Adjusting a Crupper and Breast Collar

["guest@endurance.net" <guest@endurance.net>]

K S SWIGART   katswig@earthlink.net


I must confess the idea of adjusting either a crupper or a 
breast collar tight enough to keep a saddle from slipping 
one inch in either direction gives me the willies.  But then, 
I am somebody who does not use either one.

However, I can understand why some people do.

BUT, my understanding only extends to using them for
"emergencies" (i.e. to keep your saddle from slipping back far
enough to flank your horse, and to keep it from slipping up 
over the horse's neck).  These things are NOT something I would
ever recommend for using to actually hold the saddle in place.

So, when I tell people the appropriate way to adjust a breat 
collar so that it does not interfere with the movement of the
horse's shoulder while it is just going down the trail, I say,
"It should be adjusted loosly enough so that the saddle has to 
slip back at least 4 inches before it actually does anything."

I would say the same for a crupper (except maybe not quite 4
inches).

If you adjust the crupper in this way, then it doesn't really 
matter if it gets a bit looser when the saddle slips back, 
because the horse is already used to it being loose.

I didn't know that anybody adjusted a crupper tight enough so that it was snug unless the saddle had slipped back.

But then, the only time I use a crupper is when I have a horse
in a harness.  But even then, the crupper is not adjusted 
snuggly; I leave a little slack in it when I put it on and the
horse is at rest.  Not four inches of slack, but it ain't tight.

kat
Orange County, Calif.