Horse and Man

Archive for the ‘Tack thoughts’ Category

October Bucket Fund Receipts, Western Spursuaders and FREE RIDE Western Safety Stirrups!

Thursday, November 3rd, 2011

THE OCTOBER BUCKET FUND RECEIPTS!

(You can read Hope’s story here.)

You readers were incredible once again! Not only did we reach our $2500 goal for little Hope’s surgery and recovery, we exceeded it by $10! Bravo!

I will continue to give you updates on Hope. She is doing great and recovering right on schedule! One leg is straightening faster than the other so they are watching this closely. However, uneven straightening is to be expected so no worries there.

Once the vets give the go-ahead, the final surgeries on each leg will be performed. Sooner than later, Hope will never have to worry about tripping herself or compression sores again!

The first payment we made early to cover the surgery costs and some recovery items.

This is the final payment.

SPURSUADERS GO WESTERN!

I have written about Spursuaders previously (linked here).

But today, I noticed that they have added a new Western style to their product. Wow! Good News! I was thinking that many of you might be interested in a Western pair…

The new Western Spursuaders

CONCEPT/DESIGN

Here is a photo of the design. It is pretty evident how they work, and how they are less intrusive. The idea is to get the horse’s attention without upsetting him. (Sounds like a good idea to me…)

This diagram shows the unique design of the Spursuaders

Anyway, I don’t use spurs right now, but if I need a pair, I know I would try these.

You can purchase the English or Western design. They are made in Canada however there are a few stores in the US that carry them if you’d like to check them out physically. You can search for retail outlets via this link on the website. Or, Spursuader does have an online store which you can access by clicking this link. Easy!

Solid concept... I like it!

FREE RIDE WESTERN SAFETY STIRRUPS

I saw an ad for the Free Ride Western Safety Stirrup in the back of Trail Rider Magazine. I clipped it to research at a later date. That later date was this morning!

After reading online, I learned that the Free Ride Western Safety Stirrup developer designed these after being dragged… I think if you survive being dragged, maybe part of your mental rehab is to ‘fix’ that sort of thing for others in the future.

The Free Ride Western Safety Stirrup is the result of his recovery process.

Free Ride Western Safety Stirrup (no affiliation)

So, basically, this safety stirrup is the same idea as the English safety stirrup with the rubber band on one side – except this stirrup has covered that rubber band side with a Western leather keeper. And, of course, the stirrup itself is styled in a Western fashion.

I like the design. For me, English or Western, I think this footpad is just the right size, not too large and not too skinny. I couldn’t find the actual measurements of the footpad, but from the online photos, it looks right.

Being cast aluminum is a huge plus. The less weight on the saddle, the better! I also like that you can personalize the keeper to have your initials or your horse’s initials or whatever you want… You also get to pick the leather color, concha and corner design. Cool!

Here is the website! Let me know if you purchase a pair!

This is the 'safety' part that is underneath the keeper.

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Tags: spursuader
Posted in Handy Tips, Tack thoughts | 2 Comments »

Rollkur. Or, more gently put, Riding Deep.

Wednesday, September 7th, 2011

Many of you have asked me to write about Rollkur.

Up until this point, I didn’t want to approach the subject of Rollkur because it is such a hot button with Dressage and Western Pleasure riders – I didn’t want to do it badly.

You see, I’m not a Dressage or Western Pleasure rider and I didn’t even know what ‘rollkur’ meant until I looked it up. (Literally, the term Rollkur is a German word for the act of taking an antacid and then rolling on the floor to make it work around in your stomach.)

But, I realized that you don’t really have to be that learned to look at photos of Rollkur and kinda scratch your head and wonder, “Is that good for them?”

But, what do I know? So, I decided to do some research.

ROLLKUR - chin to chest

THE SLINGING

Oy. All I can say is that both sides of the subject are equally passionate.

My take was that the ‘pro’ group says it is the only way to really get collection and success in the upper level dressage show ring. And, they may be correct… It is true that most of the upper level ribbons go to riders who train with rollkur.

The ‘con’ group says that it is inhumane.

Well, it is tough to argue that the winning horses have not been trained using rollkur, which to me is a comment on modern dressage. What it reminds me of is the human athlete ‘doping’ argument…

Sure, doping isn’t good, but if you don’t do it, you cannot compete.

Hmmmmm.

