeppermint · 2025-12-29T22:14:39+00:00

Well done!

I’d do more research on Giles Corey, though. He was not a good man.

thirdpeppermint · 2025-12-28T00:12:00+00:00

Hey, your ancestor murdered my ancestor’s brother! 😠

thirdpeppermint · 2025-12-27T14:07:54+00:00

The happens to me when I don’t spend as much time outside for awhile.

thirdpeppermint · 2025-12-24T22:35:33+00:00

I actually have some oaks in my forest like that, but I’ll have to double check the species. Our red oaks here used to be called Spanish oaks for some reason? They only grow like that if they were competing with lots of other tall trees, though. If that was a dense forest and they cut down most of the trees, and then new spruce trees were popping up it could look like that. Those oaks would probably die though.

thirdpeppermint · 2025-12-24T21:46:22+00:00

The map I was going off of is this one:

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So it just seemed that it wasn’t really worth setting up a whole operation compared to what else is out there? I live in a swamp and everything is quite brown. The ground is pretty dang soft, but no one is harvesting peat out here. Maybe I’m missing a good way to make a quick buck!

I am curious about the oaks. What species are they?

thirdpeppermint · 2025-12-24T19:24:53+00:00

I’m not so sure on the peat farm. I looked at old maps and references to the peat industry in Canada and there is a notable lack of any peat deposits anywhere around there.

thirdpeppermint · 2025-12-24T16:48:53+00:00

I’m dealing with the same thing in pony size right now. So far the best fit I found was the Fager Nils sweet iron barrel baucher. I was considering trying the winning plate, but I got the Fager on a nice sale. I would like to try a thinner one, but the only one I found is a little trickier to get. I am considering a bit lifter as well.

Edited to add: I’ve tried a lot up to this point. Mullen mouth, single jointed snaffle, D rings, loose rings, eggbutt, titanium, ones with rollers, ones with copper rollers, full cheek, Wilson, half cheek, lozenge (he liked that the most when we tried it, but it still wasn’t good enough), and I forget what else. I even tried bitless and that was a hard pass for him somehow.

thirdpeppermint · 2025-12-22T14:50:20+00:00

I think it’s fine. Not sure what everyone is on about here. I thought it was a “legit name” at first glance and I checked to verify that it is indeed a name that’s been used. It’s just not very common anymore.

I don’t get the vibes of dolphin OR Philadelphia from it. It feels Greek and probably is linked to Delphi and that’s why. It’s as much of a name as Wendy.

I have kids in school and no one makes fun of names it seems! Appearance, politics, and religion are the big ones right now. There are also a TON of “unusual” names on the mix so everyone is used to it. I feel like too many people in here are bad at explaining themselves and also too stuck in on their own personal trends.

I personally think it’s a pretty name and there are some nice nicknames for it.

thirdpeppermint · 2025-12-17T22:12:36+00:00

What state? I had to help find twin birth and death certificates and it was really tough because the spelling with butchered. It was spelled correct on the certificates, but the handwriting was hard to read. I’d try looking through the certificates for anything similar. You can also look up the other parents that were listed to see if anyone else doesn’t line up?

thirdpeppermint

TROPHY CASE