How come saddles . . .

sbloom said:
Horses should never be truly fat, but very wide flat horses can indeed be fitted with saddles - dressage, show, GP even jump saddles sometimes!
Click to expand...

In my experience I find that a jump saddle will fit more or less any horse and will often fit fat horses ( or wide ) better than a saddle with a longer panels and large blocks at the front. It quite easy to look at a saddle that is 'swamping' a horse and see that it is just not going to be comfortable however well it is fitted.
 
Having seen a vast improvement in my horses way of going after only a small adjustment, I will continue to have my saddle checked if I think it's required :)

I don't think there's anything wrong with people suggesting on a thread that there could be an issue with the saddle. Particularly slightly too narrow saddles can cause problems be that sore spots, balance issues or some sort of discomfort that puts the horse off from doing something. I took my horse to the saddler a couple of months ago for a check as I could tell there was something wrong, saddler thought it did still fit, I explained what was going on, saddler adjusted the saddle and from then on the issue has been resolved.

Of course as a few have pointed out it could be to do with the riding but what's wrong with ruling out pain/discomfort/annoyance at wobbly saddle as well as looking at the riding?
 
Wheels said:
Having seen a vast improvement in my horses way of going after only a small adjustment, I will continue to have my saddle checked if I think it's required :)

I don't think there's anything wrong with people suggesting on a thread that there could be an issue with the saddle. Particularly slightly too narrow saddles can cause problems be that sore spots, balance issues or some sort of discomfort that puts the horse off from doing something. I took my horse to the saddler a couple of months ago for a check as I could tell there was something wrong, saddler thought it did still fit, I explained what was going on, saddler adjusted the saddle and from then on the issue has been resolved.

Of course as a few have pointed out it could be to do with the riding but what's wrong with ruling out pain/discomfort/annoyance at wobbly saddle as well as looking at the riding?
Click to expand...


I agree with this.....not everything was better in the old days.

And surely the best judge of fit and comfort should be the horse?
 
Last edited:
I have never had a saddle made to measure or a saddle fitter fit my saddles. Have had a saddle maker re stuff them and adjust them when they have needed it.
watched the world champs showjumping a few years ago and the last four ride each others horses. They also put their own saddles on each of the horses. I'm guessing that their saddle didn't fit all four horses perfectly but the horses still jumped fantastically.
 
I can never understand the logic of changing the saddles in the world championships and seem to remember shutterfly getting increasingly distressed each time the tack was changed one year.
But I think a round of show jumping lasting a few minutes in a strange saddle (probably padded up underneath) is unlikely to do any real damage, but being hacked, schooled and jumped every day in a poor fitting saddle is another matter :-/
 
Just to clarify, I certainly didn't raise the topic to support the view that everything was better in the good ol' days! I clearly remember the white marks and even obvious sores and scars! And I certainly agree that we used to put up with many things that we do not have to tolerate now.

Re the role riding plays in 'sore backs' . . .obviously I have a bias but I've rarely heard riders say, 'My horse is sore, could it be something I'M doing?' despite the fact that people are very quick now to point fingers at other people's practices. I hate to say it but I've discussed this topic more than once with saddlers, physios and even vets, where they feel it's likely the riding is a contributory factor to a physical problem, but virtually without exception they do not feel free to say it. The most they might do is suggest some exercises - raised poles, long reining etc - but that's about it. The more old school types might chastise a rider to 'ride through' a behavioural issue - rightly or wrongly - but that's not the same issue.
 
Re changing saddles, it's so the riders don't get jumped off and die! :) There is no way some tiny girl is going to have the same saddle configuration as a 6'+ man!

And re Shutterfly, I don't think you can really use him as an example as he was famously scatty before that day! They even said publicly afterwards that it had been a bad choice to take him and he was mentally scarred by the experience. Props to him for still jumping around though! What is more interesting are the scores of horses that HAVE jumped well in the various permutations of that class. Horses are just so impressive.
 
I agree riding does have a huge role in "sore backs". From personal experience for example I am depressed enough to say my weight yoyos from time to time and I can see a definite difference in my old girls way of going when I'm in one of my heavier phases. Note to self.... Get weight down and keep it down! I had a very interesting biomechanics lesson last year. For years of despairing over my hunched shoulders, I was told the problem was actually to do with the tilt of my pelvis. It was a revelation as to how easy it was to maintain a more elegant position once my pelvis was in a better position, and the before and after pics from that lesson were an eye opener. The horse could clearly use her back better once that was ironed out! I was amazed at what seemed a very simple change to my position could make such a very big difference! And not something that was difficult to amend either.
 
Good point about fitting the saddle so that it supports the horse going correctly. In fact there are a lot of points that I agree with in this thread. All we can do as riders & owners is do the best for our animals and tactfully suggest improvements for those who may need a push in the right direction ;-)
 
Saddle fitting is definitey not rocket science, I do not have professionally fitted saddles, and I agree with baggybreeches 100% that it is easy enough to see when something is 'wrong'.

