80 



MODERN HORSE MANAGEMENT 



[CHAP. 



upon ; the vertebral column, along its whole 

 length, must not be pressed upon ; the front 

 parts of the side-bars (burrs) must allow absolute 

 freedom to the movement of the shoulder-blades ; 

 there must be no weight on the loins, and the 

 rear ends of the side-bars (fantails) must not 

 come in contact with the loins ; and the side- 

 bars must distribute the weight evenly over the 

 muscles covering the back from the withers to 

 the last rib. 



312. Thus, a short back requires a short tree, 

 and a long back is better with a longer tree, pro- 

 vided the tree is not so long that it will rock or 

 move sideways. A wide, thick wither and a 

 wide back require a wide front arch (pommel), 

 whilst broad loins require a wide rear arch 

 (cantle), and vice versa. To cause the least 

 fatigue and risk of injury, every hunter or hack, 

 as well as military horse, should have a saddle 

 chosen for his back, and fitted or properly stuffed 

 in order to distribute the weight evenly. 



The modern military saddle does not carry 

 wallets, but only a light roll in front and some- 

 times a small roll behind. The folly of strap- 

 ping a heavy pack to the fore and aft of a 

 saddle was conclusively proved during the South 

 African war. In order to keep the light rolls 

 off the back, as well as the arches having to be 

 higher, the side-bars extend more forwards and 

 backwards. As so little is now carried on the 

 military saddle, I think there should be a new 

 saddle made for military purposes, with a seat 

 more like the hunting seat, in which a man 

 can sit upon his horse in a proper position, 

 whilst the old saddle tends to make the rider 

 use too straight a leg. The front part of the 

 side-bars could be more like those of a hunting 

 saddle with the necessary D's attached. All that 

 need be carried on a military saddle is the cloak 

 and waterproof sheet on the front arch, and 

 possibly one peg ; and, on the rear arch, the 

 nosebag on one side and a second peg on the 

 other. Personal kit should be carried in a haver- 

 sack. If the saddle were thus modified in shape, 

 one of the greatest troubles caused by our present 

 military saddles would be obviated that of fit- 

 ting the burrs and the fantails, particularly the 

 former. We seldom hear of this trouble with a 

 hunting saddle. If these burrs do not fit 

 properly, injury is sure to result; at any rate, 

 the horse is liable to be thrown down by the 

 action of his shoulder blades being interfered 

 with. A horse with a good back (see P. 68a) 

 could not wear a long-tree cavalry saddle. 



313. As the hind-limbs of a horse are pivoted 

 to the frame quite widely apart, there is a 

 considerable rolling action to the hind-quarters 

 while the horse is in motion. Long fans or fan- 

 tails will tend to cause friction against the loins 

 unless they are kept well above them. With 

 hollow-back horses this is very difficult. Simi- 

 larly, it is very difficult to fit burrs to a horse 



with a thick, low wither or with a hollow back. 

 A roach back is also in danger, as a saddle will 

 rock and the burrs or fans will dig into the 

 horse. 



314. Fitting Saddlery. A saddle must also be 

 fitted and tested for correct fitting when a man 

 is in the saddle. 



A careful examination must be continually 

 made when the rider is in the saddle, and the 

 horse watched for any loss of flesh (muscle) on 

 the back or withers. Absence of wither pressure 

 must be ascertained while the rider is leaning 

 forward in the seat, when the hand should be 

 able to be passed over the withers and down 

 each side between the horse and the numnah, 

 or whatever is next to the horse. 



To test for bladebone pressure, the hand 

 must be passed in between the front part of the 

 side-bar (inside the numnah, blanket, or what- 

 ever is next to the horse) and the horse's skin, 

 and, while the rider is leaning forward, the fore- 

 leg of the horse must be raised and extended 

 fully to the front by an assistant. If the hand 

 is not pinched at all, then the bladebone is free 

 from pressure. If it is pinched, extra stuffing 

 will have to be introduced or another thickness 

 of blanket placed under the side-bars in the rear 

 of the part that pinches, in order to keep that 

 part away from the horse. 



315. Both shoulders must be carefully tested 

 as above described. To test for loin-pressure, the 

 rider must lean back, and the flat of one's hand 

 should be able to be passed easily between the 

 fans and the loins. 



316. Saddle Blanket. There is a great ten- 

 dency to place saddles too far forward. In fold- 

 ing a blanket, great care must be taken to see 

 that every layer is absolutely flat and free from 

 wrinkles. The military saddle blanket measures 

 5 ft. 5 in. by 4 ft. 8 in. 



The best way is to fold it along its length 

 twice, so that when folded it will measure 

 5 ft. 5 in. by about 1 ft. 8 in. This can then be 

 placed over the horse's back, and the ends 

 brought up nearly to the centre of the back next 

 to the horse, as in P. 70, Fig. 5, thus leaving the 

 thinner portion over the spine, where there must 

 be no pressure. The disadvantage of this method 

 is that the blanket is liable to shift unless the 

 rider has a very good seat. Another method is to 

 fold one end of the strip, made as above, over 

 for about 2 ft., and then to turn the other end 

 into the pocket formed by the first end. This 

 will not slip, but it means that a thick portion 

 lies over the withers and backbone. The blanket 

 should be kept in place by the numnah straps, 

 as described in Sec. 308. 



317. The saddle, when on the horse's back, 

 must lie in the centre (see P. 68a) ; the exact 

 position can usually be felt by placing the saddle 

 a little forward and sliding it backwards in the 

 direction of the hair until it seems to embed 



