As scientists seek to improve their knowledge of different saddles\u2019 effects on horses, researchers have been focusing their attention on how various saddles influence\u2014or don\u2019t influence\u2014horses\u2019 movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Saddle type did not appear to impact movement in a group of horses, said Peinen, DVM, clinical researcher in the Department of Sports Medicine at the Equine Clinic of Zurich, Switzerland. The team chose to study Icelandic horses because their shoulder movement\u2014often thought to be impeded by saddles\u2014is considered an important criterion in their special gaits, including the four-beat t\u00f6lt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIcelandic horse riders often think that the right saddle can free up the shoulder and give better movement, but our research shows that the kind of saddle doesn\u2019t affect that at all,\u201d she told The Horse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, the study results did confirm previous research indicating that the kind of saddle does affect pressure distribution on the horse\u2019s back, she said. Specifically, treeless saddles caused the highest pressure points and were least successful at distributing the rider\u2019s weight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn Icelandic riding populations it\u2019s popular to use treeless saddles, which are supposed to fit all horses and allow more freedom of movement, but obviously neither of these concepts is true,\u201d she said.
In her study, Geser-von Peinen and colleagues investigated 12 Icelandic riding horses on a treadmill at walk and t\u00f6lt ridden by two individuals of average weight (143 pounds and 165 pounds). The horses were tested wearing a dressage saddle, a classic Icelandic saddle (which moves rider\u2019s weight towards the back), and a \u201cone-size-fits-all\u201d saddle. The researchers recorded the saddle pressure, the force of the legs, and the limbs\u2019 movement patterns (kinematics).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Treeless saddles caused significantly more concentrated pressure at the front of the horse\u2019s back, often directly on the withers. Meanwhile, the saddles with trees distributed pressure more evenly, with a greater concentration toward the back of the horse\u2019s back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There were no differences in leg movements and forces among the different saddles used, she said. The study results suggest that riders should select saddles based on fit and pressure distribution, rather than on how they believe that saddle might affect horses\u2019 movements, regardless of the riding discipline or horse breed.
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t make a difference if it\u2019s an Icelandic horse or not,\u201d she said. \u201cThe saddle has to fit. From the horse\u2019s standpoint it\u2019s the same story, whether it\u2019s a normal English saddle, or a Western saddle, or any kind of saddle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Riders should be particularly careful about the pressure caused by treeless saddles, even in horses with seemingly rounder backs. \u201cThe problem with the treeless saddle is that it doesn\u2019t distribute the weight of an average-sized adult rider because of the absence of a tree,\u201d she said. \u201cEven in Icelandic horses, treeless saddles are not the best choice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The study, \u201cSaddle pressure distributions of three saddles used for Icelandic horses and their effects on ground reaction forces, limb movements and rider positions at walk and t\u00f6lt,\u201d was published in The Veterinary Journal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As scientists seek to improve their knowledge of different saddles\u2019 effects on horses, researchers have been focusing their attention on how various saddles influence\u2014or don\u2019t influence\u2014horses\u2019 movement. Saddle type did not appear to impact movement in a group of horses, said Peinen, DVM, clinical researcher in the Department of Sports Medicine at the Equine Clinic […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":174346286,"featured_media":109,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-108","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n