A martingale is a mechanical aid often employed as an accessory to a bitted bridle, in order to prevent a horse from throwing its head (headshaking). But as most instances of headshaking are caused by the bit, if you remove the bit you do not need a martingale.

A running martingale is preferable to a restrictive standing martingale or tie-down as the standing martingale does not allow the horse to gain proper balance and cannot be loosened in an emergency. You may actually find a martingale unnecessary once the bit is removed and the horse no longer feels the need to raise his head to avoid bit pain.

However, it is possible to use a standing martingale with the BB by attaching it to the underside of the noseband or by using a separate noseband under the BB. Be sure that the noseband is on the boney part of the nose so you do not restrict the horse's breathing.

Some riders that that have been using a running martingale previously with a bitted bridle, may not feel comfortable in dispensing with this gadget immediately. To use a running martingale with The Bitless Bridle™, make sure that the rings of the martingale will not get caught?up on the ring of the crossover strap or on the loop of the rein as it attaches to the crossover strap. Keep the crossover straps as short as possible and leave plenty of distance between the crossover rings and the martingale rings (at least 5"). Use of a rubber stop between the two rings is recommended. But a better approach to this introductory phase is to ride for a while without the martingale in a small paddock or covered school. This will give you the confidence you need to assure yourself that a martingale is not necessary.

The real question, however, is whether you should use a martingale at all, and for that we turn to Dr. Cook:

"The purpose of a martingale, whether standing or running, is to try and prevent a horse from tossing its head. Apart from the disruption to control that head tossing causes, a rider can get hit in the face by this behavior. It is no joke that many a jockey has had his front teeth knocked out.

So it would appear that head tossing is reprehensible behavior... a vice to be stamped out or at least prevented. Except that the behavior is not a vice but simply a normal response to pain or irritation. Martingales are not the answer and they are by no means 100% successful in preventing head tossing anyway. A martingale certainly does not cure the cause of head tossing. It is an attempt to limit the symptom rather than cure the problem.

We need to re-think our approach to head tossing. No disease can be cured unless its cause is known and the cause removed. Head tossing is a form of behavior, not a disease, though it can be and often is a symptom of a disease. We must ask ourselves what is the cause or trigger for this particular behavior?

By far the most common cause [of head tossing] in the ridden or driven horse is pain from the bit. The cure is plain: banish the pain, remove the bit and stop hurting the horse. Horses can also toss their heads out of frustration when, for example, a companion horse moves away and his own rider is signaling him to stay put. Horses toss their heads to get rid of flies and a few may toss because of an allergy to pollen, though such a cause is by no means proven.

I repeat...common things commonly occur. The first thing to be tried when this behavior becomes persistent in the absence of flies is to remove the bit. If you do this, then the chances are that you will not need a martingale. A horse in which the bit has triggered neuralgia of the trigeminal nerve may not stop tossing its head immediately the bit is removed. But even in such a case, it will not hasten the regression of the nerve pain if the horse receives a sharp blow across the bridge of its nose from the noseband every time it continues to toss its head during the recovery period.

So, yes, the answer to your question is to say that you can use a martingale with the Bitless Bridle... but why would you want to? If you feel you must, use a running martingale rather than a standing martingale and adjust it so that it only comes into action to prevent the rider from being hit in the face. A standing martingale (Western riders call it a tie-down) can be attached to the chinstrap of the Bitless Bridle but just because something is possible you don't have to do it."

-Robert Cook