Question - ‘Can I do just groundwork with my horse to start him back into work, so that I don’t have to have my saddle fitted now, and then re-fitted again quite quickly once he starts to gain fitness? It would be helpful to avoid the costs of two fittings if it is a sensible option.
Kay replies - I must say I was impressed that the enquirer had realised the horse’s saddle would be unlikely to fit when first starting back into work, and also that there would be sufficient changes to his shape to necessitate a second fitting in a relatively short timeframe. It seems that there is a much greater understanding of the importance of correctly fitting saddlery to the horse’s soundness and wellbeing and nowadays, for which we must all be grateful, as it is definitely a positive scenario.
If a horse has been out or work, the first thing to ask is why? Was it because of injury or lack of time / opportunity to ride? The answer to the former will be different to the latter, as correct and effective rehabilitation for an injury often requires the horse to be ridden. If this is the case, then it is imperative that the saddle is checked before the horse is ridden, which will include the saddle fitter checking that the saddle will stay straight and be balanced, as injuries often alter the horse’s way of going and can send a saddle over to one side. I expect that rehabilitation work will have included walking out in hand, but perhaps, if the saddle fit doesn’t look ‘too far out’, sit on for a couple of minutes before the saddler’s visit, just for safety. If the saddle does move when the saddle fitter sees it ridden in, steps must be taken to keep the saddle straight as the horse works, or there may well be further damage caused. Its also well worth noting that in most cases of injury rehabilitation, lungeing can be harmful because of the forces exerted on the leg, muscles or joint when working on a circle on a manmade surface, which might not be ideal in depth or consistency.
Should the break just be that the horse was turned away for convenience, so just purely unfit, it might be possible to do some preliminary work on the lunge and on long reins, provided you have a safe and secure area to do this. If using a roller, with or without attachments such as side reins, I suggest that you read Russell McKechnie-Guire & Mark Fisher’s research on pressures from rollers, which I shared recently. It makes you think - and no, just putting a pad under it doesn’t solve the problem.
It will be necessary to start to ride sooner rather than later though, as although you are getting the horse fitter, his back is not being prepared by groundwork to carry the saddle for any length of time. I am not talking about top line and shape, but the actual physical ability of the skin and coat to accommodate the normal wear and tear from saddle movement. Even with the very best fitting saddle there is always some movement side to side, and possibly a little back to front, as you are strapping a rigid item onto a moving surface. The skin needs to be prepared as much as the rest of the body. Also, the horse will almost certainly move differently when ridden, so the all the different muscles, ligaments, tendons and other tissues used to support this ridden shape need to be prepared and strengthened as well.
So, would this approach of groundwork to gain fitness be sensible? Possibly, in the short term, but my feeling is that, beyond a couple of weeks the horse really needs to be ridden – and unfortunately, this will lead to the need for the saddle fitter to call a couple of times during the period of increasing fitness, to get the saddle fit established. The risks of taking the alternative route could lead to the horse being injured and unrideable for a while. Just what we don’t want.
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