Your horse’s gear Approximately 3,300 words article Part of being a responsible horse owner/rider is making sure that your horse’s gear fits correctly. A horse cannot work well if their gear does not fit properly. Gear that does not fit properly rubs and causes sore areas, leading to an uncomfortable horse. Even something as simple as a brow band that is too short, and therefore too tight, will cause a horse to be very uncomfortable, especially when sweating due to work. By making sure your horse’s gear fits correctly you are also increasing your safety because a comfortable horse is a safer horse. A horse that has badly fitting gear will resist sooner or later (understandably) which will erode your confidence and may set up undesirable behaviours in your horse. The correct fitting of gear can be difficult until you are experienced enough to know what to look for. Some points to look for are given in the following sections, after some information that will help you to select good gear. This article covers basic gear fitting but you could also ask for help. Saddle fitting is a specialist subject but an experienced horse person should be able to check the general fit of your horse’s gear, including your saddle, and indicate whether it needs further examination (by a professional saddle fitter). If you are a member of a riding club there should be someone there who is experienced enough to check the fit of your horse’s gear. If you are having lessons with your horse your coach/trainer/instructor should also be able to check your gear. Alternatively find a reputable saddlery shop and ask if they have a trained saddle fitter. If they do they might come out (for a fee) and check the fit of your horse’s saddle (some stores have the facilities for you to take your horse to them). While they are checking your saddle for fit you could ask them to check the fit of other items such as your horse’s bridle. In time you will become experienced enough to be able to carry out basic regular checks of your own horse’s gear however,as already mentioned, saddle fitting is more complex and unless you have been properly trained you should have your saddle checked by a professional saddle fitter from time to time,especially if you have made changes to your riding position. If a rider has been riding crooked for a while (with more weight on one side of their horse’s back than the other) the saddle will actually have compacted on one side or worse, become twisted. So, even when the rider tries to sit straighter, the saddle prevents them from doing so. Again this is a saddle fitting problem and needs expert attention. This regular checking should be carried out for the sake of your horse, yourself and your gear. How much should you spend on gear? There is a huge variation in the price of gear. To the uninitiated this is confusing because cheaper gear may look just as good as more expensive gear. There are however some important differences that should be taken into consideration. The reason that some gear costs less to buy is because it costs less to make. Inferior materials may be used which results in an inferior product and in these situations, it is not unusual for leather parts to rip or snap, stitches to rot or come undone or metal parts to break under pressure. Another problem with cheap gear is that it may not fit as well resulting in a sore horse. New or second hand? It is possible to buy good gear second hand, especially a saddle. If you are on a limited budget it is usually better to buy a good quality second hand saddle rather than spend a similar amount on a new saddle. A good quality saddle lasts for many years (it is unlikely that you will outlive it in fact). So being second hand is not usually a problem as long as it has been well looked after and is not damaged. See the article Your saddle for more information about types of saddle. Synthetic or leather? When buying gear you have the choice between synthetic or leather. Synthetic gear has gone from strength to strength since it was first developed. It has many advantages over leather in that it is stronger, it does not require the same level of care and it can be used in wet weather without spoiling. It usually costs less than leather gear of similar quality because the material is less expensive to produce than leather. An example of a good type of synthetic saddle. The stirrup leathers (straps) along with the reins and the girth are all items that take a lot of strain and are vitally important pieces of equipment. You should never economise on these items. Fortunately it is now possible to buy all of these items in synthetic materials making them much cheaper and just as safe if not safer than their leather counterparts. If you cannot afford good quality leather gear then synthetic items are better than cheap (poor quality) leather items. Basic saddle fitting The issues involved with fitting are similar whatever the type of saddle. A poorly fitting saddle will cause many problems for a horse including resistance when being ridden (understandably). Never compromise a horse’s back by using a poorly fitting saddle. The saddle should first and foremost fit the horse because, beside the issue of horse welfare, an uncomfortable horse is potentially an unsafe horse. The next consideration is that it should be comfortable for the rider however a saddle should never be used on a horse simply because it is comfortable for the rider if it does not fit the horse. When ever possible get a professional to fit a saddle. A good saddlery shop should have a trained saddle fitter who will come out and fit a saddle to a horse, or you may be able to take your horse to the store. If buying a saddle from another source (friend, classified advert etc.) aim to ‘try before you buy’. This can be difficult, you may need to set up some kind of guarantee (such as you pay for the saddle on the proviso that you can bring the saddle back for a full refund if it does not fit). Remember that horses change shape as they lose or gain condition and as they develop muscle tone. A saddle that is fitted to a three year old horse will not necessarily fit that same horse after a year or two of work when the horse will have developed muscle that will cause the back to widen. An ‘English’ or ‘Australian stock saddle’ that is used regularly may need the panels repacking every twelve months to two years. To fit a saddle to a horse stand the horse on a flat level surface. The saddle should initially be tried without a saddle cloth so that it can be checked thoroughly. If there is a need to keep the underneath of the saddle clean then place a thin towel between the saddle and the back but nothing thicker. The following checks should be carried out without a rider in place and then, as long as everything is correct, with a rider in place. Before putting the saddle on the horse check that the gullet is no less than 8cm (3 inches) wide down its length (picture below). Saddles with a narrow gullet can put pressure on the spine. Now place the saddle on the horse’s back. You could fasten the saddle on with the girth but not tightly at this stage. Check that the saddle clears the withers, if it does not there is no point in going any further. You should be able to put at least three fingers between the withers and the gullet (picture below). The back of the saddle should not go any further back than the last rib of the horse. This can be felt with the fingers. A horse should never carry weight beyond this point because the back is not strong enough without the support of the ribs (picture below). The saddle tree (inside the saddle) should be the same width as the horse. To check this, run a hand between the front panel of the saddle and the horse, from the withers down the shoulder (picture below). The pressure should not increase or decrease as your hand runs downwards. If it does this indicates that the tree of the saddle is either too narrow or two wide. If the pressure stays the same then the tree width mirrors the horse’s shoulders. The panels should mirror the shape of the horse’s back, putting even pressure along the muscles on either side of the spine. To check this, run a hand under the panels from front to back (picture below). If the panels are the wrong shape for the horse there will either be more pressure in the middle (than the front and back) which will cause the saddle to rock, or less pressure in the middle, which will cause the saddle to ‘bridge’ (only touch at the front and back but not in the middle), putting too much pressure on these areas. The horizontal line (of the seat) through the centre of the saddle should be parallel to the ground, not sloping up or down (picture below). If the saddle has passed the above tests you now need to run through the following checks with a rider in place.