Monthly Archives: March 2010

Saddle Fitting, Part II: Gullet Width

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, saddle fit, saddles and tagged with , ,

Checking the gullet on a Stubben dressage saddle.

In saddle fitting, choosing a saddle with a wide enough gullet is essential so that the saddle properly clears your horse’s spine. I’ve written about this before – Evaluating Saddle Fit: Gullet width is one of the most popular posts on this site.

Here’s the third in the Saddle Fitting series from Schleese which shows very clearly how to evaluate if a gullet is wide enough for your horse.

The good news is that most newer saddles have wide gullets. Some older saddles may have gullets that are too narrow, so make sure you check that out if you buy an older used saddle.

Using the Micklem Multibridle with a Bit

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in bridles, Commentary, Reviews, Tack and tagged with , ,

Freedom models the Micklem Multibridle.

When I first bought this bridle it was to use on my Trakehner who preferred being ridden bitless. I never used it as a bitted bridle.

Since he died, it sat in my tack trunk for about a year until the day I wanted to try a different bit on Freedom but didn’t want to take my hunt bridle apart. Once I had it out I remembered how much I like the design. The bridle is designed around the shape of a horse’s head so that it protects the horse’s facial nerves from overly tightened cavessons and flash attachments.

I really like the way the noseband supports the bit without interfering with his breathing.

I am a fan of the way the bridle is designed. It has fit both of my horses very well — it doesn’t rub or shift on his face, even in the bitless configuration. But what I particularly like about the bridle is that the noseband brings the best features of a drop noseband (in its support of the bit) without interfering with the way the horse breathes. My horse seems to appreciate it because he stays very quiet in his mouth.

I’ve also started using the bit clips that come with the bridle. You use the clips to attach the bit to the side rings which reduces pressure on the tongue and bars.

I certainly recommend it. I do get lots of comments on its appearance because it looks different. I have the original bridle with the ring that turns it into a lunging cavesson (the newer model wasn’t available). Since I don’t lunge Freedom, I would probably have bought the newer version which looks a little more polished.

While I probably won’t use it in the hunt field (it’s a bit too nontraditional) it is now my every day bridle.

Here’s a video that shows how to fit the Micklem Multibridle:

More on the Micklem Multibridle

Micklem Multibridle: Medium and strong configurations

Micklem Multibridle: Side pull configuration

Who’s riding your horse?

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, equestrian, horse back riding, horse ownership and tagged with , ,

Riding someone's horse without their permission is stealing!

When I was a kid a neighbor of my grandparents kept horses in a pasture down the road from their house. I dreamed about slipping into that pasture one day, jumping on one of those horses bareback and going for a joy ride. I never did that but from what I’ve read on the Chronicle of the Horse Forum, there are other people who are not so restrained.

In an eye opening post last week several people shared stories of when they either suspected or found out that other people were riding their horses. The really scary part is that most of the time this happened with the knowledge and sometimes blessing of the barn owner or trainer. That’s right. The people tasked with caring for their boarder’s or student’s horse was using the horses for lessons or letting friends or family members take them for a spin.

Here are some particularly egregious examples.

a VERY similar thing happened to a good friend of mine. she was boarding with a friend (at the time) at her backyard barn, just my friend’s horse and the horse that belonged to the BO. she comes out to see the horse one day and finds him with a girth mark, her stirrup keeper on the saddle is broken, saddle is horribly dirty, her girth is wet and sandy, etc. it’s very clear that someone has ridden the horse, and things didn’t go well. she approaches the BO about it, BO denies it. my friend is still suspicious.

we found out later through a mutual friend that the BO had (foolishly) told about the incident that she had invited a friend over to trail ride. BO rode her own horse, and gave her friend my friend’s horse to ride. without ANY permission at all, which is totally unacceptable to begin with. but then as they were riding along the road my friend’s horse spooked, slipped and fell, dumped the girl and ran off. BO was apparently not planning on telling her any of this.

