Saddle Fit Solutions for Lusitanos?

[CanteringCarrot]

Did you find a solution OP?

@olivia91

have you checked out dominique barbier saddles? they are specifically made for breeds like lusitanos

I have never heard of that brand. Interesting. Not exactly cheap, but they seem to be tailored to the short backed baroque type. Interesting.

I recently ended up with a Prestige Lucky. A youth saddle but it fits me as a smaller rider and fits my horse well in the wide tree. Makes sense that a youth/pony saddle would work on his non-existent back :lol: I just never thought of it. It was wayyy cheaper than buying one of the “adult” Prestige models, and the quality is still nice. I just never thought of that as a solution.

[kharris92130]

I hadn’t realized that I wasn’t getting notifications for posts on my threads, so I apologize for not responding to Cantering Carrot’s request for an update. Three weeks ago I had an independent saddle fitter come the barn to take a look at the Obrigado and how it fits my horse. She doesn’t sell saddles and came highly recommended so I felt comfortable that she would give an honest assessment. She felt the panels connected with his back too close to the spine, putting undo pressure near the center of his body and creating the indents. She moved the flocking around so that the panels contacted his back further down on the barrel, where the shelving ended. She also adjusted the saddle to fit him when his back is engaged, instead of when he’s in a relaxed position with his belly sagging. My horse also has what I thought were fat pockets along the sides of his barrel. She claims they are actually muscles, from him holding his back. Not sure I agree with that. In any case, it’s been three weeks and I haven’t noticed much change in his back muscling. But he is more willing to stretch down and forward with his neck. And I’ve started asking more from him in terms of his using his belly muscles to lift his back. He is such a willing partner and shows such talent, that I hate to think he’s uncomfortable in his saddle. As much as it hurts my ego, I hope it’s my uneducated riding that has delayed the development of muscle over his back.

[no.stirrups]

@CanteringCarrot

I’m really tempted to try a French saddle and
occasionally I see reasonably priced CWD and Devoucoux used saddles. I am just afraid to lose my Wool flocking! However, a lot of the French saddles are shorter with upswept panels.

FYI, Harry Dabbs has upswept panels AND wool.

[kharris92130]

Update: it has now been 2 1/2 months since the saddle was adjusted. There is no more muscling over his back, and the indentations behind his withers have not improved. If anything, they’ve worsened. I think the saddle is pinching there. I am going to try a saddle fitting from Selleria Equipe. They claim to have many different tree shapes and tree materials. The panels are foam, however. Not sure how I feel about that. I’d always heard wool panels are best. Thoughts?

[Liz_Steacie]

I use a Custom Wolfgang on my 16hh Lusitano stallion. No issues.

[CanteringCarrot]

@kharris92130

Update: it has now been 2 1/2 months since the saddle was adjusted. There is no more muscling over his back, and the indentations behind his withers have not improved. If anything, they’ve worsened. I think the saddle is pinching there. I am going to try a saddle fitting from Selleria Equipe. They claim to have many different tree shapes and tree materials. The panels are foam, however. Not sure how I feel about that. I’d always heard wool panels are best. Thoughts?

I’ve heard good things about the Equipe saddles, but I’ve only seen one (jump) in person. A lot of the French style saddles have upswept panels, so I have considered them, but I am hesitant about foam. One of my horse’s (the shortest backed PRE) is becoming to wide for his Prestige, and I think I’d buy foam in a few years/if he were a mature adult (he’s 5). I just feel like he has too much changing left. If you’re expecting your horse to fill out, you could get one slightly wider than needed and fill in with a half pad/shims in the meantime. Foam does “mold” to the horse a bit and doesn’t require reflocking, but I don’t know how much you can really tailor the fit.

[SerenaGinger]

@kharris92130

My horse also has what I thought were fat pockets along the sides of his barrel. She claims they are actually muscles, from him holding his back. Not sure I agree with that.

My Lusitano had fat pockets along his upper barrel and I was also told it was muscle. It was the beginning of a lot of metabolic issues which only resolved once I had him at home and he actually got the supplements I had bought for him (a whole different issue with barn management). Besides the supplements, my water at home is filtered and his previous barn had lots of iron in it.

As as far as saddles go, I didn’t like the Obrigado for me, tried him in a a Wave, and eventually got a Custom Everest that I like a lot better.

[CanteringCarrot]

Re the fat pockets thing, my PRE has something similar to what is being described. However, if I keep him well and fit, they are not prominent. I also keep an eye on his nutrition. While I don’t think he has full blown metabolic issues, I feel as though he is prone to them, so I essentially treat him similar to a metabolic horse. I think this is generally a good idea for these Iberian breeds as they tend to be easy keepers and do not need sugars and starches on top of it.

If you are wanting to stick with wool and not hack off an arm and a leg, Ideal offers a guaranteed remote fitting service. Or maybe there are reps near by. They have a lot of options and their prices aren’t terrible.

[kharris92130]

@SerenaGinger

My Lusitano had fat pockets along his upper barrel and I was also told it was muscle. It was the beginning of a lot of metabolic issues which only resolved once I had him at home and he actually got the supplements I had bought for him (a whole different issue with barn management). Besides the supplements, my water at home is filtered and his previous barn had lots of iron in it.

As as far as saddles go, I didn’t like the Obrigado for me, tried him in a a Wave, and eventually got a Custom Everest that I like a lot better.

SerenaGinger, what is your lusitano being fed currently? Have the fat pockets resolved?

[Equibrit]

It’s a thing with baroque types. They change shapes regularly depending on the season; ie the state of their grazing.