Is Your Horse Left-Handed?

eliminated by any amount of reflocking shimming or orthotics. It is usually necessary to fit the gullet plate asymmetrically at the shoulder to accommodate the larger shoulder and to achieve the necessary support equally on both sides. Fitting a gullet plate in this manner will not result in a crooked saddle logic dictates that you fit each shoulder as it should be fit. Anyone who has one foot thats larger than the other will recognize this problem when searching for shoes that fit do you buy a pair to fit the larger foot and use insoles shims for the smaller foot or do you squish the larger foot into a smaller pair to accommodate the smaller foot? Logically you would buy shoes to fit the larger foot which is exactly why the gullet plate should be adjusted to fit the larger shoulder at the tree points. If this truism is ignored and you put a saddle with an even gullet plate on a horse with a larger shoulder on the left or right it will inevitably fall to one side as it will be pushed there by the more muscled shoulder. This is demonstrated in the photo of the rider from the back a position commonly seen even some of top riders when photographed from the back will demonstrate this phenomenon.
If the left side is larger farther down the horses back the saddle will actually put pressure on the left side of the spinal column because it no longer lies in the proper position within the saddle support area which keeps the spinal vertebrae clear of the panel. What happens to the rider? She will shift to the right as well but will try to counteract this by shifting her weight to the left. There will be less support for her left seat bone because the saddle has shifted to the right which causes her to collapse further at the hip. This extra pressure will cause the saddle to shift even more to the right. Does this sound familiar?
A crooked rider will have difficulty using the proper aids especially through the subtle muscle contractions and shifts in weight intrinsic to dressage. She may find increased difficulty with a right canter lead. Her back may start to ache and her hips may throb. The horse will feel resistance and the continued pressure of the saddle on the left side of the
vertebral column will increase stress to the sacroiliac joint which can cause a crooked pelvis for the horse and possibly lead to complete lameness in the right hind
This is not to say that saddles should be made crooked. Rather the ability to adjust the gullet place asymmetrically is essential. To accommodate the horses conformation adjustment should be possible not just in width which is common for some of the saddles with interchangeable gullet plates but also in angle and independently at both ends. Changes can then be further addressed when necessary as the horses degree of asymmetry changes over the course of its lifetime. Just like a blacksmith forms an iron to fit the hoof a gullet plate should be formed to fit the horse rather than being in a permanently fixed position.
Once the gullet plate has been adjusted to accommodate any natural unevenness at the shoulder the saddle should be sitting straight on the horses back when standing still and especially during movement. This allows the rider to sit properly and in balance and keeps the pressure off the horses vertebrae