But I had a custom saddle made…
Why doesn't it fit?

Natural horsemanship trainers Julie Carpenter and Harry Whitney work with a troubled young horse. After Harry worked with the mare without a rider, Julie got on to help her overcome her fear of being ridden. A quick check of the saddle that was custom made for this horse revealed it was very tippy side to side and front to back. It also pinched the horse's shoulders and forced Julie forward and out of balance. Read below to find out how such fit problems occur.

1.  There are thousands of English and Western saddle manufacturers. But there are very few major tree makers, and they make 95% of the trees in all saddles. Most custom saddle makers buy their trees from these big tree makers who only offer a few different sizes because that’s what they’ve always done.
In effect, most saddle makers are really custom leather artists. And that beautiful $4500 ‘custom’ saddle may not fit any better than a $1200 off-the-shelf version.

2.  If you can find a saddle maker who makes their own trees or who will adjust them to meet the needs of your horse, then you need to find out what that saddle maker’s philosophy on fit is. Different saddle makers have different opinions about what constitutes fit.

a. Some saddle makers believe if the front angle fits your horse, then the entire saddle fits. This is not true. The angles in the middle and back of the saddle tree bars, and the amount of rock in the bars can make a big difference.

b. If a saddle maker or sales person tells you a specific size will fit based only on the type or breed of horse, they are just guessing.

c. Some saddles are actually designed to induce discomfort (by concentrating all the weight onto the front and rear points of a saddle) in order to force the horse to perform a specific gait or action. Unfortunately, these designs have been accepted by cultures who value looks more than the long term health of their horses. Many “gaited” saddles are in this category.

d. Some saddle makers believe in ‘flexible’ trees that move with the horse.  Most of these still contain immovable or hard structures for the pommel and cantle and are in effect only 'barless'. Saddles are meant to distribute the rider’s weight quietly over a wide weight bearing surface of the horse. When parts of the saddle flex, weight is concentrated in the hard surfaces that remain. In most flexible saddles that area is so small that the result is usually a very sore horse, and tissue damage over time.

The Bottom Line
You have to educate yourself and match the right saddle/tree to your horse's back. The only way to know for sure if it fits is to put it on your horse and check.  It helps to see and feel good fit and bad fit, and to learn to see what the horse is telling you about it. Start by reading the Ten Elements of Fit. And seek out an experienced saddle fitter for help with this.