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One of the most misunderstood indicators of saddle fit – good or bad – are the sweat marks left behind after a ride and when the pad has been removed. Logic dictates that the dust pattern on your pad and the sweat marks on your horse should ideally look somewhat like the photos attached. The most dirt is accumulated where the most movement is: in the front shoulder moving back and forth and in the back, where the back moves up and down. The quick explanation is that no dirt should show where the saddle hardly touches, such as the gullet or at the transition between sweat flap and panel. The white triangle under the front part of the saddle also indicates a good position and fit, because in this area the saddle should sit the most quietly without movement, since this is where most of your weight sits; i.e. no dirt accumulation and no movement. In nature, the horse carries the most weight on the forehand (60%) and if the rider mounts the horse this increases to about 75%. The reason why we want this white triangle in the saddle pad – it indicates that all effort has been made to free up the front and the back of the saddle so the horse can bring up its back, engaging the hindquarters. The first step for the horse to shift the weight from the forehand to the back hand is to have this ability to bring up his back. Only then can he “pivot” his pelvis and step under with the hindquarters. By doing so, the horse is able to shift the weight from the forehand to the hindquarters, come up in front of the shoulder, and move freer and jump higher. Most of the movement on the saddle pad should show at the shoulder (front) and at the back, not under the triangle.
Question: How Often do I need to have my saddle adjusted? Answer: The horse will change its conformation over the course of his life due to many influences, least of which are actually his age and level of training. The saddle and the work of the saddle fitter must never be considered in isolation, since all of the pieces of the circle of influence are somewhat interdependent. For example, if the training methods or the horse’s nutrition are altered, the horse’s conformation will change. It follows logically that the saddle will no longer fit – and the reason is not because the saddle fitter did a bad job but because his back shape has been altered. Saddle fitting is an attempt to prevent long term damage to the horse’s back by alleviating pressure on the reflex points, and to distribute the rider’s weight optimally over its back.
A horse will change its conformation over the course of his life due to many influences. Consider a circle surrounding the horse divided into equal pieces with a minimum of eight at any given time. Only one of these pieces represents the rider; other components include the trainer, the veterinarian, other body workers, nutrition, the blacksmith, the horse’s age and condition, and the tack – including bits, bridles, girths, saddles and pads. The saddle and the work of the saddle fitter must never be considered in isolation, since all of the pieces of the circle of influence are interdependent. If the training methods or the horse’s nutrition are altered, the horse’s conformation will change. It follows logically that the saddle will no longer fit – and the reason is not because the saddle fitter did a bad job, but because the horse’s back shape has been altered. Saddle fitting is an attempt to prevent long term damage to the horse’s back by alleviating pressure on the reflex points, and to distribute the rider’s weight optimally over its back. Keeping the horse sound and the rider healthy should be the ultimate goal for everyone in the circle of influence. All need to work together cooperatively to achieve this. Any change affected by one of the pieces in the circle (positive or negative) will have a consequence on the others – with the simple result visually that the saddle may no longer be balanced properly or fit correctly. It is a given that over the course of a horse’s life he will actually change his three-dimensional back shape many times.
One of the most misunderstood indicators of saddle fit – good or bad – are the sweat marks left behind after a ride and when the pad has been removed. Logic dictates that the dust pattern on your pad and the sweat marks on your horse should ideally look somewhat like the photos attached. The most dirt is accumulated where the most movement is: in the front shoulder moving back and forth and in the back, where the back moves up and down. The quick explanation is that no dirt should show where the saddle hardly touches, such as the gullet or at the transition between sweat flap and panel. The white triangle under the front part of the saddle also indicates a good position and fit, because in this area the saddle should sit the most quietly without movement, since this is where most of your weight sits; i.e. no dirt accumulation and no movement. In nature, the horse carries the most weight on the forehand (60%) and if the rider mounts the horse this increases to about 75%. The reason why we want this white triangle in the saddle pad – it indicates that all effort has been made to free up the front and the back of the saddle so the horse can bring up its back, engaging the hindquarters.