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A local boarding barn opened here several years ago and the BOs really didn’t seem to understand that horses were individual PRIVATE property. He let anyone grab anyone’s horse and use it anytime. A friend of mine boarded there before everyone was aware of what was going on. She showed up at the barn one day to find someone else tacking up her horse. Her horse wore a new halter with a nameplate. The name on the nameplate was not her horse’s name. A similar nameplate was also found on her horse’s stall door. This person who was riding her horse when she was not around had RENAMED her horse and didn’t see anything wrong with it. Needless to say the situation ended then and there. Beginner kids were trail riding boarder’s expensive greenies because “he’s so pretty.” After a few rounds of people getting hurt on other people’s horses and lots and LOTS of angry boarders, the BO finally decided to change his tune.

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I was paying full training board at a BNT’s farm and found out my AO jumper was being used in ‘lessons’ for another boarder….At my expense! The student wasn’t paying for the lessons I was. They thought it was good for my horse, I thought it was additional wear and tear and promptly left the barn.

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I came out to see my horses on day 4 or 5 after the fall, and was planning to longe the mare for exercise, only to discover that some fellow boarders had her in crossties with some Mexican ‘charro’ guy getting ready to ride her. I am thinking WTF>!?!? Luckily I knew the man in question, not a bad or rough type, but definitely not the person I would have picked to help me with the young mare, had I felt the need for help. It gets worse. The fellow boarders were there, just beaming saying ‘We’ve had xxxx work with her while you were not able to ride’, as if they expected me to thank them or something. The barn owner (clueless newbie to horses) also thought that was just great. Another boarder, whom I thought had more sense also did not see why this was a problem. It gets worse still. I was told that the ‘trainer’ had also hauled her to his little ranchito for some offsite work. (can we say horse theft…and no one had a clue why this was not acceptable).

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boyfriend of fairly BNT eventer (very high end barn; great care) had jumped my horse. I would not have known, except boyfriend innocently told me what a great jumper he was and how much he enjoyed riding him. I was pissed–not because the BF was a bad rider but because I wasn’t asked. Hello? My horse; my decision about who rides him.

Just thinking about it makes my head spin. First there are the liability issues. What if someone is hurt when riding your horse? Or perhaps your horse is injured? Or picks up some bad habits from a few bad rides? Who is responsible then? So, if you come and find your horse with girth marks, or even worse, arrive at the barn to find your horse being ridden by someone else, what should you do? In a word, leave. ASAP.

But it’s not a bad idea when you bring your horse to a boarding barn to make sure your barn owner and trainer know explicitly if you don’t want anyone else riding your horse. In fact it’s a good idea to submit that request in writing so there is no confusion over your feelings.

I once showed up at my co-op barn to find a woman I’d never seen before mounting another boarder’s pony. She didn’t look much like a rider — maybe it was the bright red plastic rain boots. Anyhow, I went over and introduced myself and asked if she had permission to ride. It turned out that she did. After that we made it a policy that all boarders needed to circulate the name of anyone authorized to ride their horse to everyone. Maybe it’s an idea that should catch on.

Sleeping in the sun

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, horse health and tagged with

The horses have been taking advantage of the warm weather. Several times when I’ve come to the barn recently I’ve found them snoozing. I love the fact that they feel comfortable enough in their herd to lie down and zone out.

Curly takes her naps seriously.

Look at Freedom's lower lip. He's pretty zoned out.

The whole herd was asleep. Fortune was the only one that didn't lie down. Maybe she was on guard.

Saddle Fitting, Part II: Wither Clearance

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, saddle fit, saddles and tagged with , , ,

Today’s a fitting day to show the next video in the Schleese saddle fitting video series as today my saddle fitter came to the barn for our spring tune up.

I like to have my saddles fit before hunting season begins because galloping in half seat and jumping fences for a couple of hours in a saddle that’s creating pressure points is a sure fire way to end up with a horse with a sore back.

