Hi Holly,
You have made a great question, but it's not one that is easy to answer. In fact entire books are written on the subject. ;)
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The problem could be your riding, poor fitting tack, a weak or sore back, teeth problems, or simply that the horse finds it tiresome and has found a way to avoid the work.
It is almost impossible to answer without watching you ride Biscut and guide you from the ground.
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Your friend is probably right, though, and in that case it is your job to get him fit and into shape. You could do that by working him over poles (cavaletti), climbing hills and - of course - ride him more and more steps in the correct form.
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Here are some tips I often get to write on dressage protocols at competitions. Maybe they can be of some help. (I may get the terminology wrong, so don't hesitate to ask if I don't make sense!) :
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Make sure he is warmed up and ready to listen to you.
Keep him well in front of you and between your aids, so that you ride him forward from behind and towards a steady contact with your hand.
Catch the energy by continuously and gently re-balancing him, so you find a pace and tempo where he can keep his balance and "rest" in each step.
Make lots of changes in tempo, and transitions between the gaits, to keep his hind legs and back working. Both the "brakes" and the "gas" comes from there - not the mouth!
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Much of this also depends on your seat; that you are straight over him, in good balance and that your hips and pelvis are soft and follows his movements.
Lots of riders sit like glued to the saddle, but they don't move *at all*, making it very difficult for the horse to bring its back up.
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I don't know the training level of your horse, but if he's only 6 he can't be too advanced, and may still be growing and therefor muscle-sore at times, so remember that going slow is fast. ;)
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Sorry for the long post! Hope it is of help.
Best of luck!

Hi Holly,
While this is not a direct answer to your question, it has elements for you to consider from Monty and his textbook From My Hands to Yours. I found this in the Q&As here on the Uni but you can find the chapter in the book for more information too:

8/15/2007: I would like to change my horse’s snatching at the reins. I try to foresee a snatch and give him rein so there is nothing to snatch at.

Monty’s Answer: Many horsemen ask me how I suggest handling the horse that tosses his head or snatches the bit while being ridden and I tell them that my ‘mouthing procedure’ can be employed. It is most likely that a bad set of hands has caused this problem but other factors may be in play.

I have used this method of mouthing a horse for well over 50 years now and have found it to be most effective. When I finally saddle and ride the animal schooled in this fashion, it is amazing how cooperative he is with his turns, stops and reining back.

The process of causing a horse to accept the bit and bridle is known, in most of the horse world, as “mouthing” the horse. I have heard the procedure called “bitting” the horse, “bitting up” the horse and “schooling to the bit and bridle.” Whatever term you use for this procedure, it is causing the horse to accept communication from the hands of the rider through the reins, and ultimately the bit.

I call mouthing one of the most important procedures where training the young horse is concerned. It is critical to cause the horse to respond to cues from the reins and bit with the most subtle cues one can accomplish. The tissues over the bars of the horse’s mouth in the area of the corners are precious to any horseman. They should be treated with utmost respect as there is no second chance to create sensitivity once this area has been damaged during training.

I will confine my comments to the use of the bit. It is true, however, that I have used the hackamore, side pull and even the Dually Halter, all of which are bitless. Here I have chosen to recommend the use of a snaffle bit for early training.

I recommend that you accustom the horse to the surcingle, which can be accomplished in the round pen or even in a box stall. Once the horse can cope with the surcingle comfortably, I begin the process of mouthing. You should always take care not to have protrusions from the walls or fences of the enclosure you use for mouthing.

I will place a black iron snaffle with a brow-band headstall appropriately on the horse’s head. You don’t need to have riding reins on the bit as a pair of side reins are used instead. The bit should sit in the horse’s mouth so that it affects a slight smile on the horse. Once the bit is touching the corners of the horse’s mouth, the handler should adjust it upward until it is about one-sixteenth of an inch higher than the corners would be in a natural state.

I suggest that the side reins be adjusted quite loosely at first. I recommend that the handler loose longe the young horse in the round pen in sessions approximating 15 to 20 minutes in length. You can execute this event using all three natural gaits of the horse. It should be noted that exhaustion is not a part of training and you should be careful to monitor the horse’s comfort throughout the pro­cedure.

After the horse has accepted the surcingle and the snaffle bit with loose side reins, the handler should then begin a process of shortening the side reins until the horse is nodding off the bit. Take care not to tighten before the horse is fully comfortable as he could object to the tension and potentially suffer injury by rearing or acting out in another negative fashion.

The side reins should be equipped with elastic to allow the horse a flexible tension and not a solid one. The handler might continue to loose longe, creating impulsion by simply tossing a light driving line behind the horse to move him forward. Be sure the environment is safe. One should study the footing and the walls closely so as not to create an environment that could be dangerous for your animal.

After two to three sessions, you can often introduce driving lines using the side rings on the surcingle at approximately the same position where a rider’s knee might be. The handler should always be sensitive to how much work the young horse is doing and how he is accepting that work.

I recommend that mouthing should take place for 10 to 12 sessions before saddling and riding. The knowing handler will vary the length of time according to the needs of the horse. The nervous, fractious animal should be mouthed for a greater number of sessions than the quiet, cooperative one.

It is extremely important to use effective safety measures, only advancing when your equine student is fully prepared for it. You can find an illustration in chapter 3 of From My Hands To Yours to see each feature of the mouthing apparatus. I have found it effective to allow the horse to toss his head, simply meeting the side reins and stretching the elastics. Normally, horses will stop the head tossing after four or five sessions.

I find it easier to train the horses with double line lunging, the lines attached at the bit. You can easily control the reaction of the horse, much better than during riding. An additional step can be to teach the horses a word as a cue to lower the head, in this way the movement will be active, non reactive.
Rudi

Wow! I'm really excited about all the advice you all have given me!
I was considering getting a surcingle to train Biscut with and Local, I believe you have made my considerations definite! Working from the ground up sounds like a great way to get him on the bit!
Kicki! Thanks for the in-depth advice! I have been working on a schedule to get Biscut conditioned and I'll be planning on putting that into effect very soon! And I THINK I understood everything you told me! XD It makes sense if I don't think about it too hard! Thank you!
And Rudi, Biscut is ultra ultra smart! He picks up on things very quickly; I think the word cue is a great idea!
Thanks again, everyone! Keep the tips coming in if you can think of any more! I'll get that horse trained yet!
Nickers! :)
Holly