The art and science of saddle fit has become part of the consciousness of the importance of truly caring for your horse; of really working together with every equine professional who is part of the “circle of influence” around horse and rider. Traditionally however, it has been dressage riders and endurance riders who have been the most concerned with having a properly fitting saddle, because these are the disciplines where it seems to really matter how comfortable the horse (and rider) are – because otherwise performance can be visibly impacted. The design of jumping saddles has been primarily dictated by a certain ‘look’ that especially hunters want to achieve; little attention has been paid to a) whether these saddles actually are ‘anatomically correct’ for the rider and b) whether they actually fit the horse. If you look closely at pretty much any jumping saddle, you will discover that they all generally have very narrow gullet channels and non-adjustable panels made of felt or wool. The paradox is that the ‘close contact’ the rider wants to achieve becomes pretty much non-existent after keyhole rubber pads and other saddle pads are added…
To explain this process we have to go into a little scientific detail. Often, it is a poorly fitting saddle causing a problem called ‘ischemia’ – which is nothing more than a local blood supply deficiency due to obstacles to the arterial flow – i.e., a pinching or pressure point under saddle. correcting this causes something called ‘reperfusion’ – the re-establishment of fluid passing through the lymphatic system or blood vessels to an organ or a tissue…
Anatomy in general is a crucial factor in saddle t, as is gender. Men generally have it much easier when trying to and a saddle that ts, because saddles have been traditionally built by men, for men. While women may have an inherent conformational disadvantage, with exercises and muscular development (and a saddle which takes their anatomy into consideration) they could compensate and achieve a similar position on horseback to the male. Especially in dressage it is difficult for women to achieve the classic “shoulders-hips-heels” straight line, due to the fact that the articulation of female hips is different than a man’s. It is painful to sit on the pubic bone, and as a result, most women collapse at the hip to escape the pain. e leg shoots forward, and time is spent fighting the position instead of concentrating on riding. The male hip sockets are much further forward, so that their legs can hang naturally straight down. Additionally, for most males, the upper leg (hip bone to knee bone) is pretty much the same length as the lower leg (hip bone to ankle bone), which means that their legs will hang down straight using a ‘normal’ stirrup bar placement. (For women, the stirrup bar generally needs to be extended to allow their legs to and their center of gravity, since most females’ upper legs are longer than their lower legs, which causes them to hang forward and pull them into the chair position even more.
It has been my experience that horses do not consciously ‘misbehave’ (an anthropomorphism that is often incorrectly attributed to horses who are simply reacting to outside stimuli resulting in unwanted conduct). As such, the following situation could be clearly attributed to a fairly straightforward cause-and-effect situation that became very obvious very quickly. At the height of its manifestation, what happened is shown in the accompanying picture. Rummy Royal, a beautiful dark bay 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, was behaving more and more erratically each time his owner (KG) wanted to begin her riding lessons with him…
Many tools have been developed to assist in the diagnosis of saddle fit, however, as ‘sexy’ as they are, they are just that – tools – providing information that exemplifies the situation at a given moment. Unless you have someone that actually knows what to do with this information to provide you a solution to your issue, it’s pretty much without value. Many people can tell you what’s visually wrong with your saddle but there are very few who can analyse the data to actually tell you why you are having the issue you are…
Q and A: Saddle Fit and Osteoporosis – Why is this Important to Consider? Answer: The demographics of the majority of our market are such that osteoporosis (or osteopenia – the onset of osteoporosis) is simply an all too common issue that cannot be ignored in its ramifications regarding riding. For whatever reason, it is a disease that we find in many of our clientele, and questions about it are numerous…
Bring your legs back, get your toes forward, sit up straight! These are common words from riding instructors trying to help their students find a more balanced and correct position. But what if the rider’s position was not a fault of their lack of riding ability or skills but rather a result of the fit of their saddle? Also, what about rider’s experiencing pain, especially in their hips and knees? Do they need to just toughen up and ride through it, or again could this be a result of a poorly fitting saddle? …
Some people are unfortunately just not open to being educated on the facts that have been substantiated in recent years through MRIs, thermography, and fibreoptic cameras, and do not realize the possible damage they are doing to themselves and their horses. I am going to deal with two main theories on how to fit saddles properly, but there are probably several other variations on this theme.
