07/04/2022
Saddle fitting is not easy. I'm lucky enough to have good mentors but every week has its challenges. Sadly it has been much easier to work away from home as part of a team where nobody has preconceptions about me and my knowledge or skill as a saddle fitter than it is to work as an individual around where I live. People in the equine world really do need to be more kind to each other.
Now this is going to be a controversial post, but I think the time is overdue for a reality check for the horsey world on this. I also apologise for the length of the post.
Being a saddle fitter isn’t easy. Most people start out with a career change in later life, taking a big risk to their finances, not only while they’re training, but while they’re growing the business, and ultimately affecting their financial future. But we do it anyway because we’re passionate about helping horses and riders, and having a fulfilling job. Arguably there are some who don’t care, but you can find them easily online if you just Google and look for long term feedback on the equine forums. Very few of the rest of us are getting anywhere near rich and most of us work LONG hours. The money you pay us has to cover so much more than the time we spend with you (not insignificant overheads and admin time, pensions, holidays…).
So, the skill set required? Saddle fitting is only a small part of the job, and while it’s not rocket science, it takes a certain combination of scientific theory and artistic application. Most people can train to do a basic job, but it takes commitment and a certain flair to be a great fitter.
On top of that you need to be happy to drive miles and miles, hours and hours every week and to jump out of the van and work at full capacity every time for an hour or two. You need to be able to plan one of the most complicated diaries known to man, trying to work around people’s spare time, never as easy as working in a business to business environment. You need to be pretty hot at admin, systems, managing stock, and ultimately at running a small business; activities such as financial planning, marketing, and now things like understanding GDPR.
What I have only briefly mentioned is customer communication, and customer service. This is the toughest part of the job. We are not, as I often say, Network Rail. I’ve already explained that we are pretty much all passionate about what we do, but there is a fundamental misunderstanding of what a fitter does, leading to upset customers, and complaints.
There is no magic answer to the perfect saddle for a horse. And even if there was, it’s the perfect saddle only on that day, with the horse moving that way. Horses change, more than most owners can ever believe possible. And not always reflected well in the tracings we take.
We have osteopathic vets explaining that rubs at the back of the saddle can be caused by tightness in the SI joint, we know that low level lameness, and certainly an asymmetrical movement pattern, is a massive contributor to saddle slip. We know that using a pad other than that agreed with the fitter will change the fit of your saddle and potentially cause problems. We know that large competitive yards, often with a saddle sponsor, will have fitter out every 6 weeks to cast a quick eye over all saddle fits and attend to those that need adjustment (anyone ever told you 6 weekly checks would be ideal?!). And surely we know that if 99-odd saddles haven’t fitted, you’ve tried umpteen fitters and brands, and finally when you found one that did fit, that if it took at least a couple of tweaks to get your saddle to fit, then if your horse changes shape by just a millimetre it’s highly likely to affect your saddle fit?
So we need to come to a new place where we work WITH you as an ongoing part of your trusted team, and not be the first person to be blamed when your horse is sore. To really listen to your back person when they say the saddle’s not the issue. It’s too easy a target, it’s a big cost and we DO understand why you might be worried. BUT…a wonderful saddle fitter has just quit fitting today and I am gutted, for her, and for her customers. She’s not the first, I also know someone who was approaching the end of her training who decided she didn’t have a thick enough skin for this job. She would have been a fabulous asset to the saddle fitting world.
We are but flesh, please remember that we always do our best, and that sometimes you need to look elsewhere, and perhaps to yourself, for the cause of your problems with your horse. Because if you stomp all over your saddle fitter, in these days of social media and instant communication, you're probably going to cause them a sleepless night or two, and you might just cause someone to quit something they were really fabulous at, and all of us are the losers.
