Props to Teach and Lolatwo - back soreness

[johnnysauntie]

So it does appear that Jag's issues are stemming from a sore back. The Lyme test came back clear, and he was reactive on Sunday to the "zipper test" on his back. He's sore. (See "Panacur powerpack yukkies" thread for Teach and Lola's on the spot diagnoses.)

So I checked saddle fit with a friend who is experienced -we do know it slips, and I'd been using Lola's suggested non-slip cloth with some success, but a breastplate will help too - so I ordered a big elastic one from Nunn Finer, specifically, this one:


In the meantime, we also noticed that my saddle gullet is a bit too snug - the horse does have more muscle than he did in Feb. when I started using this saddle, and it was deemed a decent fit. I'm going to pick up a Wintec measuring thingy today and check for sure. A wider gullet may help the fact that the saddle does 'tip' backwards a bit (the cantle is a little low), necessitating a Mattes correction pad with shims in back to even it up. (I even cut up a thinline pad and made shims out of that material, which I think is pretty cool.)

So, in the meantime, he's got time off. I'm working him on the longe, over poles, to encourage him to stretch downward, to loosen and keep building those muscles. I'm also rubbing his back with Sore No More.

Hopefully we'll get over this hurdle soon, because on December 1, we move to a fancy new barn - a small dressage barn with and FEI trainer. I'm really excited - but will of course give the horse time to heal.

Which begs the next questions - how long will it take for him to recover from the soreness? And I'm assuming that I'll know that the soreness has abated when I see him really using his back again on the longe, and the zipper check doesn't produce any rippling or other reaction in the lumbar muscles, right?

[NancyL]

Try a magnesium supplement too. This is a very common problem and tricky to diagnose. Magnersium is very inexpensive.

[JulieM]

Sorry to butt in . . .

How much magnesium? I've heard about magnesium for pain, but never a quantity.

Thanks!

[Smay]

As far as the magnesium goes, the easy way to supplement it is to use Quiessence pellets, which are fairly palatable to horses - powdered magnesium is very bitter and I could never get a horse to eat it... you can get the Quiessence from the maker, Foxden Equine, or from SmartPac in 5 pound bags or 14 pound buckets. You give one ounce, twice a day, usually. It comes with a little measure cup.

[NancyL]

Or you can get it in an electrolyte. Smay is right, horses don't like it without something palatable.

[Smay]

How do I know it's bitter? I taste EVERYTHING! hahaha I really do - do you know that worm medicine doesn't taste too bad at all? hahaha

[jenarby]

Smay....don't taste zimectrin gold! I did by accident and O.M.G. it was nasty!

I would think if he doesn't need a chiropractic adjustment that lunging without riding would do the trick after some time. I'm sure that as he uses those muscle correw\ctly he'll be sore anyway (think trying a new sport and becoming body sore). It might just take some time to get through it.

[diane]

the yellow wormer that the vets tube worm with tastes like banana !!!

[johnnysauntie]

Thanks, Jenarby, for your comment. I've been working him from ground for the last three days, and he's finally starting to stretch a bit. Sunday he went around like a giraffe, totally protecting his sore back. He didn't look like his normal self - when he's feeling good, he's happy to stretch when trotting. He was a bit better Monday and much better last night - he stretched a bit and was less reactive.

He's also happy to stretch for carrots - we're doing a lot of those between the legs stretches after he works.

[elizabeth_h]

You might want to try acupuncture - it is great for that kind of thing, especially if you have already made a change that should alleviate the cause of the pain going forward. I had low expectations when I first tried it on my horse even though everyone told me it worked really well. I was very pleasantly surprised with the results!

[BoyleHeightsKid]

A good massage will help him a lot! I'm sure he's got some muscle spasms that would greatly benefit from it. After the massage turn him out or lunge him to let him really stretch. I'm glad you were able to figure it out and it was something easily resolved. Whoohoo Jag!

