Favorite saddle pads for the back-sore horse?

[Whyevernot55]

My young TB mare is having some issues with backsoreness. I’d like to see if anyone has an opinion on changing saddle pads that might help as well. I have one Back on Track pad that she seems to like, but I generally ride in is a simple Lettia square pad until recently. Her saddle fits quite well and is not the primary issue, which we are addressing.

There are so many threads on the various pads that I am lost as to what might be the best option - what the heck is the difference between them? EcoGold, Back on Track, Thinline, and on and on and on!

[Horsechick200]

I swear my Thineline. I don’t know the exact differences between all the half pads out there but I’ve ridden several horses that only ‘come through’ with a Thineline pad. It also greatly helped my back pain while riding (I’ve had one to many slipped discs)

[SonnysMom]

If the saddle fits well you really shouldn’t need a pad. For some horses just because the saddle fitter says it fits the horse may thing differently. All saddle fitters are not created equal.
I went a long time with a saddle that did not fit well. One saddle fitter thought that it did once she shimmed it. A Master Saddler told me to NEVER put it back on his back.
I had his SI injected to help break that back pain cycle. He was sore in the hocks and the saddle didn’t fit well so we went hollow, so his SI hurt. Hock injections and back injections helped.
You don’t say where in the back she is sore. Sometimes having sore hocks or stifles causes them to compensate and therefore they get back sore.

That being said I do like riding with a Mattes half pad. I think they are nice, cushy and breathe. I frequently ride with no pad underneath the sheepskin.

[SugarCubes]

My gelding has kissing spines and gets back sore easily. The best combo for him has been a BOT pad with an Ogilvy half pad on top. We’ve tried a Thinline and an EcoGold with shims and he was very, um, expressive about his dislike for them ;)We have a great saddle fitter in the area who will also bring out halfpads and different shims to try before you buy…any chance you have someone like that in your area? It was super helpful to figure out what he liked before dropping a ton of money on different pads.

[Lynnwood]

This is going to sound snarky and isn’t meant to. My favorite saddle pad for a sore backed horse is a saddle that fits correctly.

No matter the gimmick each provides you are very limited to what they can actually help with if the saddle itself fits incorrectly.

[tnscvaga]

Does your saddle have a plastic tree? The high end Italian saddle with the plastic tree fit my guy according to multiple saddle fitters. He was still back sore, until I went to saddle with a wooden tree. At that point the fitter, who sells both types, admitted that some horse prefer a wooden tree. YMMV

[Dressagelvr]

Until you find and fix the cause of that sore back, I wouldn’t ride this horse.

No saddle pad can ease back pain.

[cgray0983]

One of my geldings has a back that is maybe an inch or two too long for a higher-level jumper, so he often develops some sensitivity in his SI. His saddle fit is good. He gets acupuncture with eStim once a month or as needed to keep him comfortable (this runs me $70/session from my vet). When I was competing him AO jumpers I also had B12 injections in those same acupuncture points. His saddle pad of choice though, to answer your question, is a Lami-cell memory foam pad, and he can only be ridden in the one saddle that fits him.

As suggested above, perhaps find out what the source of the back soreness is (other joints, neck, shoulder…) if you don’t think it’s your saddle and try and treat that.

[hoopoe]

Agreed with the others. Back off on this young horse. Sore back can be a sign of hock issues, overtraining and/or poor saddle fit. Young horses can (and should)change muscle definition as training progresses, you need a GOOD saddle fitter on you side

[BLBSTBLS]

Just a thought… Does he have sensitive skin? Or any kind of skin irritation where the saddle goes. We have one horse who is mostly white where his saddle goes and his skin gets irritation sometimes from the sweat. So we are always careful to dry his back well, use the Microtek spray and keep him free of any dryness/irritation in that area. before we realized just how sensitive he is we thought it was his back etc, but turns out it was just his skin bothering him. Now he is as happy as a horse in a carrot field.

[LookmaNohands]

You need to fix the reason for the soreness in the first place. I do this all the time with horses that come to me for training. They have all sorts of behavior problems and the first thing I have to fix is the soreness. Then most of the behavior problems go away!!

[jen-s]

There’s not a pad on earth that can fix back soreness. You can certainly add impact protection, saddle shimming/balancing, etc, but true soreness has a cause that must be addressed to resolve.

[cswoodlandfairy]

[QUOTE=Whyevernot55;8642078]
My young TB mare is having some issues with backsoreness. I’d like to see if anyone has an opinion on changing saddle pads that might help as well. I have one Back on Track pad that she seems to like, but I generally ride in is a simple Lettia square pad until recently. Her saddle fits quite well and is not the primary issue, which we are addressing.

There are so many threads on the various pads that I am lost as to what might be the best option - what the heck is the difference between them? EcoGold, Back on Track, Thinline, and on and on and on![/QUOTE]

I would recommend a Fenwick saddle pad. Also if you horse is having soreness issues I HIGHLY recommend looking into a supplement called Body Sore. Farmvet carries it but you have to call them directly. It is amazing stuff. My TB had issues with back soreness for various reasons and we had him on it and it did wonders for him. It has a bit pricey upfront cost but once in maintenance it levels out to about $30 a month.

[beau159]

@Whyevernot55;8642078

My young TB mare is having some issues with backsoreness. I’d like to see if anyone has an opinion on changing saddle pads that might help as well. I have one Back on Track pad that she seems to like, but I generally ride in is a simple Lettia square pad until recently. Her saddle fits quite well and is not the primary issue, which we are addressing.

Can you explain what IS the cause of the horse’s back soreness?

I do agree that the saddle pad probably won’t make any difference. You’ll have to fix the root of the problem, whatever that may be.

[SendenHorse]

I like back on track for a square pad, and I have both the thinline and Prolite half pads, depending on what I need (one is shimable, one is just the flat thin material).

Be careful to have the saddle fit with what ever pad you decide to use, don’t squash it with a half pad if it’s already a good fit.

[LadyB]

I have a chestnut thoroughbred, gelding. He’s always had back issues but with proper fitting saddles he’s been doing really well.

He’s had chiro and massage, and is usually massaged once a month. He has a phantom back pain at this point. I’ve had vets look at him, the massage therapist says he’s fine and that he does get sore from time to time with our work schedule.

I agree that first you find a saddle that fits, but some times there are days where they can be a little off. My guy had a break out of heat hives a few weeks ago, I’ve had a massage therapist out twice since they have gone down and he is STILL sore. Its not a saddle issue, I have 2 new saddles made for him.
Some times you need a pad to just ease them.
I like the Ecogold pads, as their “half pad” is practically build into the saddle pad, its less bulky, and doesn’t effect the saddle fit like a thinline or ogilvy would.

I have also purchased one of these in the past http://www.amazon.com/Intrepid-International-Fitted-Gel-Half/dp/B003UT6JDU it’s great for spreading the weight out easily. When he’s feeling more sensitive than usual then I put it on.

My guy used to sit down in the gross ties, I bought him off the track and he was a wreck. Over time he’s really come a long way. He’s maintained well and he is well suited up with tack. So yes I agree with others that instantly jump on the saddle fit, but some time you have a sensitive sally that just needs that little bit more of cushion.

Good luck.