I’m a hunter rider who bought a QH mare. She was started Western but also has nice Hunter gaits. I know to put an English saddle behind the shoulders and assumed a Western saddle would go there also. But people that seem to know are telling me the Western saddle needs to go the the highest point of the withers. That Western saddles do not go behind the shoulder and most people make the mistake of putting the saddle too far back. So is this true? 
Somebody please help a girl out here.
Too far forward is pretty common. About where the concho or screw is below the pommel tends to be the point behind the shoulder. Try that by putting your hand underneath and see how it fits behind the shoulder.
I had a photo of the pony with his saddle on and the saddle didn’t look quite right so I used Youtube. I can’t find the exact one right now, there are a ton, the one that I found most helpful had a female tacking up.
His saddle has a 3/4 rig, that is the cinch is set further back on the saddle so you don’t want to have it right in the groove behind the elbow, that’s something to take into consideration also.
You were told wrong. Sadly it’s a popular misconception. Put your saddle ‘too far back’ behind the shoulder where it belongs and let the others get bucked off.
[QUOTE=Beverley;7634965]
You were told wrong. Sadly it’s a popular misconception. Put your saddle ‘too far back’ behind the shoulder where it belongs and let the others get bucked off.[/QUOTE]
This is how I do it as well.
[QUOTE=Beverley;7634965]
You were told wrong. Sadly it’s a popular misconception. Put your saddle ‘too far back’ behind the shoulder where it belongs and let the others get bucked off.[/QUOTE]
I agree with this.
[QUOTE=imaginique;7635107]
I agree with this.[/QUOTE]
Maybe that is why western pleasure horses shuffle along…they can’t move their shoulders.
Thanks everyone! My mare has been happy the way I was doing it (behind shoulder). Glad to know I was doing it right 
[QUOTE=skykingismybaby1;7635132]
Maybe that is why western pleasure horses shuffle along…they can’t move their shoulders.[/QUOTE]
You might be right!
I put my western saddle back further too, but I had a BNT trainer always move it forward when he used my mare in a couple of clinics. His preference was way forward. Certainly not mine.
This was an Arabian trainer, so it’s not just stock horse people that put the saddles forward.
But as a kid learning to ride western, I was always told to put it further back and never thought on why someone would want it over the scapula…
[QUOTE=Beverley;7634965]
You were told wrong. Sadly it’s a popular misconception. Put your saddle ‘too far back’ behind the shoulder where it belongs and let the others get bucked off.[/QUOTE]
I don’t get What you said. Does the saddle go a little bit up before the withers or back behind the shoulder. Don’t get the bucking off quote. I have a Fallis western custom saddle where the stirups are pretty much even with the cinch , not behind it. Its the way a bareback rider would ride a horse (up toward the shoulders),or a jocky. I feel very safe in it. I tend to put the saddle up close to the witheres and puff up the blanket under it. The cinch comes under close to the shoulders. Best saddle I have ever had.
You want to make sure the front of the saddle is behind the shoulder, where that equates to on the horse’s withers is variable, depending on conformation (straighter or more sloped shoulder). When you have the saddle where you think it should be, simply run your hand down between the front of the saddle and the horse and it’s easy to tell whether you have a tight spot that suggests you aren’t completely clear of the shoulder.
Where the girth ends up is in large part a function of the type of saddle rigging (Full being most forward, center fire being most toward the back of the saddle) but it’s a mistake to peg saddle placement on where one thinks the girth should be. I’ll paste a link to a photo below in case it’s helpful. As for my reference to being bucked off, a too-far forward saddle can be uncomfortable/painful to the horse, and a good many horses will protest by bucking. https://picasaweb.google.com/100310658467918237790/LukeSaddleAugust2010#5586225804369738594
Hopefully here 
[QUOTE=ReSo[/QUOTE]
Yes.
[QUOTE=craz4crtrs;7634929]
Too far forward is pretty common. About where the concho or screw is below the pommel tends to be the point behind the shoulder. Try that by putting your hand underneath and see how it fits behind the shoulder.[/QUOTE]
Some saddles have a decorative concho at the front of the saddle - craz4crtrs is talking about the screw that holds the saddle together and is right below the pommel.
[QUOTE=Flash44;7639522]
Some saddles have a decorative concho at the front of the saddle - craz4crtrs is talking about the screw that holds the saddle together and is right below the pommel.[/QUOTE]
Yes thank you. Most of the time the screw is plain, but I have seen small conchos or rosettes placed over the screw. Thanks for the clarification.
Thanks Beverly for explaining to me the quote. Now it makes perfect sense. I saw the photos and that is the way I tack up as well. Except my sturips are right over the cinch putting just behind the shoulders . Its not constricting in any way to the horse but i feel like I’m in a better spot on the horse. I’ve aways ridden in average western saddles and when I purchased this one,(my trainer has one also), I couldn’t believe how safe i felt in this saddle. I was on a trail ride and my horse got a little muscled up wanting to go to the front. I was drifting him to calm him and he did a crow hop which I never felt due to my saddle.
Thanks for the info.