A friend of mine is doing some research at the moment into the changing profile of the horse's back before and after being ridden. This is top-end, funded research, not just messing around... anyway, I rode a horse for her last week who's back profile after being ridden for 45 minutes had increased in width by over 1 inch and had also risen under the saddle by nearly 2 inches. Therefore, in a way, I am quite happy that I always follow the route of having saddles that are too wide and padding out with sheepskin rather than having a fitting to a cold horse. It also semi supports TarrSteps initial comment that the saddle fit should be a template that the horse works towards rather than a splint to keep it where it is.
 
RachelFerd said:
A friend of mine is doing some research at the moment into the changing profile of the horse's back before and after being ridden. This is top-end, funded research, not just messing around... anyway, I rode a horse for her last week who's back profile after being ridden for 45 minutes had increased in width by over 1 inch and had also risen under the saddle by nearly 2 inches..
Click to expand...

I would be very interested to know more about your friend's research. Are the horse's head and neck position/height/angles exactly the same for the pre work measurement and post work measurement? A horse's back profile can change significantly if its head is up compared to if its head is down and forward.

Re Tarrsteps original post, there are a wider variety of trees manufactured nowadays and many different panel configurations so it should be possible to fit all horses comfortably. However, when you increase the options (trees that are shaped to fit horses from fit TBs to super-wide cobs, combined with normal, dropped, k panels that have no gussets, teardrop gussets or full front gussets, extra deep rear gussets etc. etc. etc.) you also increase the possibility of the fitter (very few saddle makers actually fit saddles) making a mistake and therefore making the horse sore.

If I wear shoes that are 1/2 a size too big/small, wide/narrow, I feel it. If my shoes are the right length and width and have suitable arch support then I can perform my daily duties in comfort. It is the same for the horse and its saddle.
 
I have a horse that technically is not difficult to fit a saddle too, I would be happy ensuring it fitted correctly at the front (she is a MW in near enough every saddle), it didn't bridge, it sat level on the back, it didn't lift at the back or tilt forwards when sat in and the gullet was wide enough. However she has very wide spinal processes and therefore what appears to be an adequate fit was actually making her sore. Being the type to enjoy ridden work and to have never so much as threatened to chuck me off, she kept happily working up to Novice level. At that point she couldn't compensate for my mistakes any more and started stopping. It was only once my Saddler checked her that we realised how wide her vertebrae were, in fact her very well fitted dressage saddle actually says in the description how it is designed for modern sport horses with very wide spines!
Now, with a better rider on, I suspect she would have happily kept going, it was only when I dropped her in the poo that she said 'sorry mum' and even then, only at Novice at harder combinations. In the past, I doubt her saddle fit would have even been noted, as she is so normal in all other aspects of saddle fit, I think her stops would have been put down to pants riding and possibly her not having the bottle for Novice. Whereas now she becomes 'difficult' to fit a saddle to.
 
Another point to consider I suppose is budget: Reg is not difficult to fit a saddle to until you impose a £400 budget. At which point, he becomes difficult.

I'm also unconvinced by the shoe analogy unless your shoe is open at both ends and tight over the top of your foot... At which point then it does become more reasonable. I wonder if it's more comparable to a heavy rucksack and having the straps at the correct length and the belt at the correct tightness to support the weight without compromising your back?
 
One of our old hunters has terrible white hair patches on his withers. I dread to think what he was ridden in as a youngster. I do think we forget how bad things could be and how limited the choices were.

One of my absolute pet peeves is to see youngsters ridden in dr saddles, which relates to some of the comments about riders affecting the horses back. You can't just jump on a 4yo and start poncing about like anky - to sit that strongly and deeply requires months of building up muscle. Jumping too, you might not fall off if you're bouncing all over the place but what are you doing to the area underneath the saddle?

My jumping saddle was sold to me by a saddler friend who'd lent it to one of her hunting buddies. After he fell off in it 5 times on 3 outings he returned it too her and his fitter gave him something with massive blocks to hold him in! After dubiously saying I'd give it a try (hardly a glowing recommendation for a piece of tack!) my friend said, you'll be fine - you can ride! And so began my love affair with the semi-cc! :D
 
Last edited:
People seem to really like to compare the fit of human shoes to the fit of a saddle, and like Lolo, I've never been entirely convinced by the analogy. But putting that aside, if you take my feet as an example of 'difficult to fit' - I have a very high arch and very long toes - my feet are definitely not what shoemakers have in mind when designing shoes, but it doesn't mean I have shoes custom made or spend hours trying them on to get some that fit right. They are simply not contoured so precisely to the 'normal' shape for it to make a difference that I have funny shaped feet.

Foxtrot - I'm not sure I quite understand your point about youngsters in dressage saddles?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top