Soft tissue remodeling, on the other hand, is a response to chronic pressure or mechanical stress. Prolonged pressure from an ill-fitting saddle doesn’t just reduce muscle size—it alters the composition of the tissue. Instead of functional muscle, the body deposits fibrous connective tissue, which lacks elasticity and contributes to stiffness and pain. This is a protective mechanism, but it often leads to discomfort and compromised movement.

Additionally, chronic pressure can lead to nerve entrapment, further exacerbating muscle dysfunction and altering fat distribution. Fibrous tissue changes can push adipose tissue downward and away from high-pressure areas, creating visible indentations similar to bra strap syndrome in women. These indentations are not just superficial changes—they indicate deeper structural adaptations that affect both comfort and performance.

When a horse is treated for Kissing Spine as if it is a genetic or conformational issue without addressing the contribution of the tack, it is a waste of time and money. On top of this, when a horse goes through the expensive, painful, and lengthy process of ORDSP surgery and then the same equipment is put back on them, the owner is often left wondering why the painful back and poor behavior persist. Is this a failed surgery, or is it that the vertebrae were never the problem but in fact the symptom of poorly fitted equipment? Without correcting the root cause—poor saddle fit—the cycle of pain and dysfunction continues.

It is important when you are having your horse and saddle evaluated to bring any relevant vet or body worker reports to the fitting, as these can help your saddle fitter pinpoint any issue.

These top 5 saddle fitting errors might be the cause of a behavior or training issue your horse might be having.

There are many ways a saddle can create the incorrect type of tension in the equine back. When the saddle pressure is relieved off of the spine, we see great improvements.

This post discusses girth placement. I stress how important the rigging or billets are in your English or Western saddle since this is how the saddle attaches to the horse and therefore it is crucial that it is aligned correctly and you have an appropriate cinch or girth for your horse.

We decode what a dust pattern is actually saying to a saddle fitter.

In this video post, we go over gullet width and the equine spine.

We delve into some surprising findings about the wonderful sheepskin and its benefits for horse and rider.

Saddle pads may not technically be part of the saddle, but they are instrumental in the saddling process and need to be properly evaluated and fitted.

One of the most common and incorrect evaluations of damage to the equine loin from saddle fit is muscle atrophy.

What causes white hairs under the saddle?

One of the most common issues that I run into in saddle fitting is that the angle of the tree (across several different models, styles and disciplines) is too wide.

What is the twist? In the saddle world it can be categorized two different ways. The “twist” as it refers to the horse is the angle of tree as it lays on the horse’s back. But the twist we are talking about today is the twist for the rider, or the width of the saddle between the user inner thigh of the rider.

This post outlines the basic differences in the male and female pelvis and how it relates to the saddle.

In the course of fitting and selling saddles a very common question that I get is about the width of the gullet or the space between the panels for the horse’s spine.

Tree angle is a factor in saddle fitting across every discipline and is something that needs to fit properly for the comfort of the horse.

One of the issues that come up a lot in fitting saddles, and more specifically dressage saddles, is saddles sliding forward.

I get a lot of questions about tree width and tree angle when I am explaining saddle fit.

A dust pattern is the dirt or sweat that naturally comes up when a horse is ridden without a saddle pad. Whenever we do a saddle fitting it is extremely important (if possible) to have the horse ridden before and after the fitting to see how the saddle fits and to get a dust/sweat pattern.