Known clinically as overriding dorsal spinous processes, “kissing spine” most commonly affects the vertebrae in the mid and caudal thoracic area of a horse’s spine (T13-T18) where the saddle is placed. It can occur closer to the horse’s rump, but much more rarely. On a healthy spine, the dorsal spinous processes (DSPs) – the vertical part of the vertebral body – are evenly spaced without touching each other. In kissing spine, the DSPs impinge or come in contact with the spinous processes directly in front or behind, or cross each other, rather than remaining in a straight line, upright, and with the correct amount of spacing between them. Kissing spine afflicts as many as 40 percent of all horses and tends to be prevalent in Thoroughbreds as young as two years old …
There are many opinions on saddle fitting. Occasionally riders say, “I have used my saddle for x years. It fits me perfectly and every horse I ride.” I bite my tongue and manage to smile and say, “Lucky you.” These people don’t realize the possible damage they are doing to themselves and their horses. Many saddle fitters maintain that a saddle should have a narrow channel, sitting on the spinous processes and ligaments. The tree is long and flat (on the shoulder and lumbar area) with minimal weight-bearing surface on the musculature. The saddle barely moves because it sits on the spine (other than twisting during motion when “kicked back” by the bigger shoulder). It rarely needs adjusting because bone structure and ligaments don’t change conformation through training like muscles do—and the muscles really won’t change because the horse is not able to use his muscles properly with a saddle that fits like this.
Question: What should I expect from my horse now that I can ride after a 4 month layoff from a sore back, sore hocks, inflamed suspensory – probably all from poor fitting saddles? If a well fitted saddle is put on him, will there be some coaxing and working through some resistance because of anticipation of previous pain? Answer: You raise a valid point – even if you put a 100% perfect saddle back on him, is he going to be ready to go? …
There are many opinions and theories on saddle fitting. Occasionally we have even heard riders say “I have been using my saddle for x number of years. It fits me perfectly and fits every horse I use.” I have to really bite my tongue on that one but usually just manage to smile and say. “Lucky you”. Some people are unfortunately just not open to being educated on the facts that have been substantiated in recent years through MRIs, thermography, and fibreoptic cameras, and do not realize the possible damage they are doing to themselves and their horses. I am going to deal with two main theories on how to fit saddles properly, but there are probably several other variations on this theme.
Taking proper care of your leather goods will greatly enhance their appearance and lifespan. One of the greatest misconceptions in leather care has been with the correct use of saddle soaps. Saddle soaps are basically just what their names imply: soaps, and as such are to be used for cleaning only. In fact, sweat, which is acidic, and soap are the two greatest enemies of leather if they are not removed. Saddle soap should be used to rid the leather of accumulated sweat and grime which, if left on, will result in the leather becoming brittle and cracking. It is important to keep your saddle and other leather goods clean so they don’t irritate your horse’s skin, and to protect your investment…
Question: My saddle continues to slide forward onto the shoulder. I know you mentioned this in a previous article, but my saddle length is perfect according to my fitter. What else could be going on? Answer: If you have ever had to stop in the middle of your ride to reset your saddle because it has moved forward onto your horse’s shoulders, this may be caused by improper billet alignment. Unless the billets on your saddle are positioned correctly, your saddle will not stay in its proper place on your horse’s back. No matter how many times you stop and reset the saddle, or what kind of saddle pad you use, or what shape girth you use, your saddle will continue to slide forward…
Saddle length is an issue I have been noticing more and more in the past few years, as breeding seems to have really concentrated on making somewhat more ‘compact’ (i.e., ‘shorter’) horses. This is especially prevalent in the ‘baroque’ style horse – the Lusitanos, the PRE, the Andalusian. So – other than the obvious visual “shortbackedness” of a horse, ask yourself… Does your horse have a “4-beat” canter? Does your horse have tense back muscles which impair movement? If you answered “yes” to either of the above questions, you may be faced with a saddle length issue because of the length of your horse’s back and his saddle support area. The first is more of a visually obvious result; the second more of a ‘feeling’.
Question: My saddle continues to slide forward onto the shoulder. I know you mentioned this in a previous article, but my saddle length is perfect according to my fitter. What else could be going on? Answer: If you have ever had to stop in the middle of your ride to reset your saddle because it has moved forward onto your horse’s shoulders, this may be caused by improper billet alignment. Unless the billets on your saddle are positioned correctly, your saddle will not stay in its proper place on your horse’s back. No matter how many times you stop and reset the saddle, or what kind of saddle pad you use, or what shape girth you use, your saddle will continue to slide forward…
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