Every one loves BLING! The other day I saw a horse with big BLING conchos on the breast collar. So big that the conchos were digging in to the horse’s chest. The horse had a lot of scar tissue from were it was pushing in to the muscle. For this reason, he was having trouble extending his shoulders forward. I think its great to have the horse look nice, but there can be too much. Remember! This is a speed event and you don’t see the racehorse’s carrying any bling.
I have a BIG problem with neoprene. I see this as one of the worst problems out there. So many people use the neoprene cinch and saddle pad. Why? Think of it this way. We put the neoprene boots on the horse just BEFORE they run. Then we take them off straight after the run. WHY? Because they hold heat in and can damage the muscle’s and tendon’s. So why do we think its ok to have a pad or cinch on the horse for a hour or more with no ill effect.
Saddle fit is our next problem. Have you ever seen a horse walking around and the back of the saddle is sitting way up off the horse’s back? If it’s sitting up from the back its digging in the front. No amount of padding can or will fix that.
Something else to look at. Stand your saddle on its horn. Stand behind the cantle of the saddle. And see if the underside is even. By that I mean, one side of the saddle should be the same as the other. If its not that means the saddle is uneven and would be sitting uneven on your horse. This could be causing or lead to some back issues.
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