E-Vet Clinic - Horse Health Care

Well I am back from vacation and getting back into the swing of things. We are going to get started with a discussion on saddle fit and how it relates to horses movement. Basically in my business saddle fit is about 75% of back problems in a horse and can really effect their health overall. To improvement movement and the health of your horse it is very important that you have proper fitting tack especially the saddle.

This discussion is going to be based mostly on English saddles however the five main points will be the same for Western saddles. These five points are just how the saddle fits on your horse while it is square. Obviously there is much more to saddle fitting than just looking at a saddle with a horse standing still. This type of guideline is only the beginning and does not take into account the condition of the saddle, ie broken or warped tree, in need of reflocking, worn leather etc. It also does not take into account assymetries in the horse while moving.

Here are the five points of saddle fit

• Balance
• Symmetry
• Panel Contact
• Gullet Width
• Tree Angle & Width

Today we are going to be talking about Gullet Width.

The gullet width or channel width is the amount of space between the panels right down the middle of the saddle. It is very important to have a wide channel width. Many companies used to have channels that were wide at the pommel and then became significantly more narrow towards the cantel. This was to save money on leather costs in the construction of many hundreds of saddles. However it is not in the best interest of your horse. If the channel is too narrow when you turn or flex your horse, the panel can come into contact with a very soft and sensitive ligament that attaches the back muscles to the spine. If you press on this ligament the horse will sink away from the pressure and if repeatedly pressed upon it becomes quite tender and sore and will cause back spasms.

So when measuring the gullet or channel width the first thing you should do is measure your horses spinal width. Measure from ligament to ligament. The average horse should be between 1.5″ to 2.5″ in width so that means your gullet width on your saddle should be at the very least 2″ in width but preferably greater than 3″. The easy test is to use your fingers. Place your fingers together, the width of your four fingers should be between 2.5″ to 3″ obviously depending on how big of a person you are. Now use your fingers to run your hand through the channel of your saddle it should fit easily. If it doesn’t than it is too narrow of a channel and could be causing your horse some discomfort if not down right pain and destruction to the ligament and back muscles of your horse.

Keep your horse comfortable and happy, improve their movement and improve their health by having a properly fitting saddle. Next we will talk about balance and symmetry.

Here is a news story from Iowa and one of the Horse Sale barns located there and their experience with horse prices and the state of the horse market there –> Horse market could be in trouble, local experts say

Here is a quote from Devon Mullet, owner of the Kalona Sale Barn

Mullet estimated 30 percent of the 700-800 horses bought and sold out of the sale barn each month go to Amish families. He said they commonly buy Standardbred racehorses that aren’t fast enough to race. He said Standardbreds, bred for trotting speed, are known best in this area for pulling buggies.
He said they used to be able to sell a horse for $700-$800. Today he said they are worth a mere $50-$100.

He blames the Horse Slaughter bill for an increased horse population and a decrease in horse prices. In my opinion the amount of increase in horses is negligible; however the price can easily be a cause of the bill. There are no longer any kill buyers at the sales in middle America. Gas is too expensive to transport to Mexico or Canada, so it is not worth it to purchase horses at these sale barns for slaughter, which means there is no longer a bottom to the market. Before a horse could only go so low before a killer buyer would bid on the horse. Now when a horse starts to drift down to the lower price ranges it will only be bought by someone who actually wants a horse. What this shows to me is an increasing population of unwanted horses. Now I also believe this only to be a temporary problem and the market will eventually correct itself. Basically it will become unprofitable for backyard breeders to just breed because they think they will get a good price for a horse.

Now the other part of the story is about concerns over the economy and health care for the horses. Claims that the horse market as a whole will be affected because of the decrease in horse value. In my experience so far this has not been the case. I am still working on plenty of horses and my field is more of a luxury than say like stitching a horse or care of a sick horse. I am also receiving new inquiries on my services on a regular basis. So there is still concern over health, which I would expect. If horse prices are cheaper than those that can afford them will be more inclined to purchase another one, until they calculate the cost of actually caring for one…LOL. Also on the other side of the coin they will be less likely to sell their horse because they will get nothing for it and therefore keep it longer. With all this said the majority of my clients have their horse because it does the job they need and want and the only reason they would sell and or buy a new horse is because their needs change or the horse they have can no longer fulfill their needs say for example in the case of an injured horse. Also the majority of them treat their horse truly as their companion not a piece of property so again the current prices of horses is not going to affect them. All this means that horse health care will be of greater importance rather than less importance and horse owners will be inclined to spend more money for better health of their current horse since they will be keeping it longer.

My feeling is that the horse market is depressed in middle America on the low end horses especially and that it is not and most likely will not affect horse owners from providing health care to their wanted horses.

Here you go kids, we caught Santa on Route 30 in Indiana. I think he was going shopping!

This goes to show you that Santa has great taste - he is driving a white Dodge Diesel Dualie! He must own horses with that kind of truck!