Saddle fitting experts - your advice please!

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TripleBar

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I've had trouble with landing on the correct leg with my horse on one rein when jumping. Video analysis also shows in walk and trot he is straight but in canter is going quarters in and tipping me and the saddle over to the outside (even as far as the panel over onto his spine!)

His physio has obviously found him very saddle sore at the back of the saddle area and he went even worse after treatment which was before we did the videoing - after seeing the videos, physio says she's made his poor bruised back even sorer!

He's been seen by the vet who says he is sound.

Saddle fitter assures me the saddle fits however when I've got home tonight and had a really good look the back panels are slightly odd in both size and shape (you can tell by looking at the seams especially...)

So, plan is a fortnight off to let his back settle down and then go on from there.

Questions I have in my mind though are.....

If the saddle fits so perfectly even if he's going quarters in should he be able to push it as far over as his spine??

Could my horse have altered the way the panels are shaped? (Wool stuffed saddle with nice soft flocking) or is it the other way round? Horse is going crooked due to being uncomfy with his saddle?

It's a total conundrum. I for one am glad he is having a fortnight off as he was so very very sore when the physio came to see him today :-/
 
I have a very well schooled horse very responsive to weight and rider position as well as basic aids so if the saddle is not right my horse will not be either. I will guess that your saddle has a twisted tree. My horse went crooked when I borrowed a saddle that looked fine but I was constantly straightening him up and canter was appallingly crooked. I knee it was the saddle because the horse was fine bareback. I had the saddle on a level surface squinting at it from all angles for half hour but could see nothing wrong. I eventually got out a plumb line DIY/building thingy (sorry not too sure what it is called!) and it showed up a very slightly crooked tree. If you can see uneven elements to your saddle I would be wanting a refund.
 
If a saddle sits to one side the flocking compresses unevenly. You need quite an eye to assess symmetry etc in a saddle even in the flesh as a hand made saddle has certain tolerances, the saddle maker being left or right handed can make a difference. A saddle that fits well should not sit more than a few mm to the outside in canter, in trot and walk it should be dead straight. Does it sit to the outside on both reins? Often an unstable saddle is not flat enough, though of course it might need a subtle width or flocking adjustment. Did the fitter see you ride in all paces and watch from the back?
 
It remains dead straight in walk and trot on both reins. Yes it goes to the outside in both directions (one way worse than the other over onto the spine) the saddle fitter has seen this and said its the horse loading me over and bringing the quarters in. Fair enough you can see he is quarters in on the video we have taken but even so should a well fitting saddle go right over onto the spine? It's no wonder the poor boy has become increasingly resistant and even more so after the physio treatment as it's just making him sorer :(
 
No it shouldn't do that, but the attack has to be two pronged - the fitter should help you to stabilise the saddle ideally, I use asymmetric girthing or shimming if necessary, in your case simply using point and balance strap for now may do the trick. However, if a saddle is going to one side then no matter what the original cause the horse must be straightened in most cases, which you are also tackling. I do see a LOT of saddles that are said to fit but have a fractional instability usually caused by being slightly too curved in the tree or similar issue.

You can seek a second opinion but saddle fitting is an art and not a science, even with the introduction of pressure testing etc. Another fitter is much more likely to pull the fitting apart as it will be fitted to a different "paradigm" than your current fitter has used. I would give the current fitter a chance to try and help you, ask specifically if there is anything you can do to improve the fit DYNAMICALLY, ie make it more stable, so you that you can keep the horse straight as he comes back into work. They should at least ensure the saddle is symmetrical through the panels and flocking because as I say if a saddle has been sitting to one side then it will have compressed unevenly, though by the sounds of it it's not drastically sitting off to one side so this may be less likely. If he or she can't or won't help then you may want to consider a second opinion.
 
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