bouncing saddle and a cheeky girth question

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Horsekaren

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I have recently purchased a new saddle which has been fitted to my boy and he seems happy being ridden in it.
Two questions -
It seems to bounce at the back, when I am trotting I can see it rising and dropping at the back... doesn't seem to bother him but I'm sure it cant be very nice for him. Is there something I could buy to stop this? at the moment I just ride with a numnah.

2nd Question - Girths - My boy has phases of being ok with it being done up to really not liking it. At the moment he hasn't liked it for about a month :/ - he walks off, turns his head to me, stamps and swats me with his tale. I currently have a elastic Wintec girth is something out there to make the experience less of an ordeal for him.

Thanks
 
To be honest it sounds like you need the saddle fit checking. He may have changed shape since the templates were taken?
 
A saddle should not bounce at the back, did the saddler see you ride in it and have you changed the numnah since the fitting, a bouncing saddle can quickly give a horse a sore back even if they don't seem to object to it, if him not wanting to be girthed up coincides with the saddle change that is the answer, he is trying to tell you something as having a well fitting saddle and girth put on should never be an ordeal for any horse.
 
o no! I only had it fitted 2 months ago :( she did see me riding it in.
It bounces slightly as I stand and sit. I wasn't sure if some sort of half pad would make it more secure.
 
For the sake of the horse it is far better to have it re-fitted. Flocking compresses, horses chnage shape. And to be perfectly honest saddlers make mistakes. He is already telling you his back hurts. Sticking more stuff under there will only make matters worse.

You could try posting on the regional boards for a saddler recommendation local to you.
 
I was going to say the same, maybe the 'girthyness' is more ' I-don't-like-this-saddle-ness'.
I went throught investigations as to why my mare was suddenly very grumpy and aggressive when I handled her in the evening, I looked at ulcers (thought the frosty grass during the day might have triggered something) and hormones, then discovered she was associating me handling her in the evening with tacking up and being ridden and that her saddle had started bridging.
Her ridden work hadn't changed, so I didn't think to check the saddle.

Saddles definatley should not lift / bounce. Get it checked.
 
Without seeing it we cannot say what will or will not help, the horse may have changed shape slightly and if the saddle is new then it is due a check anyway, a new or newly flocked saddle is normally checked after 6-8 weeks as the flocking will settle and it may just require a tweak.
 
Go back to the person who fitted it and tell them what is happening, ask them to come back to check it.

2 months is definitely long enough for muscle to build, for muscle to be lost, for fat to increase or decrease so defo get it checked by the original fitter.

If the horse has built muscle then the saddle fitter has actually done a good job by fitting a saddle that has allowed development.
 
Definitely go back to the person who fitted it.
I had a saddle fitted for an awkward shaped cob this year and it did take a few visits by the fitter to get it sitting just right on the horse.
If the fitter is worth their salt they will be happy to come out and rectify.

Good luck!
 
Definitely get the fit re-checked. The saddle shouldn't lift at the back like that. You could get the same person to check it again as he might have put more muscle on and that's causing the saddle to not fit correctly, horses can change shape throughout the year. I'd be tempted to get another saddle fitter to recheck again (more pricey but you can then have two opinions on it!)
 
Is it a brand new saddle? If so flocking will have bedded down and need adjusting after two months. Your saddle fitter should have advised you of this - I'd be tempted to get a different fitter if so, but it's original fitters responsibility to sort in my view.
 
You're not using the points billet are you? Use the 2nd and 3rd ones and see if that helps - the points billet (if it has one) has the unfortunate effect of pulling the front down, usually too much
 
Yep, classic, flocking has settled, saddles need checking, and with a rapidly change "remedial" fit, 2-3 months on an ongoing basis isn't out of the question, but is certainly recommended for a new saddle.
 
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