On the con side, the FEI did ban rollkur from all shows and show warm-up arenas. In fact, many show venues have gone to the extreme of putting cameras into the warm-up arenas to be sure.

Western trainers use it, too...

MY INITIAL OPINION

After reading pages and pages of ‘this and that’ regarding rollkur from all sides, I came to the gut conclusion that rollkur was a quick-fix.

Now, I’m probably simplifying it here because I’m sure it takes a long time to make rollkur effective in training.

I guess what I’m saying is that not using rollkur in dressage training would take even longer to achieve winning results.

My initial hit was that rollkur is one of those dreaded training devices that skips a few steps of the proper technique, if you know what I mean…

But, even after all of this research, I still didn’t want to write about it because I felt like I was bringing up politics or religion at the dinner table… it would just start a huge debate and no one would digest any of it well.

Until… I came upon this one, very astute, very clinical and logical webpage. I have linked it here.

Chin to chest again - during training

WHY IT MADE SENSE TO ME

The article is titled, Rollkur – Why Not? by Theresa Sandin.

Her article had photos and diagrams which made my tired mind feel happy.

Suddenly it all started making real sense to me – but for a different reason… the ‘debate’ (name calling and hash slinging) was shelved. Instead, the author used common sense, physics, physiology, science and logic to let the reader come to their own conclusions.

Wow.

They say most all of the winning horses are trained using rollkur

IMPORTANT TID BITS

The article was really long and intense. Some of it was beyond my dressage understanding. But, most of it was based on the ‘if this, then that’ type of logic. If you put your hand on a hot burner, then you will get burned.

I won’t re-print the entire article here, but I thought I would restate the several items that made total sense to me in a mechanical way.

A SIMPLE IDEA – THE HORSE’S FIELD OF VISION

Normal field of vision

Hmmm.

THE OVERSTRETCHING (AND THEREFORE FLACCID) NUCHAL LIGAMENT

Once the ligament is over stretched, it cannot retract. This damages many young horses started with rollkur.

A diagram of what happens to the tendon at the poll

THE EFFECTS ON THE SPINE

Bad

Good

Relaxed vs rollkur - curvature of spine

BONY POINT IN SKULL

This is so telling... horses trained in rollkur have an odd, painful bony growth at the poll

CANNOT SWALLOW HENCE DROOLING, ESCAPING THE PAIN – UGH.

YIKES

CARRYING THE WEIGHT OF HIS HEAD LOGICALLY

Makes sense to me...

DAP – DIAGONAL ADVANCED PLACEMENT (I had never heard this term…)

Explanation

Interesting... she also goes on to say that DAP is desired and bred into modern dressage horses.

THE HANDS…

Can't argue this logic...

IN CONCLUSION

It isn’t tough for me to see why I would never allow this for any of my horses.

On the other hand, I know how tough it is to NOT use something that all of your competitors use… I’m not agreeing with it, I’m just commenting on the new character of ‘winning’.

For me, I’m glad I did this walk today because I will look at all those over-extended dressage horses and say to myself, “Wow. That horse is a real gem to allow that rider to make him do things so against his nature. What a fine horse indeed.”

I won’t comment on the trainer or rider – except to say that many riders don’t learn for themselves. They believe their trainers.

I know that I have…

HORSE AND MAN is a blog in growth… if you like this, please pass it around!

HELP the newly found UNLUCKY 29 make it home! Click here

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Tags: rollkur
Posted in Handy Tips, Tack thoughts | 6 Comments »

Horsey Products that make me Giggle! The Nacho Libre Avenger Fly Mask!1

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011

Horsey Products that make me Giggle! The Nacho Libre Avenger Fly Mask!

Where do I start with this one?

So, let me step back a bit… A few days ago, I wrote about products and mentioned that I was going to order this particular fly mask because it looked like the Avenger or a horsey wrestler mask. I thought my husband’s draft cross horse, Bodhi, would be a prime candidate for Super Hero status. Besides, they were on sale. So, I purchased three (XL, L, M) in purple, of course!

WHY?

Good question. Well, it is fly season. And, like most of you, I always have plenty of fly masks as the season starts… But, as we all know, it is a horse’s delight to stomp them into the ground, lose them in a far off corner, pull them from each other by ripping the velcro off, catching them on fence posts then pulling with all 1000 lbs and of course, just rubbing the life out of them. So, fly masks are fairly expendable around here. Or, at least the horses think so.