The good news is that my saddles fit just fine — even the new (to me) saddle that I bought a few weeks ago.

The topic covered in the video below, wither clearance, is an important one for me because

My County jumping saddle was too wide for Freedom. You can see that it doesn't have enough wither clearance.

Freedom has fairly typical TB withers. Far more prominent than my Trakehner ever had. Refitting Kroni’s saddles to Freedom proved somewhat challenging in that regard because when I first tried my favorite jumping saddle on Freedom, it sat too low. Adding more wool helped but  I still need a bit of extra lift which I achieve through using a Mattes correction pad. This is a case where pads with saddle fitting shims can help you make a saddle that’s slightly too wide fit your horse comfortably.

When should you take a horse back?

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, horse ownership and tagged with ,

Some horses just become part of the family, like Freedom.

When you sell a horse you never really know where it will end up. Maybe not next year but over time as the horse ages and its abilities or soundness decrease. To address that, some people write in a “right of first refusal” clause into their sales contact, hoping for the chance to buy back their horse and retire it so they know it has a good life.

On the other end of the spectrum are people who want to return a horse that they’ve bought after 6 months, a year, or even 2 years (according to a thread a read lately on COTH) because it didn’t work out.

What’s a horse owner to do? I guess it depends on how much emotional connection you have with the horse. Is it one you owned for a long time? Was it your first horse? Your best friend? A horse that you bred? Or are you in the business of buying prospects, training them and selling them?

Once a horse has lived with its new owner for even just a few weeks, many behavioral issues and  soundness issues are not the fault of the seller (remember, that’s why you need a PPE before buying a horse, to determine its state of soundness when you buy it). A horse isn’t a car. You can’t claim that it’s a low mileage model that you only drove to church on Sundays. Every time you handle a horse you are teaching it something. And sometimes it’s not what you wanted it to learn.

But what about your responsibility to the horse you sold. If it’s a horse of the “old friend” variety, do you trust it to be sold down the road?

About 12 years ago, I sold a horse named Bogie. He was the first horse I’d ever owned (after many years of leasing). I had a lot of fun with him but after about four years, my trainer explained that he’d given me everything that he could. I could either stay at the level where I was currently competing or find a new horse. I leased him to a girl at my barn for about six months and then, since it seemed to be working out. I sold him to her. Shortly after that, I moved to a different state.

Because I kept in touch with the barn manager I learned that Bogie was lame. His owners tried injecting his hocks but it didn’t help. They were frustrated. I was worried about him. He was 17 or 18 and not sound. I offered to take him back and they gladly returned him (they did not ask for a refund).

I asked my trainer to go pick him up and bring him to a facility where she could evaluate him. She was in Ohio so I was able to keep him for a lot less than I was paying for my stall in Boston. I conferred with the vet that had treated him. We put him into a rehab program with lots of walking and some lateral work to lubricate his joints and put him on an oral joint supplement. Within a couple of weeks he was sound! I found a trail riding home for him on a permanent free lease and he had a happy ending.

But there are other horses that I might not have gone the extra mile for. I had a lovely TB mare that I bought as a project horse about six years ago. She was a very nice horse but didn’t really suit me because she was never going to be a horse that was safe to jump xc. I just didn’t like how she hung her knees. I was very up front about her limitations when I sold her. I wanted her to be happy and I wanted her new owner to enjoy her.  I got a few updates from the new owner over the first year that sounded good but I didn’t want to hover. I also didn’t have the resources to take her back. I didn’t have an extra stall and couldn’t afford to have three horses. Luckily, from what I’ve heard through the grape vine, she is still much loved by her owner and thriving.

I suppose that if there had really been a problem, I would have done my best to help both the owner and the horse. But I didn’t feel the same level of responsibility that I felt toward Bogie . . . or that I felt toward Kroni (whom I would have kept forever) and now for Freedom. At some point those horses crossed over a line and became more like pets.