What to do w/o a saddle?

[Tickles]

Horsey is clearly annoyed by recently changed saddle. Sound & happy to jump but ears back trotting & little bucks in upwards transitions. Posh saddle has a lump and he is fitter than when it was done last anyway so using a Wintec which has been given new gullet. Matching riser is ordered, using nuumed pad for now. As he is annoyed saddler is booked to come and re-fit posh saddle/Wintec/something totally new in a few weeks.

In the mean time would you
- leave in field
- lunge (in little pit or field/school if you can get special permission), long-line (never done this but he has so sure I could learn with help), walk in hand etc
- ride with current saddle in walk only
- try what happens bare-back (don't know if he has ever, we've done some work w/o stirrups, not sure how different it wd be w/o saddle as have only done that with ponies when I was tiny & a huge vaulting horse)

- or something else?

Thanks!

 

[ironhorse]

Lunge or even loose school in the 'pit' provided it is fairly enclosed.
If the 'posh' saddle has bruised him may be best to let his back recover before trying the wintec again, even in walk.
Interestingly, my mare was never really comfortable in her ideal VSD but loves her synthetic Thorogood saddle so you might decide the wintec is better in the long run.
Long reining is quite good fun, worth a try but get some help as it is easy to get your 'knitting' tangled.
I know people do ride bareback but unless your horse is a very comfy shape and you are very fit I really wouldn't bother - definitely don't do it on the road.

 

[ruscara]

I would do lots of ground work - loose schooling is great fun and brilliant for encouraging responsiveness and bonding.
And do try riding bareback. It's much better than riding with an ill-fitting saddle, good for your muscles

, and you should be able to school just as well without a saddle as with one. My daughter rides my horse bareback a lot (he's aged, and it's more comfy for him as he's hard to fit with a saddle now) and can do everything just fine

Good luck getting your saddle sorted, but don't risk using one that doesn't fit, because you can cause no end of damage to your horse's back as I learned the hard way!

 

[Hippona]

When my saddle got nicked last year ( barstewards) I was without one for a while......I rode bareback quite often in the school and down the lane.
Everything except jumping, what with his withers being a bit eye-wateringly prominent.
You really get a feel for the horses movement and boy does it stretch out your inner thigh muscles!

 

[jesterfaerie]

My boy is currently without a saddle and he gets long lined and lunged.
I would take this oppertunity to teach him to long line it will be a good bonding exercise for the two of you not to mention you are both learning something new you might overlook if you had a saddle that did fit.
There is no way on the earth would I ride mine bareback because he is the most uncomfortable shape in the world so unless yours is comfy I wouldn't recommend it.

 

[Tickles]

Hmm... would love to loose school but we're not allowed in the arena. Might get away with it in the pit but it is only about a 15m square and the 'gate' is only about 2'6'' high so could be hairy... but we could def do some other ground work in there... Kelly Marks HorseHero vids etc will be viewed!

Think I'll see if I can get anyone to help with some long-lining and maybe try a tiny bit of bareback (probably walking only as owner says he isn't the comfiest and anyway I'm a coward!) later on. Ruscara, your daughter looks so at home - and he looks like he is working well too - impressed!

Fortunately owner (his only other rider) is unable to ride for a while anyway so she will mostly be lunging, inc. in his pesoa, and his back will get a proper rest from the saddle but he'll still be encouraged to work in an outline.

I actually like the lightness (and ease of cleaning!) of synthetic saddles - I gave up leather shoes myself a while back and, whilst some of the cheap ones are horrid, the good ones can be just as comfy as leather. Don't see why saddles should necessarily be different if fitted properly.

Thanks for the ideas all - glad to hear I'm doing the right thing by being cautious on his back and that there are other things we can do for fun too