Has anyone had this problem?-saddle fitting and well muscled wither.

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KatB

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Ive got a saddler talking closely with a well known saddle maker to see what they can sort out, but just wandered if anyone else had come across this before?

Basically my mare has average sized withers, but has very good muscular development around them, so there are no hollows anywhere. She als has a fair bit of muscle behind her saddle, but not much on her shoulders! As a result, everything we try on her so far goes straight up her shoulder, no matter how well fitting it looks when she is stood still!

Has anyone had this problem and come up with a solution?
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A friend of mine had that problem with her mare when she was young. She was a dressage horse and the dressage saddle used to shoot straight up her shoulder. As far as i can remember she had to have another girth strap put on nearer the front, i think she called it a point strap. I know this helped and i think as she changed shape with age it became easier to fit saddles to her!
Not sure what to do about a jumping saddle though. What about those sticky pads? Our new forest pony had one under his saddle for the same reason and it works a treat. the saddle doesnt slip forward at all.
 
Thanks Stilton! She has a grip pad on at the moment and it still happens... BUT I havent tried it on one of the better fitting saddles we tried at the weekend, I think that may be a recommendation as they are a product of the saddle maker thats being consulted!!
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Forgot about point straps, we were just worried about it trapping her shoulder....
 
Yes i thought a point strap might interfere with shoulder movement which is the last thing you want when a baby is jumping.
 
Funnily enough she doesnt have the problem with her dr saddle, but I think the girthing arrangement helps that, and the fact the points are flexible and sit well behind her shoulder. Hmmmm!!!
 
Yes I had this problem with my mare. I also had the problem of the back of the saddle bouncing if it didn't slide up her neck. I went through 3 saddle fitters and tried loads of saddles. They all look like they fitted her when stood but no good when ridden. No one would sell me a saddle as they didnt fit properly. In the end I got Bridlepath out and they had a different range and the Barnsby was the only one that fitted properly.

The only other thing they suggested was an extra strap put on, but thankfully there was a saddle out there that didnt need this. However, my dreaage saddle is sitting doing nothing as it rides so far up her neck, I feel I'll be in orbit over her head in no time.

Sorry, prob not much use to you.
 
Thanks S_B, that is helpful, it is someone who works closely with barnsby who are looking into the issue for me
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Her dr saddle is a barnsby and fits well, and her current jump saddle is too, but doesnt! But that is because the tree doesnt fit her anyway. We have found a tree that seems to work well, it just still moves a bit... I will get Peter (bridlepath) out if need be if nothing else works! Can you PM me which fitters you used before please?
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And did I reply to your last PM?!
 
Yes, my mare had this problem when she was growing up... it was a nightmare! We tried sooooo many different saddles. We also tried point straps but being sensitive she didnt like the saddle being forced where it naturally didnt fit....
In the end I had to go for a close contact because deep panels ect meant is sat too on top of her and slid forward more, she needed one that wrapped around her closely if that makes sense?! I also needed one with gusset panels in.
It got better as she developed more of a wither. Also try S girths as they are better at keeping the saddle back. Mono flaps are usually quite good as well as there is less of the saddle to slide around.
 
Thanks Firewell, all the saddles I have tried have been CC
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She needs a very flat tree which we seem to have cracked, but its just getting it to stay put!
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Perhaps you need a saddle with a U shaped front arch rather than a V shaped one

Pics of what I mean here, well explained by WOW http://www.fteltd.co.uk/wow/wowfitting.htm but I'm sure otehr sadlers have them. Maybe try Ideal.

I have an Ideal Impala Pro on W who is difficult to fit, close contact, monoflap and gorgeous! She is thick trough the wither and has a very wide and muscular spine, she also has huge very active shoulders and had to have the points of the tree turned back slightly to accommodate her movement.
 
Yeah ive just looked at that!
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Great minds and all that
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Will see what the saddler comes up with.... they can make one to order if necessary.
 
No. I won't ride in one
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Its to event her in, and I don't fancy jumping her in a treeless, no matter what anyone says I'm not a fan. Sorry!
 
Where is her girth groove and how well sprung are her ribs? They can contribute to saddle up neck syndrome too!

Unfortunately if her conformation, and possibly her movement too, push a saddle forward it is very hard to stop it. Grip pads wont do a thing because they are not sufficient to go against the forces produced by the body. Ultimately you need trial and error to find a saddle that suits.

I have a horse that was a nightmare- every saddle goes right up his neck. In the end the only saddle that works is a wow with an H girth. Even then i tried every combination of girthing on the wow, point straps, foregirths, etc. The foregirth actually made it worse. It took alot of experimenting to get it right! The wow has been a godsend for him as it can be adjusted through the season as his training and hence body changes. I went through alot of saddles and none came close but the Wow saved me from going bonkers!
 
Had the same sort of problem with my youngster except that he was quite flat on his withers and still "bum-high"!
After about five different saddles which fitted for about four months at a time before he changed shape again(!), he has finally developed a bit more wither and now has an Ideal Nyala saddle. It's quite flat tree-ed and is even comfier to ride in than my Albion and Barnsby! I also use a Stubben string girth to help keep it stable but that it more to do with his low wither...

Could be an idea to get your saddler to chat to the peeps at Ideal and see if they have any suggestions.

Best of luck getting something!
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teddy, thanks. She has a very forward girth groove, and well sprung ribs
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Joy
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I did think about Wow as a last resort, but I don't trust any of the fitters around me
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Hopefully as her shoulders fill out it will stop it, it cant be that bad as her dr saddle doesnt move?! She has got a big back end which also contributes to the problem I think... lovely
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thansk k_k, non of the saddlers round here really deal with Ideal. She is talking to Barnsby at the moment though to see what they can do, as her dr saddle is a barnsby and fits her well
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Pleased your boy is sorted though! She is still slightly croup high which doesnt help...
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Good luck then - you'll need it with that conformation!
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I have to say it took me hours and hours of fiddling to get it right, so you need to trust your saddle fitter.

I may be wrong on this but wow may be doing the H girth for short strapped saddles now (usually only for long straps), so that may be worth considering even if you dont get a wow saddle. I know a normal girth is useless on my horse!
 
Crewe Saddlery do Ideals and will travel out a fair way (I was based only 20 mins from Nottingham when they came out to me), might be worth a try.

Tricky problem!
 
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