Because I always seem to need fly masks (yes, we use garlic and predators), I am constantly looking for the little devils on sale. Lo and Behold, I found these faboo looking masks, with zippers no less, for 33% off on Big Dee’s website. Alright, yes, I was a little leery since who in their right mind would discount a fly mask at the beginning of the season? I kinda knew something was probably fishy. As I was writing my previous post, I mused that perhaps the zippers (I know… a zipper in a fly mask? Go figure…) were unstable. I really had no idea why these masks were being sold at such a reduced price. But, I was game so I clicked the Pay Pal trigger and ordered enough to get free shipping.

THEY ARRIVE!

The Fed Ex Ground guys comes today and hands me this tiny package. Yay! I thought it was my new Blackberry upgrade. As I ripped open the box, expecting to find a phone, I was bombarded with a million horsey flyers and brochures. Still thinking in a Verizon way, I was confused on how the phone company knew that I would be a horse product buyer and thus stuff my phone box with marketing materials. I thought internet marketing had reached an all time high (or low…). But, once I got the package totally opened, I realized that this was indeed a horse product. There at the bottom of the box, under all the hoopla of brochures, in three tiny packages were three tiny fly masks. I swear, I picked one up and it had the weight of a piece of lingerie. Huh? Are they making horse products out of NASA super light, Tyvek materials now? How could this tiny pantie work as a fly mask?

As I looked over my Victoria Secret fly mask like a monkey holding a strange cloth, I noted that no where, not any where, at all — was there a manufacturers name. I didn’t see it on the web page, the receipt or on the product. It just says, “Lycra fly mask with ears and zipper”. It did have a MADE IN PAKISTAN tag on the mask itself.

OK, well, time to test.

TRIAL

As I opened the tiny package and pulled out the XL, I noted that the face netting was very poochey. I couldn’t imagine how any horse would need that much real estate in face netting but I figured they must have big poochey faced horses in Pakistan… Anyway, I wasn’t going to let that pooch stop me. I had a horse to make into a Pro Wrestler! I grabbed my camera and headed out to find poor, unsuspecting Bodhi. He is such a sweet horse.

Bodhi nickered his usual low, under the sound barrier nicker and I responded with, “Look what I have for you, handsome boy!” He looked at me with wide eyes, “An apple?” Nope. I have a newfangled fly mask for you to try. “Well, is there an apple in it for me?” C’mere. Let me just slip this pantie over your head.

This is where I wish I had a videographer to record me trying to get the thing on him… He was being a good boy and standing perfectly still… I just couldn’t figure it out. You see, if you have the thing unzipped, you have to rezip it while it is under his hairy chin. I kept getting flyaways caught in the zipper and zipping his chin into it. OK, forget that. So I took it off and started the zipper. Then, I put his nose through the narrow opening of the started zipper and pulled up. A bit Tight. I started fussing with the Lycra and it seemed to stretch enough so that he could still eat but it wasn’t really the way it should fit, I didn’t think.

Then, I had to get the floppy part over his ears. So, I pulled the big poochey section up over his face. Hmmmm. The ear mesh area would need to be stuffed with ear. Bodhi just stood there and let me do this to him. Oy. His forelock was sticking out everywhere. There was no forelock hole, so his hair was all crammed down in the ear mesh area and around his pole, thanks to the tight purple Lycra poll cap. So, I pulled all of his hair out and it kinda stood up behind the Lycra poll piece. Nice… He looked like a punk rocker wearing a wrestling mask.

I proceeded to adjust the whole thing and then try to zip the zipper the rest of the way. I zipped it about another inch and then realized the rest was a no-go. There was no possible way that his jaw would fit in there. Luckily, however, there was a velcro piece at the end that just lets you velcro it together — probably for people like me who just want to get the darn thing on and quit messing with it! Or, perhaps even the designers got frustrated and said, “Just put some velcro there and it will fit a llama or a horse, I think, maybe, whatever, just put some velcro on it! Oh, and remember that llamas have poochey eyes!”

So, here is a photo of Bodhi in his not quite zipped Nacho Libre Purple Avenger Mask! As you can see, the face piece is still poochey but at least it doesn’t sit on his eyelashes. Bodhi didn’t seem to mind that it wasn’t zipped. He probably preferred it, actually. After I got his forelock figured out, he seemed fine with the mask overall.

