The Saddle Experiment

'Mr F' was in good fettle this morning and later this early evening when I went to see him. He appeared more content. 

Tomorrow we shall wander over to 'Buttercup Farm' where 'Mr F' will spend the winter months. That is as far as I plan ahead. Everything changes all the time, but my only concern is for 'Mr F' to be sound and well. 'Mr F' is to go and stay with 'Little Sammy' once more. It won't be the same as a big horse but it is company. The reason for moving 'Mr F' back to 'Buttercup Farm' is first and foremost so that he has access to a stable 24/7. He can wander in and out as he pleases and will have hay / haylage in there for food. For me it is only a 10 minutes drive away from where I currently reside.

He was somewhat making a point with his down attitude that things just weren't quite as he is used to. While I greatly enjoyed having him being able to be on the wonderfully natural fields here at 'Lillian's, the use of a stable in the winter months is more important.

And it will save me no end of time as I don't have to drag all maintenance gear (paste for his soles, brushes, hoof picks, rugs, etc etc) through damp fields in the dark. I can also go and see him when it is dark as the place is quite well lit.

Currently the stable door needs some repair done to it prior to arrival and there will be a few other things to sort out but it will be so much easier for me to attend his feet etc. He will miss his bigger pals but he can see 'Madame' and 'PL' in the other fields and there is only so much I can do to make things 'right' for 'Mr F'. 

And there, all being well, I shall be testing out 'Mr F's new saddle. Before we were riding in a 'Barefoot' Bareback Physio Pad. Basically a pad which is shaped especially to accommodate the protruding withers. The pad itself is padded with high density foam basically a big pad with a cloth (like suede) outer and non-slip (it really never slipped, neither up nor downhill even with loose girth). In fact it is like two pads, under the bigger main pad sits a smaller pad with velcro openings at both ends on both sides that allow to insert various layers of further foam or shims (pre-cut to shape and can be ordered online). The entire pad can be washed in the washing machine (if your machine is big enough!). Initially I rode with those little side pads but they kept getting in the way of my legs or more precice, my feet (I am short, as I said ... )

I remember the first time I tried this pad - 'Mr F' immediately accepted it and his gait was much freer. He stumbled less going downhill and overall was much more keen on going out. He certainly did no longer walk off when I turn up with it (he used to walk away if he saw me appear with the saddle).

Above 'Mr F' in May 2015, with the 'Barefoot' physio-ride-on pad, in May 2015. The pad is quite soft from a structural point of view and therefore there are no stirrup attachments. I felt instantly more comfortable riding with the pad because my body could find its 'natural' position on 'Mr F's back. No knee rolls in the way and no stirrups to struggle with.

The only downside are rides with a lot of trotting, something I am not able do for too long a time as my muscles will give in eventually. By this I mean posting ... not sitting trott. Sitting trott at a slow speed is OK but at a faster gait, on uneven terrain ... well I cannot do it without bouncing and on protruding withers this isn't very comfortable. Other than that: I feel more safe without stirrups than with for many reasons which I have explained somewhere else in this blog.

However, to give my bottom a bit of a rest on longer rides I have over the past 3-4 months been contemplating getting a treeless saddle. 'Mr F' and I haven't been out riding for basically as long as he has been here over at 'Lillians'. It's time to see if he still is willing to come out while being ridden. It would open up further options, we could travel a little further and see new things, something we both enjoy. 

All the treeless saddles that I saw online that looked as though they could work are in the price range of £650 upwards. I don't have that type of budget though. Then, the other week, I have come across a western-style treeless saddle. It was advertised as a 'possibly barefoot' saddle. It had the typical (like the physio rideo-on pad) velcro attachments underneath to add extra padding (shims?) for spinal clearance. So it could be ... it looked like a 'Barefoot' Arizona saddle. It was listed for very little money, a fraction of what it would have been new, yet it looked basically new. What I liked about it was that it would give me leg freedom. I will need to wear some chaps or long riding boots while using stirrups. It looked a very sturdy saddle yet flexible enough not to create pressure points. 

And so I bid for it and won it. It was promptly delivered withing 3 days and I was very surprised by its quality. Overall I liked it straight away but I have to find out how i get on with it. It will be quite different to the pad, and leather is going to be more slippery at least to start with. But all the shaped parts of the saddle can be exchanged for different sizes, width, etc 

Plenty of means to attach saddle bags ... which is another of my plans for further outings. I am fit so I can ride half way and walk half way ... as long as 'Mr F' carries the bags ... most of the weight are going to be his carrots anyway! 

Ignore the asymmetric placement of the padding, they are attached with velcro and I didn't make an effort of putting them into place for this photograph. The pommel can be swapped for different widths, with or without horn. 

The cantle too can be swapped, or fully removed.

The underneath ... with the two adjustable shims. This time I have placed them symmetrically ...although my concern here is that they will not be sufficient enough to give 'Mr F' enough spinal clearance with stirrups attached. Although I won't used them much, I still want to make sure that his spine and also shoulders are protected.

 I discussed the saddle with 'Lillian' fleetingly and she said; "doesn't the under pad of the physio pad fit this saddle?"  - "I don't know, didn't even think about it ..."

So I went to try and low and behold: it fits perfectly. The placement of the velcro on the underpad matches the placement of the velcro strips on the saddle perfectly. Perhaps it is indeed a 'Barefoot' treeless saddle.

Here the saddle with the physio under pad attached to the underside, We have to see how it fits with the pommel (may have to get different width) but it should offer plenty of spinal clearance. I am only 48kg of weight which should help make riding as comfortable as possible for 'Mr F'. He's not yet seen the saddle. I shall wait until he is settled back at 'Buttercup Farm'. 

The barefoot trimmer lady is coming on Saturday, I am quite sure that she is going to tell me off about the state of his feet. Having said that, recently when we had been going out, 'Mr F' preferred to walk on the tarmac rather than the softer ground ... he used to be the other way round.

Perhaps the past 2 months of going out mostly without hoof boots (although always routes where he could walk on the grass) did harden his hooves for the better. I will find out soon!