1 82 ANIMAL MANAGEMENT. 



giving his horse a sore back, when the fault lies with the saddle or the 

 condition of the horse. 



The previous position has been something as follows : — A horse gets 

 a sore back or a girth-gall ; the man is told the fault lies with him, either 

 bad saddling, or rolling in his saddle, and as a punishment he has to 

 walk. It is quite right that he should walk, but as a necessity, and not 

 as a punishment. The fault very rarely lies with the man. 

 Bad The term "bad saddling" is also used far too loosely, and it is well 



saddlinj^. ^^^^it some definition of it should be given, always bearing in mind that 

 there is a marked distinction between bad saddling and defective fitting ; 

 the soldier is responsible for the former, the officer for the latter. 



Here is an example which may help to define responsibility. A horse 

 meets with an injury to the withers, due to the arch of the saddle resting 

 on the spine ; this is defective fitting, for which the officer is responsible. 

 A horse meets with an injury to the withers, due to the numnah resting 

 on the spine, and not being pressed up into the front arch and fixed there 

 by the strap. Such an injury is bad saddling, for which the rider is 

 responsible. 



It may be convenient to classify bad saddling : — 



1. The numnah not strapped up in front and rear. 



2. The loose end of any strap getting in between the numnah and 



skin. 



3. Any portion of the rear pack resting on the spine, or even only 



touching it. 



4. The sweat flap of the girth — or in pannelled saddles, the pannel 



flap — getting turned in when putting the saddle on in a hurry, 

 thus forming a thick ridge which gets pressed into the side and 

 produces injury. 



5. A horse is badly saddled which has either a loose girth or a tight 



surcingle. Apart from actual vice, the above comprises all the 

 bad saddling which is possible. 



Rolling in Men are spoken of as rolling in the saddles, and this rolling is 



the saddle, regarded as a cause of sore back. By rolling is understood, not the 

 behaviour of a drunken man in the saddle, but twisting, turning, 

 " lolling " and general uneasiness of the rider, which twists the saddle on 

 the horse's back. It is seldom the actual cause of a sore back, but it 

 gives the horse considerable inconvenience, and increases the load he 

 has to carry, for the twisting causes a displacement of the balance of 

 weight to occur, resulting in more weight being carried on one side than 

 the other. 



