Anyone got any ideas on stopping a western saddle pad rubbing?
Our saddle fits well and we use pro choice pads with the sheepskin underneath, but our mare gets the hair rubbed off her loins on either side. She's not sore and doesn't object to the pad being put on (well, no more than any other mare!) but it does look a bit unsightly, which is a shame as she's just started doing halter.
I try to keep the sheepskin as clean as possible by letting it dry and then brushing it, plus the pads are cleaned each summer with a pressure washer and nuumed wash.
Help!

I have had this problem!I changed my pad.

But I wonder if taping the edge of the pad with something like gaffer tape, would make it slippy, and prevent it rubbing? Its not like that part of the pad is load bearing, or anything.May be worth experimenting with,

What about switching to a barrel racing pad (Pro Choice do do one) with rounded skirts (think they're shorter too) and only use a rectangular pad for showing?

Good luck!

I've just had the exact same problem with my mare, not with a Pro Choice pad but with a similar style Continental wool lined pad where the wool lining stops short of the edge so the binding is in contact with the horse's loins; it was the binding that was causing the rub marks. I recently switched to a different wool lined pad with binding on the top of the pad, not at the edge and bingo, no more rubbing, so the suggestion of gaffer-taping the binding may really help... Also applied liberal Megatek to the rubbed area and the coat grew back ridiculously fast, even on my mare who is renowned for slow growth of anything like hoof or hair!

i have a pro choice pad and i have to wash mine frequently. i put it in the bath at home. iff it gets greasy at all it rubs him. so it needs washing about once a month or so in summer.

I have seen this with a couple of the treeless saddles behind the weightbearing area. Whereabouts is it rubbing on your horse - is it beyond where the bars end? Beyond where the skirts end? Is your horse very flat across the topline or more curvy? Does the saddle extend to beyond the last rib? If the binding is not out of the way properly that can indeed cause problems on certain shaped horses. Also, if the wool is not 100% wool this can heat up and cause hair to be rubbed away.

Hope you get it sorted soon.