Re: RC: Need Advice

[Linda Cowles <lindac@gilroy.com>]

patoliva wrote:
> 
> I need some information on how to correct my young horses shoulder
> development.  He is a six year old  with a much strong right sided
> shoulder than the left.  He has 400 miles of endurance and I my starting
> to have problems with the saddle sliding.  I have been working on  using
> the left diagonal  more and lounging counter clockwise but would
> appreciate any advise on what else I need to do to strengthen his left
> side to make a more even shoulder developement.  Also what type of
> "shim" should I use under the saddle to even the weight.   Any input
> would be welcome.  Thanks, Pat O

Shatirr had this type of conformation, and what helped him was all of
the following:

  - Moses Gonzales type shoeing - put a wedge pad on 
    one foot to even out the shoulder angles
  - Dressage work that encourage shoulder development 
  - getting a saddle that fit right

The shoeing helped balance him, and then dressage (training level
stuff)  developed his weaker shoulder. The saddle fit was the biggest
problem because this never completely goes away. 

Ultimately only three saddles worked well. My dressage saddle, a Keiffer
Wien, a custom fit SR Enduro and a Sport. The Keiffer worked because it
completely cleared the top of his shoulder, and one of his problems was
that the cantle of the saddle would rub back and forth as it was pushed
by his uneven shoulder development. He'd get bad loin rubs. The bars on
the Keiffer weren't wide enough to be good for endurance. The SR and
Sport both worked for trail, but the Sport is hard to sit in if the
horse feels tilted. It was fine on Shatirr once we had his shoeing
right.

Shims never worked for me for distance, but perhaps I wasn't persistent
enough.

  -- Linda
-- 


  Linda Cowles         
  Lion Oaks Ranch 
  Gilroy CA



=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.    
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/RideCamp   
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=