Sod the being oversensitive - we want to know whether Maria has had the baby yet!!! Westernsaddler - have you popped it out yet?

Have experienced good and bad with both English and Western saddles...not helped by a horse that has decided to put on a growth spurt and develop proper QH style muscling aged 9, for Pete's sake.
I have a top quality Walsall made English saddle, supplied by one master saddler and checked regularly by another, which suddenly started to rub this year. After studying the horse's conformation and action, both with me and the trainer (who was extremely reluctant to get on an English saddle )this excellent saddler has taken most of the flock out of the back and tweaked the tree IN which she says defies all logic but seems to have worked.
Because of their powerful quarters and way of going, it seems to be very easy for a western trained horse to shove an English saddle forward into their shoulder, so if it's sitting there already...trouble!
Now because the horse has decided to put on yet more muscle across her loins, her lovely Westwood western saddle no longer fits So after being saved from having to buy another English saddle we've now got to buy a new western saddle But at least our lovely trainer sussed it out while I was still wittering around scrubbing the saddle pads thinking it was them rubbing!
Anyway, the point of this ramble is that fitting both English and Western saddles is an art, and as we have found, a moveable feast. When you've got a great saddle fitter or a trainer that can help with saddle fitting, hang onto 'em!

Who told Roland western was bad for a horses back? For God sakes!

What we forget is whether our saddles are english or western, their shape is fixed. Unfortunately the horses shape is not! In the UK we are a little short of, firstly truly knowledgeable western saddle fitters. And secondly, english saddlers that can visit, stuff and restuff your saddle when it needs it! I would reckon this would be at least twice a year due to seasonal variations in work load. In a youngster, well could be every month!

Liz i have agreed with all your comments, I really do not understand why people are so sensitive!

I do feel too many english saddles are fitted far too forward, jamming the shoulder, and preventing the horse from striding out.Its so obvious if you look!

If you ask me there are too many 'experts' that know jack s**t!

We struggled to find a western saddle for our horse, it took a year and a lot of research and money to find the right one. In the meantime I bought a treeless, marvellous if you can get over it! When finally we got our Continental, every one instantly commented on how well our mare was going.All assuming it was this miraculous saddle.Actually it was the hours of schooling she had done and the Regumate she was competing under that made the real difference!

Maria was a great help when I was choosing a western saddle for my 4 year old and so was trekkers.

I completely agree that youngsters change so much and with the fact that finding a decent saddler let alone a decent western saddler is so difficult in the UK I have bought a made to measure english GP for now.
My saddler, although about to keel over at 150 years old, is fantasic and the saddle was definately worth the money. For £700 I had something that was specifically made for my youngster and the saddler only charges me diesel to keep coming out and reflock/shape for the 1st 12 months.