Any way to post a video clip of the horse being saddled?
My mom and dad had a horse like this, and literally, the horse couldn’t stand having the girth tightened… funny enough, after weeks of trying different things, they finally had someone get on the horse before they tightened the girth up. (Gave the person a leg up) then as the person was walking the horse, they tightened it. It worked, and for years on after that’s all you could do. You had to tighten his girth while on him. No ulcers, kissing spine, etc. It was just a problem of his!
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It could very well be non saddle related. However, one of my TB’s was extremely “cold backed”. He would be okay saddling but as soon as I sat down he would bronc a lot! I learned to tack him up and girth loosely and not rush and then slowly tighten with a lot of warm up even at the walk and stretching. I also did a lot of stretching both sides and belly lifts and tail pulls. A vet could show you. My feeling was that he had experienced something terrible before I got him and was so tight in anticipation.
I have had horses girthy due to ulcers but you have explored that.
I’m curious as to what happens with repetition.
So, let’s say you saddle the horse and he explodes. As soon as he calms down, remove the saddle and re-saddle. Is the reaction the same? Less? More?
It sounds like he might just have an attitude problem and maybe needs to see a cowboy who can spend all day saddling and unsaddling until horse learns that it’s a necessary part of life and is to be tolerated.
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I originally thought my horse’s behaviour was vagus nerve - until someone on this bard poo-poo’d it, now I don’t call it that. . . but it might still be that.
However, it is a very violent reaction - like an electric prod bit her, and she bucked round the whole arena, then stopped and was sweet as pie, her normal self. It was only with that short girth, never with my full length girth. The lady who owned the saddle said it had happened before with that saddle but different horse…I wish we could tell for sure. I believe horses are honest and they are telling us something.
I don’t think any horse would put this much energy into being just ‘bad’ or
acting out a learned behaviour of ‘getting away with something’. But they will learn to anticipate the pain.
What ended up happening? I have a horse that is like this now. He has also developed sore feet, but that was about 2 years after the saddling issue began. Really interesting.
I had one of these too, it was a catch 22 as you needed to girth up quickly and decent tight, unless you wanted your saddle sent flying. He used to run off broncing and bronc around for 5 mins. Interestingly he never did it with me on (not like that anyway)
He needed worked everyday and that minimalised the severe explosion, but after some time off, process was saddle on, girth on quick and tight and get the hell out of the way, thats just the way it was.
After a month in work I think it got down to grunting and humping only when led out.
This was also probably 20 years ago now (I forgot this horse actually until I read this thread) so thinking it was a physical issue at the time, really only came down to the obvious ones, of which in his case there were none.
In fact looking back, im still not convinced it was physical, due to the ability to minimalise the behavior, and the serious lack of it when you were on.
Its obviously some sort of trauma (physical or mental, who knows) but I got precisely nowhere in the way of curing it completely.
Mine is the same and if I put the saddle on and secure the girth he jumps and bucks.
He is cold backed. So I don’t do that.
Instead catch with halter, groom the saddle and girth area, place saddle blanket and saddle, and put the girth down on the off side. Gently do the girth up so it is loose. What he thinks is loose, not what you think is loose. It doesn’t have to touch him to start with.
Continue to groom and pick out hooves. Ask him to back, comb mane, put on bridle, step him back again before taking him a step forward.
If that works you figure out how much warm up he needs before slowly doing the girth up one hole at a time. My boy I put it up a hole each side as I am passing him with grooming and I walk him around the paddock before hopping on.
It is amazing how the stepping back works. It was a tip given to me by my instructor. As I was already girthing up slowly. He could have all 4 hooves picked up. He could March in time, but a step forward would have him jumping and bucking. Stepping him back has stopped that.
As above he gets better when in work and you start again from the beginning when out of work.
I’m curious with some of these extremely cold-backed horses, if there was any improvement if they were longed beforehand? 10-15 minutes to loosen up their muscles and warm up?
My guy is uber-sensitive to a gullet that is even slightly too tight. Tacking up was not not an issue until I got on. Then we had major back-up-bronc time. I changed to a western pad with a treeless saddle and this behavior disappeared. The treeless does have a gullet. I put a surcingle on him without the western pad, tightening up the girth, and he bronced on the cross ties. Moral of his story - make sure there is plenty to keep anything from remotely pinching over the withers. I’m still looking for a treed saddle, but when I find one you can bet that I’m going to ride with at least a 1/2" western pad under it.
I don’t know if it is relevant here or not, but this article from Schleese might have some interest to the OP?
https://schleese.com/2015/05/10/saddle-fit-and-bad-behaviour-part-ii-cranial-nerve-11-cn11/
What if you saddle him multiple times a day? Can you saddle him in a round pen and let him do his thing then take the saddle off, put him away, wait a couple hours, repeat? Are you asking him to move when he goes through this or is he going about it himself? Maybe if in a round pen while he is saddle loose, you can get after him to move his feet! If he’s moving his feet, he won’t have time to rear and act a fool. Obviously, you’d need to be very careful and fairly experienced. I wouldn’t want to be attached to a lunge line attached to him. Have you tried a western saddle?
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This wouldn’t work with my boy. It is the warming up of the back and girth that works, so you have to start again each time. I will add that I do not tie him and I do not put the reins over his head before putting the bridle on. When the bridle is put on I double the reins around his head so that if anything happens he can’t put a leg though the reins. It was not good the time he was bucking and jumping and I had the reins over his head and the bridle was not on yet. He has been taught to stand still. That is fine unless he ‘forgets’ when I am in the shed or something and you would hear him doing it outside. He is very good with the standing still now and the backing while the girth is still loose has been a real breakthrough. If I am going to hop on without lunging I walk him around the paddock first. If I am lunging first I just walk him to the arena.
He used to do it with the first step forward. As I said he could pick up his hooves. He could mark time on the spot to turn around, but that first step forward and he was jumping and bucking. Back him first and that has stopped it happening when he is in work and it is warm. Out of work and cold and you have to be more mindful. Backing him is not as easy aswithout the saddle on. I put a thumb on his chest and a hand on his muzzle and say back. I don’t force him. He builds up to going back. He has pulled a hamstring so that affects backing as well. He works up to stepping back and as soon as I get two proper steps with each front foot back I know I can bring him forward. I don’t the first time. I let him stand and warm up more while I continue doing stuff ,and then I back him again before asking him to step forward.
That works … for him.
I had a horse with “cold back” syndrome for 13 years. He was lunged 15 to 20 mins. with gradual girth tightening before every ride. He never got better and never got worse.
Totally out of the box idea, but maybe try warming up the saddle pad before using it.
My mare was starting to act up while I was doing up the saddle. Not normal for her at all. I felt the foam blocks in my pad and they were hard as ice. Poor little girl was trying to tell me.
So I have been using a heating pad on high to warm up my saddle pad before tacking up. She 100% feels better starting with a nice warm pad. And my saddle fits better since the warm foam molds to her back.
ETA oops just noticed this is an old thread
