Saddle Fitting Blog

TweetEmail TweetEmailI am always looking for good examples of how horses change when they are worked under saddle.  Last week I came across a great one. There was an added bonus that he also gets regular care from an equine body … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailI wanted to do a quick rundown of the top 5 saddle fitting errors or issues that I run into when consulting on saddle fit.  First of all, the symptoms I have listed can have other causes.  But if … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailOften in any kind of equine sport the word TENSION might as well be a four letter word and is much to be avoided.  This is absolutely correct except one large and important exception.  I am talking the spine.  The … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailThis was a topic at my saddle fittings in Carmel Valley this last weekend and it inspired me to put some pictures together to explain different girth/cinch positions depending on your horse’s conformation.  Also saddle moving backwards or forwards … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailThe most common pictures that I receive when being asked if a saddle is bridging or not are these:   It is thought that the areas with no dust are an indication that the saddle is not touching in … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmail If you are interested in having YOUR horse evaluated for saddle fit please click here and send us some information to see how Saddlery Solutions can help YOU!

TweetEmail TweetEmail If you are interested in having YOUR horse evaluated for saddle fit please click here and send us some information to see how Saddlery Solutions can help YOU!  

TweetEmail TweetEmailIn the course of fitting saddles it is inevitable that you will run across questions about padding. In my previous post I addressed one of the common saddle pad pitfalls of not having adequate curve for the horse’s natural … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailWhile saddle pads are not technically part of the saddle they are instrumental in the saddling process and need to be properly evaluated and fitted.  Also to be considered is saddle pads used for assisting fit.  By this I … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailOne of the most common and incorrect evaluations of damage to the equine loin from saddle fit is muscle atrophy.  I am very passionate about this subject because I have come across several horses in the last 16 years who … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailI was doing some research for an article I am working on and came across this fascinating study titled: Preliminary field study on saddle pressure distribution in horses without back pain. (*1) (Please click on the link for the entire … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailI had initially planned to follow up my Tree Angle: Part 1 – Too Wide with a post about angles being narrow. Then, this week I had the opportunity to work with a lovely Arabian mare named Foxy and she … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailOne of the most common issues that I run into in saddle fitting is that the angle of the tree (across several different models, styles and disciplines) is too wide.  In the saddle fit world often a rider will … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailBecause I got a huge response to my initial post on male and female saddles I decided to put another blog post together on the subject but from a different angle. What I want to talk about today is the … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailIn this blog post I would like to use some pictures to outline the basic differences in the male and female pelvis and how it relates to the saddle.  This is why it is important to have a skilled … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailIn the course of fitting and selling saddles a very common question that I get is about the width of the gullet or the space between the panels for the horse’s spine. The general consensus tends to be that … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailDepending on the type of saddle that is being fitted there are fitting rules that can be quite different.  As an example: seat balance in an English saddle is typical forward whereas seat balance in a Western saddle is … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailOne of the issues that come up a lot in fitting saddles, and more specifically dressage saddles, is saddles sliding forward. This is not a new problem. There are many products that have been designed to fix this problem: … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailI get a lot of questions about tree width and tree angle when I am explaining saddle fit. I put together this video with the help of Fine Used Saddles and a talented junior rider I work with, Payton, … Read More

TweetEmail TweetEmailA quick post about dust patterns and why we need them/use them… Whenever we do a saddle fitting it is extremely important (if possible) to have the horse ridden before and after the fitting to see how the saddle fits … Read More