WOW saddle - Fore girth making it sit up at back

[MagicMelon]

Long story cut short, after months of using a horrid saddle which was the only one to fit and stay put on my horses back (but still moves side to side when I rode which is driving me nuts), I have had my WOW (which shot up her neck prior so never went further with it) fitted with a fore girth (she has a very forward girth groove). The fitter put the girth on the front and back positions (missing middle one if you know what I mean) and it fixed the going up her neck problem but I know the result is often losing control of the back of the saddle which is happening now. When I lunged her prior in it with the fitter it seemed good but yesterday during lungeing the back seemed to be sitting up pretty high. I intend to get on of course to try it out (when weather allows) but mare is sensitive so will it work? I don't fancy getting chucked off so I wondered if anyone else has had this sort of issue and found once you were on your weight kept the saddle in control better. I just worry the back will move up and down with me and when jumping which obviously isn't ideal (and she may well over-react). I'm using the most forward cut girth I could buy and an Acavallo very sticky gel pad (with nothing else).

She's been absolute hell to fit saddles to so if my WOW really won't fit I'll despair at the thought of having to begin all over again trying on saddles

 

[Burmilla]

Sorry to hear of your problem with your WoW. Was it one "built" for your mare, or one that is second hand? IME with mine, which was a built to fit one, with an H girth, the wonderful WoW saddle fitter always had me ride in the saddle and put more or less air in the necessary areas, until it suited the horse's conformation and way of going and my physical structure.
If your saddle fitter is not an accredited WoW saddle fitter, perhaps finding one would be good Also see if you can try an H girth from WoW. My horse had a very forward girth groove, and it really made a difference to the stability and balance of the saddle.
Good luck, and I hope you manage to sort out your concerns.

 

[MagicMelon]

Nahh it wasn't built for her, I had it built for one of my other horses but had it adapted to suit her, she's an accredited fitter and it does look to fit perfectly so I don't doubt that she's done the best she can with it, its just this issue of the horses dodgy shape! As soon as she trots, saddles either go up her neck or once we fix that like with the WOW it sits up at the back

Will the H girth help with the lifting of the back of the saddle do you think? As it doesn't seem to go up her neck now so that's no longer an issue (which is mentions it fixes on the WOW website H girth description). My only fear is the expense of an H girth...

 

[sbloom]

I'm not a Wow fitter but with a traditional saddle set up it indicates too curvy or too wide a tree - the saddle lifting on girthing is NOT good with a regular saddle, lifting at the back in rising trot it the other test. Moving on the lunge doesn't tell you too much, but in rising trot your weight shifts from the deepest part of the seat to the bars and if the saddle is going to lift at all that usually causes it. Sometimes, rarely, trot is okay and canter causes the lifting. Neither is okay.

Chnging the girth will not fix it IMO, you are already using the back strap as well as the front which is helping hold the back of the saddle down already. The choice of girth straps is important for lining the saddle up with the girth groove, but if it causes other fitting issues then you have a more fundamental problem in most cases.