All In Balance

Back to basics and at the Horses’s individual level……

It’s not so much about WHAT you do, but HOW you do it that matters…

If I had a pound for every time I’ve been asked to recommend an exercise to help with… *insert issue here*

The thing is, most exercises can be good for most horses at some point in their career. WHEN you do the exercise, HOW you do the exercise, HOW OFTEN you do the exercise, ON WHAT SURFACE you do the exercise, are all huge factors in determining the degree of usefulness of the exercise.

Not to mention your horse’s current capabilities. His MINDSET, his STRENGTHS and WEAKNESSES, his current FITNESS LEVEL, his BODY POSTURE, and equally if not more importantly, his PHYSICAL ISSUES and PREVIOUS INJURIES.

Take a simple rein back for example. The exercise could work great for rounding the back and engaging the horse, but only if the current posture of the horse allows it too. If, for example, the horse flings his head up and back every time he begins the rein back then you are missing something vital. At the very least the horse will get no benefit from the exercise, at the worst, the exercise could be damaging.

You could apply this thought to any exercise you ever do.

My generic advice would be this;

When you ask for something from your horse, use only as much strength as a small child could use. Then, if the horse wants to tell you that what you’re doing is difficult, he can.

Remember, you don’t make the horse stronger in the right way by getting him to do complicated patterns and exercises in the wrong way. You make him stronger by completing simple, appropriate patterns and exercises in the right way, and build up the duration and frequency. Then, in time you can elaborate.

Teach him his ABC’s first. When he knows his ABC’s he can make words. String those words together to make sentences. Put sentences together to make a story. Then you’ve got a recipe for success.

Flocking vs. Adjusting.

In order to have a saddle fitted to your horse, the structure of the saddle itself (tree, gullet plates, billet alignment, seat balance, saddle balance, etc.) must all fit.

When you have a saddle that no longer fits in the tree angle, or the width is too narrow, reflocking the panels will NOT make the saddle fit.

It's the same premise as taking a shoe from when you were 5, and only changing the top portion of it in hopes it will fit your foot.
The sole of the shoe is not suited to your foot size, so no matter how much you tinker with the rest of it, it simply won't fit.

The only time reflocking will help is if the flocking itself has been compressed and/or has shifted, or there is a minor issue with saddle balance.

Flocking is only one of the many aspects of refitting a saddle, and unless you have the rest of your boxes checked, it will be a pointless exercise and just money down the drain.

Also, don't be fooled by fluffy panels! A panel that is very soft and easy to compress will not properly distribute rider weight, impact or the rails/points of the tree. A panel should be flat and firm, not fluffy and soft. If you drive, would you prefer a properly inflated tire or one that is half inflated, soft and squishy? How about a pillow? A super soft pillow provides no support whatsoever and allows your head to sink all the way in, with the stuffing just moving around willy-nilly when pressure is applied. It lacks form and therefore lacks structure and support.

Image provided by Karen Lewis (Thank you!).