Spooky Horse/slipping saddle

[fudge]

Hi

Please could anyone offer any advice as what to do with my 14 2 pony. I have had her from June and was sold as 100% safe on own and company!!

She is very spooky out on her own and I have been building her confidence up very slowly. She is better in company.

She came with tack but the saddle was a bad fit. I had a saddler out who sold us a Thorogood t6 cob xxwide, which he says fits her.

The only trouble is it slips very badly, we have a anti slip saddle pad and have bought a stubben string girth to try.

Today she did another spook when we were on our way home, and broke into a canter, which then turned into a gallop as she could see home, the trouble is I have no confidence in the saddle as soon as I was trying to turn her, the saddle slipped and she started doing small bucks and then I fell out the side down with the saddle sliding all the way round to her belly,

Which sent her in to a full gallop home with saddle drag underneath, which is not going to help her confidence.

I have had the saddle checked, the saddler has said it fits, he says it will slip as she is a wide cob type with no withers and there not much you can do with them until she loses weight. She is in gazing muzzle and restricted diet - so I am working on it.

I dont have endless funds but would like to give the pony a chance but I am losing my confidence which wont help her and I am not sure where to go with the saddle, someone suggested a western saddle as it might stay on, and if I have more confidence in the saddle then I will have more confidence in her.

Any suggestion welcome as my only next step is to sell her to someone who can do her justice.

Thanks

[Michelle]

I would try a treeless saddle, either a Trekker Pro or a Freemax. In my experience, a good treeless with a wintec dressage girth, will stay put on even the most roly poly horses. Your thoroughgood saddle will have a good resale value if you want to change it. That will be cheaper than changing the pony which will be tricky to sell with its current behaviour. Always ride with a dressage whip to keep your pony straight and reinforce the leg. Consider if your bit is doing it's job. Think about a fulmer cheek bit or better still, if you have good hands, a Pee Wee. Go back to riding out in company till you have your neddy's undivided attention. Remember to reward them when they pass something scary. I reward with mints as I ride out which helps them to focus on the desired behaviour. Always wear hi-viz and whilst in the tricky phase a body-protector. Remember to breathe. Good luck!

[Angela]

I realise this is horribly basic, and please don't be offended as I am sure you have considered this, but are you feeding anything other than hay? So often spookiness is enhanced by feeding even simple things like carrots and sugar beet, I wouldn't feed anything! and keep going out in company until it settles a bit more. Have you thought of discussing with Avril the Duett saddle which I believe is designed for witherless broad cobs! Personally, I could think of nothing more horrid than having to ride a spooky pony on a slipping saddle! Perhaps another saddler's opinion ? Good luck.

[lisandsaf]

Hi Fudge
Sorry to hear of your dilema's how awful.. Maybe you should go back to handling the pony from the ground and gaining some respect from him/her before even thinking of riding out,, equally the pony needs to have confidence in you as a leader which you will gain from ground work and when you have the ponies undivided attention from the ground and he listens to you without invading your space and doesnt drag you all over the place and walks in hand at the walk, trot and backs up when asked all on aloose contact then and only then would i contemplate getting on him even bare back at least you can slide off quickly ,, and then i would walk out not to far praise the pony up then turn round and come back. Each day going a little further.. this process may take you a fair few weeks but better the time spent now then a disaster if you rush...
When you feel confident aboard again you could try a bareback pad, they are available through natural horsemanship websites and some have stirups too and you will have a much closer contact with the pony than you would with a saddle
Good luck
Lisa and Saf

[avril]

Hi Fudge,

Your story is all too familiar to us at Duett saddles, we listen to people telling us how their saddles slip about all over the place despite girthing up the poor horse to the max. We found it very difficult ourselves to find suitable saddles for our cobs, which is why we became sole UK distributors.

We have a mare here who has the widest back I've ever seen, a complete table in fact. She does need to go on a diet because she doesn't have a spine, she has a fleshy channel instead. She has previously been fitted with every conceivable type of saddle and none truly stay in place, but luckily for us we have our Duetts which really do a great job without pads, overtight girths, cruppers, balance straps etc.

These saddles are exceptionally comfortable, you might want to check out the website.....http://www.duett.co.uk/ We will also be at Your Horse Live next month with the complete range.

[angie]

Hi Fudge,

Sorry to hear your horrible luck - I can sympathise with your loss of confidence, and having a spooky pony. I got my cob mare a year ago, but luckily, on the whole, she has built my confidence. However, she can spook big style at the scary flower in the hedge, and has put in 2 nasty spins recently. What has helped my confidence grow in her the most, is having a weekly lesson with an understanding instructor - thereby strengthening your authority in a safe enviroment, and hacking out only in company for the fist 6 months or so. I then hacked her out alone for the first time after a 30min lesson, when she was a bit tired, and really tuned into me. The difference was unreal!!
Good luck, we're all rooting for you, most of us having had bad expereinces.

angie and ella x

[valda]

Hi Fudge,
I know exactly what you are feeling as I have gone through all of these problems with my 14.2 pony. I don't think there's any quick fix and I think that everyone has given really sound advice but for what it's worth I'd add the following:
It's worth getting her back checked as any discomfort will encourage her to take flight. Once that's been OK'd get a second opinion on the saddle. I tried to manage with a similar saddle on my 14.2 pony but they're just not particularly stable on the rounder type ponies. If finances allow then I would certainly recommend looking at the Duett saddles. If you really are stuck with this saddle then there are a couple of products which I can really recommend. One is a sticky gel saddle pad put directly on the horses back then the saddle on top - No numnah. I'll see if I can find the website and post the link for you. The second is a Keiffer Neoprene girth - it is far more secure than a string girth and very comfortable for the pony. It's really important that you get this stuff sorted before you get on her as you correctly say, it will not help either your or her confidence if everything is moving around on her back.