However, I could not stop giggling! He looked at me, “What?” He was so plaintive. “Do I have an eye goober? Why are you laughing so hard? Does this make my nose look big?” Poor Bodhi. I didn’t want him to be alone in this so I grabbed his pasturemate, Remi.

LURCH

Do you remember Lurch from the Adams Family? Remember how he would just mumble and shutter every time they asked him to do anything? Yup, that’s Remi. (Actually, I have several that give the Lurch snort when I ask them to do something…) She lets out that shudder and Lurch neighsnort thing. “You aren’t going to put one of those on ME, are you?”

Let’s talk about the Lurch snortblowneigh for a minute. I know that several of my mares will do it. If you bring them in from the pasture early or if you ask them to pick up their foot when they are busy doing something else or when you make them move out of the way for no apparent reason… you know the sound, right? It is a half sneeze, half snort, half blow that makes the human know that you are asking a bit much of them! It is an “Oh, alright, if I have to I will but I don’t like this and it was certainly not on my agenda for today…” type of snortblowneigh.

Anyway, Remi gave me that Lurch look and snortblowneigh as she eyed the mask. She even shuddered a little when I showed her the purple part. But, being the good mustang that she is, Remi grit her teeth and let me bestow upon her the same shame of her pasturemate. There! I said with glee. She just looked at me as if to say, “Are you blind, Woman? Is all your taste in your mouth? Do you really think this represents the Mustang spirit running through my veins?” C’mon, just humor me. Wear the darn thing and let me take a picture of you… you look like SuperNag! Snortblowneigh.

So, the fifth photo above is my two Avengers from the movie Nacho Libre with their brand new masks! They slay flies in a single, latex netted instant!

AFTERMATH – I wrote the above before I wrote this part…

Well, I went out a few hours later and Bodhi (in the sixth photo above) ran up to me so excited. It was if to say, “Hey look, I fixed it!”

Upon closer examination, it appeared to me that he did some modifications to his mask… It only had one ear mesh area left and the other was just a hole. I can see the reasoning behind this adjustment. It helped with his forelock so that was probably a good idea. Then I noticed the zipper was busted to bupkiss (seventh photo). I think a few powerful scratches on a fencepost would secure that modification. I also noticed the “Made in Pakistan” tag laying on the ground. I imagine it was a bit itchy for him. Lastly, I think Remi helped him with the poochey front netting. It looked like she either nibbled away at it or just bit the beejesus out of it because there were holes everywhere. Or, maybe Bodhi did it himself by rubbing on the fence boards. Dunno. All I can say is you get what you pay for… Lycra fly mask with ears and zipper cannot stand up to Bodhi and Remi the FlyMask Killers.

I think it is hilarious, sort of, that the mask now appears as a sad, purple Halloween pumpkin. I put it on my truck hood so everyone could see the devastation (or creative alterations) presented by Bodhi.

So that is my horsey product story for today. Or now better known as “$10.99 circling the drain in the fastest time ever!”…

Just a day in the life, eh? ;)

HORSE AND MAN is a blog in growth… if you like this, please pass it around!
If you want an update on the Bucket Fund or to donate, please click on the photo (photo credit, Trish Lowe)

Posted in Humor, Tack thoughts | 3 Comments »

Angel’s Bucket Fund Receipt and The Gentle Control Hackamore

Friday, June 17th, 2011

Friday is always one of those days that you just hope goes by quickly so you can start your weekend!

Yup, I agree.

So, today I’m going to make it easy on you and be light and breezy.

First, I would like to show you all the receipt for donations in memory of Angel and Gypsy who passed earlier this month at Alaqua. So sad. But, this money does ease the pain of all the vet bills, if nothing else. I know Laurie was heartbroken to lose those two, especially one right after the other. Ouch.

Thank you all for your wonderful thoughts and emails for Laurie. I’ve got to say that the response was overwhelming! Truly. You all outdid yourselves emotionally and really showed your support. You are a great group, for sure…

From Laurie: “What wonderful people. Thank you!!!!”

Receipt for Alaqua in Angel and Gypsy's honor.

THE GENTLE CONTROL HACKAMORE

While I was strolling around the Horse Expo last weekend, I saw this item. It is called the Gentle Control Hackamore.

