UK Registered Charity number 1155018

WHY NOT BIT-FREE

Welcome to the Why Not Bitless campaign section of the site.

This website should help navigate you around the campaign for why not BITLESS. It will offer you support, advice on ethical training and the functions of modern Bitless Bridles how you can help us too.  It will help network riders, owners, vets, equine professionals and trainer’s who believe in fairness and non-discrimination for all bitless riders around the world.

On the “Bitless Ambassadors” page, you can find people internationally who are going bitless with their horses and competing whilst maintaining the highest standards of care based on the ethology of a horse.

World Bitless Association Launch

Why would we want to create yet another organisation?

Why would we want to include competitive riding when that could be anathema to many?

Why would we want to reach out to bitted folk? Why Not? Is a better question.

Over the years there have been many efforts to improve welfare, ban damaging practices in equestrian competitive training and riding. As simple as stop Rollkur, stop tight nosebands, ban whips, allow bitless, might seem, to any right-minded person, obvious? the truth is that abhorrent practices are evidenced all the time. Causing flurries of widespread social media condemnation, and even occasionally prompting sponsors to drop riders, or riders to be banned.

The retribution never seems to last, and what seems to many as the institutionalised cruelty and abuse meted out to horses just carries on regardless. World Bitless Association has been founded to bring together a global force to raise welfare standards based on our scientifically based fundamental beliefs that every horse should experience the 5 freedoms, and every horse should be cared for, and trained, under the principles of LIMA or simply force free, fear free.

Many of us have experienced a learning curve with horses, passing through different stages of enlightenment. Some are at the peak, where people may feel they have achieved a perfect situation with their horses and may have strong feelings that horses should not be expected to do anything at all that the individual horse does not explicitly agree to. Carried to the ultimate conclusion this could mean no more horses, as not even wild horses can be said to be safe from the negative impacts presented by human beings.

Here at World Bitless Association, we respect that people will be at different stages in “enlightenment” and each of us needs to travel on our own particular learning curve, wherever it may ultimately lead us. WE have the Bitless Ambassadors and soon the Bitless Heroes campaigns, evidencing the possibilities and achievements of bitless in all spheres of equitation. Opening the lines of communication to wherever people are on their horsemanship journeys. Realistic aims, realistic aspirations.

We do not want horses to be marginalised, excluded, redundant. We do want horses to be better cared for, better understood and respected for the beautiful, sentient creatures they are. To achieve that, we need to make available to everyone, inspiration, education, and inclusion. If you have joined us: Welcome, we look forward to continuing our learning curves, together.

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