These pony's are prone to getting round so the grazing muzzle is a good idea but I would take her off any hard feed if you've not already done so, she'll get enough energy from the grass. Aside from diet, the best thing for her to lose weight is to increase her exercise. Whilst I'm not a huge fan of excessive lunging, I do think it has it's advantages and can be hugely beneficial in cases such as these. Firstly, it'll burn calories. Secondly, it will help you to establish your relationship on the ground. Thirdly, you're not onboard so it's something that you can do whilst getting her tack sorted. Make the lunging varied and interesting and above all, really concentrate on getting her to respond to your voice - it'll come in really useful when you're riding if you can stop her with your voice - it's one of the most effective aids yet frequently gets overlooked. Another good form of exercise and confidence building is long-lining but it needs to be done correctly so if you're unsure as to how to do it, see if there's someone that can start her off to get her used to it while you practice on a more established horse. I used to long-line my pony for miles up the country lanes to get her used to going out alone as I was more confident on the ground than I was in the saddle. It made a huge improvement in her confidence in a relatively short time.
Finally, once you're happy with your tack and her weight, why not just go back to hacking her in company? It'll take the pressure off both of you and unless there's a specific reason for needing her to hack alone right now, then I'd take things very slowly with her. If she's anything like my pony she'll get her confidence from her rider and if you're tense or unsure of her it will simply compound the problem. Once you're at the stage where you're genuinley enjoying riding her again, then maybe start to take her alone but as Lisa says, just a short distance initially (maybe sing to yourself to keep your breathing even and reassure her) then ask her to stand, reward her, then take her home. Remember to keep singing on the way home too so that going home is a relaxing experience too. Another good tip is to ask someone to walk out with you on foot, sometimes in front and sometime behind as this will give her a bit of additional reassurance.

This has gone on a bit longer than I was intending but I kept remembering things that I used to do as I was typing so hopefully you'll find some of it useful.

Good luck and keep us updated.

[fudge]

hI

Thank you for all your replies, they have given me much support and encouragement to carry on with my Pony.

I am going to look for another saddler to come and give me a second opion and I hope to go to the Horse Show in November 14 and see the Duett saddle stand.

I am working on the weight loss programme, she wears a green guard muzzle by day, I dont rug her and she is only given two handfuls of hifi lite with biotin, magnesium and general vits.

I am working with her on the gournd, via lunging and in hand exercises.

I am only going to go out with another rider or someone walking on the ground, until she feels a lot less stressed.

Hopefully this will all help, as generally she is a good pony and does not have a nasty bone in her body.

Thank you for all your help and advice, I will let you know how we progress.

[valda]

Hi fudge,
Good to hear that it's been useful. I think that's the beauty of this site - everyone on here genuinely tries to help and share experiences.

I found the link to that non-slip pad:

old-dairy-online-saddlery-shop.co.uk/acatalog/Non_Slip_Saddle_Pads.html

When they stop sticky you simply soak them in warm water for 5 mins and they're like new again, Definitely a worthwhile investment - I've had mine about 3 years now and people are always borrowing it to try before they buy!

[Erika and George]

Fudge,
Slipping saddles are a complete nightmare. It was about 6 months before I got one that I and George were totally happy with. A slipping saddle is uncomfortable and scary for the horse too as you have unfortunately found out. I have a very nice saddler who comes out and does a proper whither pattern on George before even looking at the saddle. She has all the patterns and can see how he has changed shape over the years. This year I had to have a major re-fit on the saddle because he has changed shape yet again and she said that I must be feeling like I am falling out the front all the time. She was spot on and I thought it was my poor riding style.
I also tried a string girth but found it made little difference and these days use a Wintec which is much better.
And regarding Valda's suggestion of riding out with somebody accompanying you on foot this is also a very good idea. I often ride out with my children and George follows them even to the point of zigzagging down the bridleway if that is what they are doing. So your pony may also happily take her lead from a person on foot. I also totally agree with Valda's view on getting your pony to understand your voice. Getting George to understand STAND has saved my skin on more than one occasion. You do have to mean it to get it to work! When his reins broke in the spring and he bolted in panic, only me shouting STAND made him stop. Unfortunately too many people think that a horse bolting for home is naughty and nappy but in most cases they are frightened and it is their instinct to do this. It can also take a long time for a horse to get over a scare. When George's reins snapped it seriously freaked him out and though we managed to get home safely he was completely terrified for the next few weeks. I had to go right back to basics, choose one quiet ride and walk quietly for the whole route. No matter how tempting it was to canter we just walked everywhere. Once he was happy in walk we then progressed to short bursts of trot with lots of half halts and a bit of leg yielding thrown in. After about 3 weeks I was able to re-introduce canter and then start exploring our other routes. It probably took me about 5-6 weeks to get him back on track though I was only riding 2-3 times a week. And this is a chap who is normally bomb-proof.
So don't blame yourself or the pony. Accept that these things happen and if you can work through it your bond will be much stronger.
Good luck,
Erika & George

[jasmin]

Hi Fudge - how are things going for you? Hope you're having some positive times with your pony now...

[fudge]

Hi Jasmin

Thanks for asking about my pony,> I am getting on better with her now. We are hacking out with others to build her confidence up and in the arena she is a lot better, no spooking in corners, so far. (fingers crossed). I have bought a new saddle which seems to stay on better and I am staying on as I have not fallen off in the last month, phew!

She is still a work in progress. I am hoping to get her out on her own when the weather gets better for small hacks. We are just going take it slowly. She is brillant in every other way. But she is not what they said she was "A School Mistress". I have been told it can take a while for them to settle so hopefully every thing will keep getting better. ;D ;D