The Gentle Control Hackamore

Now, I’m not a Western rider and my horses don’t know how to neck rein. But, I do like things bitless if they work well. I especially like them if they are pretty/handsome.

This contraption stopped me in my tracks.

It was very odd yet tempting… like green frosting or edible teacups.

Basically, it is a shaped plate that sits behind the horse’s chin. It is attached to the reins and the headstall and the upper part of the plate has a flat edged cup. If the rider neckreins, the the plate tilts in the direction of the rein and the cup catches the chin and guides the horse one way or the other. If the rider pulls back, the reins pull the plate back which puts pressure on the top of the plate against the chin and on the noseband. That’s it.

The release is instant.

Hmmmmm.

I don't neck rein but I still thought this was a very interesting idea...

SO I CHECKED IT OUT

I was on the fence with it because the plate looked like it could feel severe against the chin bone of the horse. I played with a few of the hackamores and tried to make it hurt me (or my finger, to be exact).

It pinched but didn’t hurt nearly as much as I thought it would. I would call it a firm discouragement if you yanked on it.

I asked the maker if he ever put sheepskin on the plate to ease the bite. He said, “Yes” – but none of the display models had it. I asked him why not and he said that he used to make a little fitted sock for the plate but no one used them.

I would.

He told me that people at therapeutic riding schools use these all the time because you can put a lead rope through the catch and lead a horse – which keeps the plate away from their chin – while the rider does whatever he wants with the reins. The horse never feels it.

Ha.

Anyway… I was interested enough to ask him if I could take one home to demo on Finn.

He was very agreeable and didn’t even ask for money or a credit card or anything. He just rigged one up (with a gorgeous headstall, I might add…) and gave it to me. Just like that.

Nice. Nice guy.

This kinda shows it... but this looks more industrial than it really is... and I like the versions without the cable.

FINN WORE IT

OK, well, I’m a nimrod. I have no idea why I thought Finn would be able to neck rein without ever being taught how.

Silly me.

I set him up and put the hackamore on – he didn’t mind it – and I got on and tried to make him understand this weird thing on his face.

He didn’t.

I didn’t know how to teach him.

We were like Laurel and Hardy in the arena.

But, even though he had no idea what I wanted, it didn’t seem to hurt him. And, it did make him kinda move around but not exactly how I intended for him to move.

We trotted and did several turns, but it wasn’t pretty.

Still, he didn’t fling his head or refuse to move or turn around and give me a dirty look. He was OK with the thing… it was ME that was the issue.

Here it is on Finn. You can see the shaped sides and how it directs the head, basically. The clips are my reins.

PICTURES

I swear, all the photos on the website are not really very explanatory – certainly not as obvious as when you have the plate in your hand. If you are holding it, it makes perfect sense. I should have taken a pic when I had one in my hand. Oh well.

Here is the website for you to poke around for yourself.

Finn doesn't care at all... I put the fleece on the noseband. It doesn't come with that.

I WANT YOU TO KNOW IT EXISTS

So, I gave the hackamore back to the nice man and told him that I had failed but the piece was very lovely.

He was sad and a bit flumoxed that I didn’t know how to neck rein at all… he kept saying how easy it was. So, I guess I am not too smart in that area.

For me, I just want you Western riders to know that this exists.

Maybe it is something that would really help round out your tack room.

I thought it was interesting. I want you to let me know what you think…

From the website

EVEN MORE INTERESTING

What I found even more interesting was the ‘scrapbook’.

Yup, the maker of the Gentle Control Hackamore had this old scrapbook of his father who invented this device. His father, in the 50′s, created this hackamore and used it on their horses at their ranch.

The son thinks the father made ‘about 8 of ‘em’.

I loved that.

Anyway, the family used these hackamores ALL THE TIME. In fact, other family members would beg him to make one for them on holidays and things like that. They never broke and they lasted forever. He said their horses never, ever wore a bit.

Towards the end of Granddad’s life, Son decided to ask for the recipe, as it were.

And he got it.

It was then that Son decided to make it easy on them all so he created a fabricated version. Son got the patent and the rest is history.

From what son tells me, he sells quite a few…

The booth was really pretty. I swear he had some of the prettiest headstalls there. Really. Nice.

Anyway, give it a try and let me know how it works on a real neck reiner… I’ll be sure to tell Finn! ;)

HORSE AND MAN is a blog in growth… if you like this, please pass it around!

