Believe what you read

Still the same problems - catching, brushing, saddling. I have decided that smacking doesn't work. So in order to not have to deal with the threat of teeth I tie a bailing twine from the headstall to the tail. Yes, I actually attach it to the tail. (A western horseman trick.) Then I work on the other side, using a gentle glove rather than a brush. This works very well as Gally yields to the pressure of the twine. Then we ride out to the state forest. The ride is great.

Upon my return I dig out a book "What your horse wants you to know: What your horses' bad behaviour means, and how to correct it" by Gincy Self Bucklin. The book is sorted by topic - kicking, biting, nipping, etc. I start reviewing what Gincy has to say about biting people, difficult to catch, biting while doing up the girth. Very last of all I look up biting while being brushed. (Last! This should have been my first topic! Not to mention that I should have looked up this book at least a week ago!)

Gincy's take on biting people, is that horses do it in anger, usually because they are uncomfortable. A lot of thoroughbreds are more sensitive, and genuinely don't like a hard brush. Learn to take a hint! If your horse is biting you in anger, it might be because he is unhappy about what you're doing! Use a different brush, use a different technique. Adapt!

The other thing I learn from Gincy's book is about doing up the girth. Apparently, you're supposed to pull down on the saddle first, and this should create enough slack in the girth, that you can easily do it up on the next hole. Hmmm ... interesting.