KEN'S COLUMN
Getting the perspectives right
I vividly recall that, when I was heavily involved with horses and travelling abroad eventing - as well as all round this country - how much I looked forward to the first day of the New Year. It was time to bring the horses in again!
What a contrast with the end of the season when – however successful – it was always nice to turn the horses away for a well-earned rest. I then had the time to get involved in other things – flying, shooting and a variety of ‘special interests’ which, during the season, had had to take a backseat in favour of horses and competing. All that changed when, Christmas over, the first day of the New Year arrived and the horses were brought up to begin their fitness programmes. By the time it was February, the horses were becoming fitter and I would be schooling them daily and also including short bursts of faster work.
Talking of fitness programmes reminds me of how different horses responded in vastly different ways – largely in relation to temperament. One would come up keen to get on with the job, another would be more reluctant. When they were ‘on holiday’, I always tried very hard not to allow any of them to put on too much weight: bad for their limbs and detrimental to their overall health. Even a few extra pounds can make the difference that results in walking exercise continuing for an extra week or ten days before trot-work can be introduced.
About bringing horses up after being off work for a ‘holiday’ or recuperating after an injury or another reason. It surprises me how many horses are allowed to get fat – and yet absolutely nothing is done about having the saddle adjusted. I have seen many a horse - saddle perched on top of the back like the proverbial pea on a drum - the owner, attempting to do up the girth, struggling and straining until scarlet in the face.
Transfer the scenario to your own body! Most of us know how much difference a few extra pounds put on at Christmas can make in relation to the fit of our clothes – especially around the waistband! Why assume it to be different for a horse? All too often, owners wait until symptoms (the horse has become ‘saddle-shy’ – or a bit ‘backy’ – or ‘unwilling’) indicate the existence of an underlying problem.
Readers might be surprised to hear that, in such cases, the owner rarely associates the ‘symptoms’ with the ‘cause’- discomfort – even pain - associated with an ill-fitting saddle. I see huge numbers of horses with bruising around the girth area - caused by the pinching of a too-short girth. I see just as many horses with contused areas that correspond to the back of the saddle and, often, the sore areas are caused by an unbalanced saddle swinging or banging up-and-down. Saddles that were balanced when the animal was in performance condition will very likely be unbalanced when the animal is fat!
Some of the nastiest bruises (or worse), and most painful as far as the horse is concerned, are caused by a saddle with an inadequate gullet. It occurs to me that a horse’s pain threshold must be far higher than our own because there are occasions when the ‘pinching’ resulting from a too-narrow saddle must be near-agonising for the suffering animal.
Don’t be misled into believing that the horses I describe are owned by people who don’t care about their animals. Far from it! They are not mindless unconcerned individuals. More often than not, they are passionately devoted to their horses. They provide them with excellent food, generous bedding and ample clothing to suit the vagaries of every type of weather condition! Many of them go without necessities themselves to ensure their horses have luxuries. It just doesn’t occur to them that the saddle that fitted well when the horse was in peak working condition simply cannot fit when the animal has replaced muscle tone with fat!
I have had owners comment on the number of times the saddle may need adapting between the horse’s fat, unfit state and his fit state. My responses may have seemed unkind - even dismissive. The answer surely lies in not allowing horses to ‘bloat’ whilst they’re off work. This especially applies, of course, during periods of the year when grass is at its richest but, even in the winter months, some horses can gain weight very quickly. ‘Management’ is the key word.
It all goes back to the adage: the fitting of the saddle should be checked commensurate to changes in the animal’s shape. And it is up to the owner to take a responsible attitude to the monitoring and recognition of those changes.
Applying lateral thinking: a saddle that isn’t comfortable for the horse is likely to impact on the animal’s wellbeing in a multiplicity of ways. Temperament may suffer. Performance will be impaired – sometimes seriously. The implicit trust in the horse/owner relationship will be undermined. Attempting to ‘cure’ the problem at a later stage could involve bills from the vet, back specialist – and, of course, the saddle fitter. In the meantime, and in the worst case scenario, the horse might have to be off ridden work for quite a lengthy period to give his back time to recover.
So, in synopsis: the answer lies in managing the horse’s off-work and holiday periods sensibly, regularly checking and monitoring his shape –and having the saddle checked commensurate to changes in shape. There really is no point in saving a little money to end up spending a lot!
KEN LYNDON DYKES, Society of Master Saddlers’ Qualified Saddle Fitter, specialises in fitting competition and problem horses. He is available to give demonstrations and talks and has recently returned to after-dinner speaking on a wide variety of subjects. Telephone: 01622 844440 (office) or 07973 501873 (mobile).