CLICK to help Itsuko, our June Bucket Fund mare.

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Tags: Gentle Control hackamore
Posted in Handy Tips, Tack thoughts | 1 Comment »

I FOUND A SADDLE FOR MY EXTREMELY TOUGH TO FIT MARE!!!! THE ADVANTAGE SADDLE.

Monday, June 13th, 2011

I cannot believe it!

IMPOSSIBLE TO FIT (SO FAR) MARE.

I’m too ignorant with precision saddle design to understand the exact reasons why saddles don’t fit my mare; but it has to do with her laid back shoulder and narrowing back. She is gaited which also raises the bar…

I’ve been trying for 3 years. I’ve demoed more saddles than I have shoes in my closet.

Truth to tell, there was a good part to exploring every saddle on the market - I wrote about the saddles that I liked.

I was also able to find saddles for my easier to fit horses.

The downside was that I spent a lot of time with no results for BG.

THE WESTERN STATES HORSE EXPO

Last week, in preparation for the Western States Horse Expo which was coming to Sacramento (close to me), I printed the exhibitor list and circled every saddle maker who was attending. I did this last year and the year before… but I was hoping there would be a new vendor or someone I had missed previously.

After clicking to every site of those saddlers that I hadn’t already tried, I found two that looked interesting. The Advantage and The Stonewall.

I liked the Advantage because it had the footprint of an endurance saddle yet it had enough material to appear secure. It was short. Lightweight. Had foam undersides and was made for tough to fit horses. Sounds like my kinda saddle…

The Advantage Saddle

THE LEAD-IN

I had contacted Advantage Saddlery to let them know that I was interested in demoing a saddle.

Katee, the owner, asked me to take a series of photos of my horse both standing and moving. She was very clear that her saddles were made to fit the moving horse.

I asked if a video would work. She said either would be fine.

So, I shot stills and sent a video. I wanted to cover everything for her.

After reviewing my photos, Katee told me that she thought my tough to fit mare would be a Medium. Just to be sure, she would send the pre-formed fabrications home with me to lay on my horse’s back.

Nice…

THE EXPO

I arrived at the Expo and just due to logistics, I ended up at the Advantage Saddle booth first.

My impression of Advantage Saddlery was that this was a new and eager company. The booth was small but set up really nicely. And, my favorite part, it was all about the saddle. Nothing else (except mohair cinches).

There were the pre-fabbed forms, some model trees (with education adjustments so that you could move them around to understand the moving parts of a horses’ back) and a book of photos of equine backs.

Another bonus was that the saddler, Katee, was fresh and extremely helpful. There was no pretense or elitism here. It was all about fit and customer service.

Refreshing.

The panels are velcro'd on. No rivets or screws.

DECISIONS

I sat in both of her models, the Classic and the Custom. Both felt the same. Most of the differences were cosmetic and since I am on a budget, I went for the Classic – however, I probably would have chosen it anyway. I liked it.

For me, who likes a roomy seat, I chose the 16″ and figured I’d put in a Sheepie if I needed it. I also went for just leathers instead of fenders. My legs are so short, fenders usually are a waste of money and leather…

After a thorough saddle tree demonstration on why her tree allows for the movement of the traveling horse – all of which made sense to me at the time and none of which stayed with me – I walked away with two forms and a beautiful saddle.

Another model

THE NEXT MORNING

The next morning, to be honest, I really didn’t have any high hopes.

I mean, even though I liked the saddle and her schpeal made much sense to me… I really felt that I would never, ever fit my mare. As I’ve said before, I was almost willing to give up on riding her except for the fact that she loves to explore.

Anyway, I grabbed BG and tied her to the trailer.

As I pulled out the first form, the yellow Medium shape, I let her sniff it.

Immediately she braced. She knew. She knew it was another dang saddle trial and she was prepared to hate it.

Once the sniff test was over, I put the lightweight plastic form onto her back and slid it into place.

It fit like a glove.

IT FIT LIKE A GLOVE.

IT FIT LIKE A GLOVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I could not believe it.

I kept moving it around like a monkey but it simply kept slipping right into the sweet spot and stayed there. Perfect.

I was dumbstruck, however, this was just the form. I doubted the actual saddle would fit.

But before I went for the saddle, I decided to try the other form, he Green (small) sized, just to see.

It didn’t fit.

A Custom Design. Covered pommel, padded seat, tooling...

