Bearing rein
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The bearing rein, also called a checkrein, is a type of rein used on horses. It was common in the 19th century but less common today, and is often associated as a form of animal cruelty. Today it is only used in the schooling and training of high level show carriage horses. A form of checkrein is still used in some equestrian sports, but it is only used to guide the horse's movements and does not impede its motion or cause discomfort.
The bearing rein either holds the horse's head stretched high and straight, or pulls a horse's neck back with its nose pulled down toward its chest, forcing its neck into a severe arc that is considered beautiful and noble looking. It was mostly used on fancy carriage horses to make them appear noble and graceful, and to strictly control their movements.
If too tight the bearing rein can be painful and dangerous for horses because it puts strain on the neck muscles and ligaments, puts the animal off balance while it was trying to pull a load, and made breathing difficult. A horse pulling weight normally lowers and extends its neck in order to distribute the load, but a bearing rein prevented this action. If overtightened neck and back injury can easily occur and horses became useless as working animals.
The novel Black Beauty by Anna Sewell (1877) was partly a checkrein protest novel, bringing to the public's attention the cruel use of bearing reins on horses, as well as other practices such as docking. The book was the main force that caused checkreins to fall out of favor in the eyes of the general public.
The term bearing rein is derived from the definition of "bearing" which means "The manner in which one bears or conducts one's self; mien; behavior; carriage." However, later critics of the bearing rein applied a pejorative meaning to the word bearing, meaning "Patient endurance; suffering without complaint".
