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Barefoot Surcingle - High wither surcingle

My horse has a wide vertebrae channel and high withers. In our rehab I am doing lots of lounging and groundwork, and it looks like the surcingle I have is just not a good it. The gap between the two leather wedges is just too narrow, so it pinches his withers and eventually slides back. In searching for a high-wither surcingle, I found https://www.barefootsaddlesusa.com/B…m?1=1&CartID=1
the Barefoot surcingle which looks really neat, but I can’t find any reviews. Any suggestions for surcingle which suits high withers?

If you have a saddle that fits, put the surcingle over the saddle. There. Just saved you $175 and it makes for a quick transition from in hand/longe work to ridden work. :slight_smile:

If you want to work with surcingle only, cheap squishy western pads work. Fold one in half so you have 2 thick squishy layers. Also remember that you don’t want the surcingle too far forward. The front of it should be a bit behind the scapula point just like the tree points of your saddle should sit back behind the bone.

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Thanks @sascha I like the western pad idea. I’ve been using a shimmed Fleecewords 1/2 pad under it, but maybe I need to try something bigger. I’m also swapping out the crappy girth that came with the surcingle for an anatomic one, so that might help it stay put as well. Horse’s wither is high and set deep into his back, so It always a struggle to balance that with his natural girth groove.

Keep the crappy one for times when you do want to use the surcingle over your saddle.

I have one. I bought it for my horse that has kissing spine and I wanted wither clearance.

I have tons of clearance over her withers, even without the insert in the top part of it. I keep that out because the angles just aren’t quite right for my girl. It has also seen all sorts of weather since I have been rehabbing without an indoor arena and it still looks new.

Try an anti cast roller? https://www.hogstaonline.com/horse-tack/other-horse-products/anti-cast-roller

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@Xanthoria very interesting - I have never seen one of those! If it had rings for side ring clips I would probably pull the trigger and get it. Right now changing the padding and swapping in a good anatomic girth has helped. The barefoot surcingle will still be on my Christmas list, although it will be behind the Pivo on terms of desire.

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Have a google for “anti cast roller” - there are some out there with Dees :slight_smile:

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Did you end up buying the Barefoot Surcingle? I am having the same problem fitting one of my horses with high withers and was thinking about trying the Barefoot Surcingle. Would love to hear if anyone has seen one in person or tried it.

I didn’t. Using a 1/2 pad and an anatomical girth with my existing surcingle made it fit good enough for light use.