A hackamore is a type of animal headgear which does not have a bit. Instead, it has a special type of noseband that works on pressure-points on the face, nose, and chin. Hackamores are most often seen in western riding and other styles of riding derived from Spanish traditions, and are occasionally seen in some English riding disciplines such as show jumping and in the stadium phase of eventing. Various hackamore designs are also popular for endurance riding. While usually used to start young horses, hackamores are often seen on mature horses with dental issues that would make the use of a bit painful, and on horses with mouth- or tongue-injuries that would be aggravated by a bit. Some riders also like to use them in the winter to avoid putting a frozen metal bit into a horse's mouth. In the Charro tradition of Mexico, the and bozal substituted for the serrated iron cavesson used in Spain for training horses.
There are many styles, but the classic hackamore uses a design featuring a bosal noseband, and is sometimes itself called a "bosal" or a "bosal hackamore". It has a long rope-rein called a mecate and may also add a type of stabilizing throatlatch called a fiador, which is held to the hackamore by a browband. Other designs with heavy nosebands are also called hackamores, though some bitless designs with lighter-weight nosebands that work with tension rather than with weight are also called bitless bridles. A noseband with shanks and a curb chain to add leverage is called a mechanical hackamore, but is not considered a true hackamore. A simple leather noseband, or cavesson, is not a hackamore; a noseband is generally used in conjunction with a bit and bridle. In 1844, Domingo Revilla defined and described the and used in Mexico as follows:Jáquima is a kind of leather or horsehair bozal, secured with a harness of the same material, and at the base of the bozal that remains next to the horse's chin, there is a strap to further secure it, and it is called a fiador. The bozalillo is just the bozal without harness or without a fiador. There are very curious jáquimas and bozalillos, and both are very necessary for the horse. In his book Vocabulario de Mexicanismos (1899), Mexican historian and philologist Joaquín García Icazbalceta defined the or (known as a "bosalita" in the USA) as follows: Bozalillo: It is not a diminutive of Bozal, but a kind of fine jáquima made of twisted horsehair that is placed under the bridle of the horses; and from the part that surrounds the mouth hangs the falsarrienda [false reins]. It replaces the serrated cavesson, not used here. Like a bit, a hackamore can be gentle or harsh, depending on the hands of the rider. The horse's face is very soft and sensitive, with many nerve endings. Misuse of a hackamore can cause pain and swelling on the nose and jaw, and improper fitting combined with rough use can cause damage to the cartilage on a horse's nose.
Origins
The word "hackamore" is derived from the Spanish word , meaning headstall or halter, specifically the rope halter used for tethering and leading animals, itself derived from Old Spanish xaquima. Historically, in Spain jáquima was the bridle used for riding on donkeys and mules. The Spanish had obtained the term from the Arabic (bit), from (to bridle). From the Americanized pronunciation of , the spelling "hackamore" entered the written English language by 1850, not long after the Mexican–American War. In Spain and Hispanic America, jáquima is generally any type of halter used for tethering and leading animals, but in Mexico and certain parts of South America, Jáquima also refers to a special type of halter, specifically a bozal (noseband), used for training horses; such Jáquimas tend to be thicker and stronger than the regular ones for tethering.