[Einstein]

I gave Porter the Quessence pellets and did notice a difference. I started off at something like 5 scoops a day and backed down to 2 I think, over a month. It really did help him, he has tons of back issues.

[TeachU2Ride]

I also highly recommend Quiessence. Magnesium has an almost "magic" effect on horses who are ultra-sensitive and/or get sore easily.

I'm glad you're getting to the bottom of the saddle fit. Here's something important to remember: If your saddle fits well, adding extra padding (even luxurious sheepskin, thinlines, and others designed to be of benefit) can make the fit WRONG. It's like putting a thick sock on your foot in a pump that's just right - too much cushion can actually create pain. A well-fitted saddle needs nothing more than a simple thin pad to help keep the sweat from staining the leather. And if your saddle really doesn't fit, no amount or kind of padding will make up for it - the "princess and the pea" syndrome... even with lots of cushion and shimming, the tree points will dig in if they don't fit the contours of your horse's back correctly.

I really like the Wintecs for most horses, but they don't fit all. You may find another gullet does the trick, but it may be you have one of those guys who needs a saddle with much wider panels - the one area the Wintecs fall short in. Their narrow panels can definitely create pressure problems for some back conformations, taking rider balance and work load into account as well.

Finally - it's NOT a good idea to use non-slip pads and breast plates to hold a poorly fitted saddle in place. If it's slipping during normal use*, the fit isn't right and if you make it stay where it doesn't want to, it will just create soreness in a different area. *Active galloping and big jumping can disturb even the best-fitted saddle, and non-slips and breast plates are appropriate then... but those saddles shouldn't slip when the horse is just working on the flat or jumping small fences at a quiet pace.

If you get your saddle fitting correctly, his back soreness should dissipate almost immediately. If it was bad enough to create a spasm, a massage will be necessary to break it up, but otherwise, you should see and feel him moving more comfortably with the very first ride. Any residual bruising should be cleaned up in a week or two.

[Luci]

I'm going through saddle hell at the moment and didn't know about mag supps. New temporary fix saddle I thought fit -doesn't. Thanks for the tip.

Hope you can find the right saddle for Jag too.

[lolatwo]

Unfortunatly if the saddle is to small, there is just no way to fix it with padding. Like teach said it just makes it worse. It probably slips because it is perched to high on his back in the first place due to the gullet being to narrow. I am not a big fan of breast plates they seem to still let the saddle slip then end up strangeling the horse. At lot of horses will react to the brest plate by not freeing up there shoulder. The anti slip will keep the saddle in place but if the saddle is to small any ways then you are most likley keeping a ill fitting saddle on there back anyways. Adding shims and pads is only going to make the narrow gullet more narrow and now the saddle will sit extremly high above his back.

Honestly in the end getiing a saddle that fits will be the money savior in the end. No more vet visitits from sore backs no more pricy pads and breast plates. I am not that fimilar with the winteck I am not sure about how the pannels are sowen in or if they can be moved easily and I am not sure if it is worth it for this pritical saddle, but a lot of times the pannels can be moved relativly easily. I am not to sure how that priticular saddle is flocked either I am making an asumption that it is some kind of synthectic material or some kind of wool. In some cases the flocking can be minuplated with out having to move the actual pannels but in the case of the channel being to narrow I am just not sure for that paticular saddle.

If the saddle fits you should need very little padding. I use an antislip because I can not stand that wobbeling feeling or my saddle slipping onto the sensitive part of there backs. It is true that I do the jumpers and there fore my saddle is probably being a lot more minuplated then yours is and I ride a varity of diffrent horses but do not have a saddle to fit each one. So as long as my saddle is not pinching but just happens to slide I will use the antislip to help keep it in place even on the flat. Also keep in mind that saddles that are to small for the rider are going to put the riders weight in the wrong place as well. If I had to choose I would rather have one to big then to small. You can always stay in the middle but if it is to small it is extremly hard to stay in the middle. Good luck jag