22 yr old horse

Question
I have recently been given the chance to live a dream I have had for 40 yrs and that is to ride...I've been teamed up with a horse who is 22 yrs old her name is Clem....She was rescued from a home that was not sure how to take care of her later part of her years....She was underweight and depressed...I have been giving her allot of LOVE and attention she looks better everyday...The last few time I go to put her saddle on she moves away and gives me a little fight...My friends say she is testing me...I am not sure...I've ran my hands along her back and body to see if anything hurt...no sign..maybe I am giving her a little spunk back....She is so sweet to me...Any suggestions!!!!

Thanks Sandy

Answer
Sandy,

Her reactions tell the whole story.  The saddle is uncomfortable and/or downright painful to wear.  Think about saddles like you would shoes.  They just have to fit.  If they are too tight they can be anything from a little tight to downright agony to wear.  A slightly too large shoe can be adjusted with a thicker sock; same for a saddle that's a little too wide for a horse.  But I suspect that the one you are using may be too tight.  BTW, ignore your friends, they're inconsiderate jerks with not a lick of consideration for a horse!  Horses aren't like people.  They don't "test" you like a kid does, at least not an old horse like this that knows the ropes.  You need to always respect your horse's feelings.  Especially mares!  They are ladies and like to be treated that way.  Ask, don't demand and pay attention to her body language.  

Check out her saddle fit.  Convince her to let you set it one her, talk to her, explain that you are doing this to try to see what's wrong.  No pad, just the saddle on her back where it belongs.  Remember not to set it too far forward on her withers.  You want to front of the tree to rest in the pocket behind the shoulder blade.  I see so many people who plunk the saddle square on the horse's shoulder blades then wonder why it cannot move out.  Anyhow, step back and look at the saddle.  Is it resting evenly front to back?  Walk around behind and look at it again.  Does it sit square on her back or off to one side?  There should be room enough between her spine and the pommel to insert 3 fingers.  If the saddle fails any of these tests stop there, it doesn't fit.  Otherwise, press hard on the saddle with one hand and run your other hand uner the edge of the saddle up to the tree of the saddle.  Run your hand along under the saddle the entire length of the tree moving the pressing hand as you go to maintain the pressure.  The pressure on the hand under the tree should be even the entire distance.  The tree is the frame the saddle is built on and if it doesn't fit your horse's back then the saddle built on it won't fit your horse either.  Again, if it fails any of these tests then it shouldn't be used again.  There're more steps but I suspect the saddle will fail these basic tests.  If it doesn't let me know and I'll tell you how to proceed.  

This sounds complicated but it's the correct way to address this issue.  

I hope her teeth have been worked by an equine dentist.  That's often a problem with rescued horses/ponies.  And one reason they are underweight, they can't chew their food up properly.  Same with worming.  A load of parasites can sap a lot from a horse.  Plus, older horses generally need more calories and digestible fiber than younger horses because their guts don't work as well as they used to.  A horse this age I would have on a high fiber/high fat/low carb diet with lots of good quality hay.  There are a number of beet pulp based feeds on the market now that fit this bill.  She can also have extra beet pulp added to her feed.  My older horses get 2 lbs., dry weight, in their dinners along with 1 lb. alfalfa hay cubes.  I dump about 2 gallons of water on the feeds at least 3 hrs. but can be a lot longer to soak.  So they get lots of nice, wet fiber with their dinners.  I even have to do this for my 25 yr. old pony whose teeth are so badly worn down that he can't eat much in the line of hay.  He chews it up and drops the quids around.  All the forage he actually gets is from his feed bucket. i just bring his bucket into the house with me at night, set it on the floor in the kitchen and dump a couple of gallons of water on it then take it out with me in the morning.   Keeps him and his guts in good shape.  

Good luck with this older lady.  She can teach you a lot, if you'll pay attention.  

Lyn