Spur rub: I feel terrible!

[RileysMom]

Hi all,

I’m hoping you can make me feel better–I had my first lesson today with a new trainer who put me on a lovely horse (my horse is rehabbing a relatively minor injury). I just flatted for a half hour and it was a relatively calm, quiet lesson. I rode well and really had fun on the new, different horse. I got off, hosed him down and on one side he had a spur mark with some blood. I was horrified. I don’t think the trainer thinks I abused his horse (and I let his barn manager know about the rub and treated it with ointment) because he was literally watching me the entire time. Nothing crazy happened (it’s not like we had an issue that required aggressive riding) either. I don’t think it’s my leg position entirely because with the changing coat this fall, my horse got a few rubs on the right (I’ve had him for a year and after a year of riding this happened) and this rub was on the left. New trainer also said my leg/position was great. I can ditch the spurs if I ride this horse again, but how common is this issue during fall weather? I feel like it has to be mostly coat-related because my horse literally went 10 months without a mark on him (and if anything my leg is much stronger and better in this time) and we hit September and suddenly he was a delicate beast. I’d feel better if this kind of thing happens this time of year!

[ladyj79]

Tape your spurs or take them off and carry a whip. It’s not a coat issue if there was blood.

Don’t feel bad, things happen. If I could attach a photo it would be from Stephan’s horse at the Olympics. A miniscule rub that produced a spot of pink when a white towel was applied. And Stephen is tiny and I swear his legs barely reach beyond the saddle.

It can happen to anyone, just make an adjustment to prevent it happening again.

If as you say your leg is stronger now you probably do need to adjust what spur or how you are using your spur.

[IPEsq]

If he is blowing out his summer coat, then yes, thin coat could be part of the problem. Some horses are more sensitive than others. However, it was still probably your leg. I’m not trying to be mean. I used to have a problem giving spur rubs, and I had to work really hard to train it out of me!

[sandsarita]

I agree it is much more common with some horses. I used to ride my trainer’s horse, and she took spurs off of anyone who rode him, even herself. All other horses went in a tiny spur. My current horse has come back with spur marks a few times, or more than that. And there has never been blood though, but definitely hair rubbed off. The other horses of mine, including one that needs MUCH more leg, have never had a mark on them. On with the marks was a wb, one a tb.

[PNWjumper]

It sounds like you were probably nagging and/or gripping a bit with your spurs. Agree with lady79 that it’s probably a good plan to pull the spurs off and ride that horse without them. Was the horse a little bit dull? I find that often times people who ride one of my mares try to nag, nag, nag with the spurs to get her going and she gets spur rubs super easily in the spring and fall while she’s between coats.

So yes, this time of the year where they’re in the transitional stage between coats is when many of them get super sensitive to rubs because the one coat is blowing out before the other one grows all of the way in. I have to be careful about who I let ride the mare mentioned above in the spring and fall for that very reason. It takes very little nagging to create a rub mark on her. With that being said, it still takes the nagging/gripping with the spurs to make the marks happen. So anyone new who gets on her gets a whip and that’s it.

I call her my “tattle-tale mare” because of it, lol! None of my other horses get rubs regardless of who rides them or how much they use/overuse spurs. So I would say that no rub marks on other horses doesn’t necessarily mean that everything is “just right” on that horse, just that they’re not sensitive. And rub marks on any horse is evidence of something (could be an unstable leg, could be over-reliance on the spurs, or something else entirely).

[PonyPenny]

Ride with your toes forward to not get spur marks.

[BLBSTBLS]

My paint hunter got a spur rub on his left side just a few weeks ago. First time this has ever happened and I have owned him since he was a baby. A younger girl has been riding him and he is just getting his “winter” coat (I say that bc he never gets much of a coat, he just kind of gets a fluffy thin layer poor guy) and it just so happens where her heel/spur touched him was in one of his white spots. She uses roller ball spurs and is very good with her leg. We just pulled the spurs, used ointment and a belly guard until it healed. She has been riding him since it has healed with the spurs again and the rub has not happened again.

[Foxglove6]

Were you riding in your own saddle or the one that fits the horse? I used to give spur rubs all the time without even wearing spurs but always on the left side. I thought it was because my left leg was stronger than the right. When I had a saddle fitter come out, she said the saddle was twisting to the right constantly. I was actually using my left leg (subconsciously) to grip my horse and try to correct the sideways twisting. It was my compensation to try and keep balanced.

Definitely take the spurs off, but maybe also check saddle fit.

[Equitational]

What kind of spurs? If they have rollers, check there are no “sharp” edges on them (or maybe dirt/debri that is rubbing the horse). I threw away those old black roller type because they had kept rubbing all the horses. You can also raise/lower the spur on your heel so it does hit the horse as easily.

[Mayaty02]

we always use roller ball spurs so you can try that, but our horse gets rubs very easily as he’s thin skinned and not a hairy beast. Don’t beat yourself up over it!

[Equibrit]

[QUOTE=RileysMom;8888938]
Hi all,

I don’t think it’s my leg position entirely …[/QUOTE]

Don’t fool yourself.

[Skip_s_Rider]

[QUOTE=Foxglove6;8889729]
Were you riding in your own saddle or the one that fits the horse? I used to give spur rubs all the time without even wearing spurs but always on the left side. I thought it was because my left leg was stronger than the right. When I had a saddle fitter come out, she said the saddle was twisting to the right constantly. I was actually using my left leg (subconsciously) to grip my horse and try to correct the sideways twisting. It was my compensation to try and keep balanced.

Definitely take the spurs off, but maybe also check saddle fit.[/QUOTE]

Ditto for me. My saddle was tipping to the right as well.

[ybiaw]

An accidental spur rub can happen to anyone, once.

[meupatdoes]

Some times it just happens.

I gave my dear sweet horse spur rubs on both sides once just dinking around bareback in the same boots and spurs I always ride in, just with my legs in a different spot from riding without the saddle.

I definitely wasn’t rising remotely aggressively on our leisurely bareback tour so I have no idea why that ride of all possible rides he got spur rubs.

[RileysMom]

Hi all,

Thanks for making me feel better! I rode a different horse yesterday in the same saddle, boots, and spurs, and things were perfectly fine (although I was a bit paranoid the whole ride, twisting around to check his sides, and I paid attention to my leg position). Given that I’ve ridden nearly daily for a year and have only had this issue a handful of times (and only one bad rub) I think it was just one of those accidental things.

[Blugal]

Always check the location of the rub in relation to your leg. I once badly rubbed my horse, a sensitive TB; when I got on the next day I realized it was way too high for spurs - it was actually from my half chaps. I had to switch to riding in tall boots only.