THE SADDLE

The one thing about demoing a saddle that makes me kinda fidgety and a bit nauseous is trying to keep it clean and NOT DING IT. I always feel tense.

So, I put a sheepskin cover on the seat, put foil over the stirrup pads and used my own girth.

I was ready.

(Oh no, I wasn’t. I needed to find a clean saddle pad! I didn’t have one. I used a towel instead.)

The saddle only weighs about 14lbs so I carried it over, let her sniff it and then swung it onto her back on top of the towel.

It fit just as perfectly as the form.

I could not believe it! I swear to horsegod, it fit all the way around.

BG cannot believe it fits! Ears forward. (That yellow thing on the ground leaning against my trailer is the form I used to initially fit her back.)

Fit

Fits on the other side, too! (I had been futzing with the cinch which is why the leather is a bit poofy there. - I forgot to pat it back down before taking the pic.)

GIRTHING

The next hurdle was the girthing.

BG has such a laid back shoulder that usually the saddle and the rigging end up mid-belly on her. I end up having to pull the girthing forward which usually doesn’t work. Center-fire rigging never works for her.

The Advantage rigging is totally adjustable in a way that is actually totally adjustable. It isn’t tough to do and it doesn’t slide back to where it was. You just push it to where you want it. The way it is attached make it stay put. Believe me. I tried to move it after I had cinched it. Nada. Not possible.

Girthing system. It slides easily and stays put.

UGLY FACES

At this point in our usual saddling trials, BG has the pissy face from hell. After cinching , she usually pins her ears and lets me know that she would bite me if she wasn’t so well mannered.

But with this saddle all cinched, she had no pissy face. She was actually ‘ears forward’. Wow.

RIDING

The final hurdle was riding.

I brought her up to the arena and led her to my mounting block.

She didn’t sidle just out of reach. She stood there.

Hmmmmm.

I laid myself over the saddle just to put weight in there without throwing over my leg.

Nothing.

I flapped my arms around and played with the leathers and stirrups… still nothing.

So, I swung my leg over…

BG was anticipating pain. She set her feet and was ready.

….and sat in the saddle.

We both stood there, holding our breath.

Her ears flicked.

Then she lowered her apprehensively-set head and looked at me.

“Hey, wher’d ya get this one?”

I asked her to move forward and she did.

Again, we held our breath.

After a couple of circles, we both relaxed. She was happy.

SHE WAS HAPPY!

I could not absorb this moment. I kept looking for a sign ‘any minute’. I kept waiting for an explosion or a refusal to turn one way or the other.

But, nothing happened. She just kept on riding around without incident.

MY SEAT

At this point, I hadn’t even thought about my seat. And, actually, if I found a saddle she liked, I’d probably sit on a seat of nails…

However, I wanted to think about the seat. Since I had the sheepie on it, there wasn’t much to feel. I was comfortable and felt secure. My back didn’t hurt and my legs were in the right position underneath me. I wasn’t tipped forward or backward. The seat was even.

I felt like I do in my Boz saddle, which has been my standard of comfort for years.

Wow.

SOLD.

Another version from the show

WEBSITE OR GETTING ONE OF YOUR OWN

I’m not sure how she is going to finish her very new website. Right now, it is not nearly as informative as she was inside of her booth at the Expo. I swear, I understood the entire design in about 10 minutes while she explained it to me with her little models.

On the website, she doesn’t show those fabricated models so you cannot see how the tree works.

But, if you take the time to contact her, let her explain the movement of the horse and how her tree is different, it will be worth your time.

Also, take photos for her – standing and moving.

I don’t know if lending out her forms is a regular practice or not. But, it really helped me.

Anyway, here is her website. Call her and start the process on your tough to fit horse. Or even your easy to fit horse!

I love the rigging, the balance, the styling, the weight, the small footprint, the trail riding set-up, the foam underside and the FIT.

Oh yeah, and I forgot to say… reasonably priced.

Contact info

EXPERIMENT

Since Katee is always willing to learn, we spoke about me not using any pad (not necessary with the foam pads attached) and I am going to glue some tacky material to the bottom of the attached foam pads. I think this will be a great addition to keep the foam clean and also give added stick.

Katee told me that if it didn’t work, she’d send me new pads. And, if it did… she’d add it to the product line.

Love that! Listening and experimenting are wonderful things…