Ill-fitting saddles are a major and often unrecognized cause of back pain and behavioral problems in horses, affecting millions of horses in work worldwide.
Saddle fit welfare is one of the most significant hidden welfare problems in equestrian sport: the prevalence of back pain and saddle-related discomfort is high, the behavioral consequences are routinely misattributed to training or temperament, and the horse cannot report its experience verbally. A horse that becomes resistant when mounted, pins ears during girthing, shows a dipped back under saddle, or bucks when asked to canter is frequently described as 'difficult' and subjected to escalating training pressure or fear-based correction when the primary problem is pain. The social and economic pressures of competition can drive owners to prioritize performance over pain assessment. Saddle fitting is also a complex skill that is not consistently regulated - anyone can call themselves a saddle fitter, and poor quality fitting advice is common. Regular professional saddle assessment by qualified fitters is a welfare investment that benefits both horse and rider.