SIMPLE SADDLE FITTING
This is a simple guide to help you keep an eye on the fit of your saddle for your horse, and to spot issues quickly.
It in no way means you should not find a good saddle fitter, in fact, I can not stress enough the importance of having them check your tack regularly. I would suggest at least yearly, and after any change in your horse’s shape. All your weight is being supported in this small area and, if it is not right, it can cause so many issues.
I believe it is not difficult to check if your tack fits correctly, and there is no excuse for sores and pressure points caused by badly fitting tack. You have to imagine you are the horse, you would want the saddle to evenly cover the largest area possible, to spread the load. You would not want it to touch any bony bits, but sit on the strongest part of your back. Could you imagine being on your hands and knees and someone sitting on your back? You would want them on your thoracic vertebrae area (the ones around your rib cage), not your lumbar area (the area below your ribs), and the weight spread equally with no lumps or bumps.
CHECKING THE SADDLE AND TREE
The saddle tree is the hard inside of the saddle that the rest is built around. If this is broken or bent, it can cause major issues for the horse and yourself.
If you have a treeless saddle, it is still very important that you regularly check that the saddle is free from lumps, bumps and twists.
Place the saddle on your tummy facing out.
Put your hands on either side of the front arch.
Pull outwards to check the front arch has no give, and is not unequal or bent in any way.
Hold the front and back of the saddle.
Put your knee on the middle section and pull in both ends.
There should be no give except if it is a spring tree saddle. If it is, (you can easily check by searching the internet if you have the make) your saddle will have a little give then quickly spring back to shape.
To check the underside of the saddle, hold it up and look down the gullet, comparing each side and checking for lumps and bumps.
HOW TO CHECK THE FIT OF YOUR SADDLE
Tie your horse up in a safe area on string or an attachment that will easily break if your horse becomes panicked.
Place the saddle on your horse’s back on the wither.
Slide it towards the hind quarters so when you lift the saddle flap, and run your fingers down from the first girth strap straight towards the ground, it draws a line about 2 fingers behind the elbow .
Stand back and look to see if the saddle looks the correct size for the horse so it does not look too small or too big.
The back of the saddle should be level with the front.
There should be a handspan between the back of the saddle and the top of the flanks. Jeff has a very long back, this is an 18 inch saddle and still looks a little short, but any bigger and the seat is too big for me.
Now looking at the front of the saddle, the pommel should be a hand span above the wither with a clear gap either side.
Run your hand down in between the horse’s side and the front of the saddle. The saddle should lie flat, touching the horse just behind the shoulder blade, sitting nicely and not restricting the shoulder movement in any way.
If you are completely happy that it is safe to do so, stand at the back of your horse when he is standing squarely (equally on all four legs). You should be able to see daylight through the gullet, it should sit centrally, and the back of the saddle should touch the horse’s back in the same place on either side.
Now stand by the side of the horse. Hold the saddle where the rider would sit and slide a hand under the saddle as far up as you can. Put weight on the saddle by pushing down as much as you can where the rider’s seat would go. Now run your hand under the saddle along the horse’s back, feeling if there are any gaps where the saddle does not touch, this is called bridging, and would be no good for the horse. This is because your weight would not be spread evenly and would cause pressure sores.
Once you are sure the saddle is as good as it could be, get a rider on top to check the points again, especially the clearance around the wither. Of course you will not be able to check bridging as thoroughly, but still check as much as you can.
Lastly, you must see the horse ridden. Check there is not excessive movement of the saddle and the horse seems happy.
Toby (one of the horses I often use on this site) and I were competing in dressage. He was working well but his saddle was not fitting as it was too narrow and kept slipping back. I called our saddler out and bought a lovely saddle that appeared to fit him perfectly. Straight after, he seemed to be working with tension and not moving as freely as before. I put the original saddle back on and he went back to his normal relaxed self. This shows how important it is to listen to your horse not just the text books- I must add, though, that original saddle was not on any sensitive bony bits or causing any pressure points or sores, if it had been, it would definitely have been changed.
Final Thoughts
It is very important that you have a saddle that fits your horse well, and has been checked by a professional
If you use a saddle that has issues it can cause many problems and cause your horse so much pain.
It is also so important to get it rechecked if your horse changes shape at any time.