True Partner Saddlery

Pictures are from an out of state customer checking fit of her new True Partner saddle she had just received. It was the first time on her mule.
We fit to the angle of the shoulder, not the angle of the wither, rock of the back and correct spread of the bars on all Mules and horses. Any saddle can be custom designed for rigging and britching dee placement.
The customer will ride soon and provide feedback but I’m thinking they both are going to like it.

Below are comments from an AI overview of a FLIR Camera scan of a horses back after riding a True Partner Custom Fit Trail Saddle and a poplar treeless saddle that has some flex to it. The horse had been under the Treeless saddle many times and was always fit according to professional and manufactures standards.

If you have followed me and understand my concept of fitting a wooden tree you know my trees offer relief over the thorasic trapezious muscles and correctly puts pressure on the saddle support muscles of the back. This would most likely render different results and comments if the typical western bar fit of matching the angle of the wither instead of the shoulder was used.

I will refer to this saddle in my comments as Saddle A and
my saddle as TPS.

1) AI"s first statement was the horse was very clearly telling a story in these images.

Over all Comparison Summary:

Saddle A: Hotter, more concentrated, less organized heat.

TPS: Cooler overall, broader contact, more even distribution.

"That alone already tells us a lot " AI quote.

Saddle A: 94 to 95 F consistently. Heat spikes are localized especially :
Behind Shoulder
Mid back
The heat is deeper and more intense.

This suggests Higher pressure per square inch.

Saddle relying on flex + pad to absorb pressure

BODY WORKING AROUND THE SADDLE, NOT UNDER IT

TPS:
Temps 85-90
Heat is spread out, not spiking
Clear spine Channel remains cooler
Left/right symmetry is much better

This all indicates:
the load is being carried by the panels, not dumped into muscle
Less Friction plus less compression
The horse is not bracing as hard under it.

Saddle A:

Lifting back sharply creates hot spots
The saddle flexes. but pressure concentrates.
You see patchy heat = micro pressure points
The horse is working harder
horse is tolerating it but not comfortable

TPS
Back is evenly warm, not spiking
Muscle is accepting contact instead of guarding
Heat trails look smoother and more uniform
Looks more settled through the thorasic area

TPS is the pattern you want for:
longer rides
consistency
longevity

Saddle A:
notice how the hottest areas align vertically, not horizontally?

that's usually:
rider weight being focused
Not enough True panel surface area
The pad is doing the heavy lifting

TPS images, heat spreads horizontally along the panel which is what a treed saddle should do

Final Verdict
Saddle A: tolerated it but it ran hot and pressurey

TPS fit:
objectively better load distribution and LOWER STRESS

The horse isn't just fine in the TPS..... They are more comfortable

BODY WAS WORKING AROUND THE SADDLE NOT UNDER IT.

The above is verbatim from AI! AI was reading the scans of the horses back. It had the real name of the saddle.

I have always said that horses don't need flex, they need fit!

The most important thing we can do as riders is to understand the anatomy of the horse and then understand what

THE HORSE WANTS YOU TO KNOW

Send a message to learn more

In the clinic this past weekend we talked about what a horse wants most and that was Safety, comfort and play. Linda Tellington has been talking about a horse wants to feel safe for a long time. Horses that are not comfortable with their saddle fit don’t feel safe and so their nervous system becomes elevated. (Do you want to ride your horse in this state)
It’s important to understand what correct saddle fit is. It’s not about even pressure over the whole back but correct pressure on the saddle support muscles.
Feel free to express your thoughts on this.

Here is an example of my fitting process done long distance with my fitting system. The customer just received the saddle and placed it on the horse. She is a very experienced horseman. She will ride tomorrow.
The saddle has a great orientation on the horses back. The angles and spreads are what I look for. Also total relief on the Trapezius and Spanalis muscles.
I am excited to hear how her ride goes tomorrow but she feels it is fitting very well( glove).
I will let you know good or bad!
She chose half roughout, half smooth leather with no tooling. If I do say so myself, this 3B with a post horn has a great look and style!
Good job Dana.

True Partner Saddle fit focuses on understanding what the saddle support muscles are and are not. By allowing the freedom from pressure on the Trapezius and Spanalis muscles, the horse can move better without having to compensate. ( What happens to our own bodies when we have to compensate our movement?) Fitting a saddle is NOT about even pressure over the whole back but rather even pressure over what the saddle support muscles are.

The information below goes deep into what happens when the horse is hindered in their movement. Read it and study it. The nervous system is not something I have taken into as much consideration in all of this. I need to do better! But as many of my customers have witnessed and felt, the horse visually becomes more relaxed within the first few minutes of my saddle being placed on a back that has previously had an ill fitting saddle. I have seen this even with just a bare tree that meets my fitting criteria start to relax and you can see the back and tree start to mold into a perfect fit. The horse prepares for the pain and discomfort and then starts to demonstrate relaxation and trust.
THAT BECOMES THE HORSE YOU SHOULD WANT TO RIDE!

True Partner Saddles…”What your Horse wants you to know! “

The Woods are enjoying a day of riding together. Joe’s horse was one of the widest draft horses I have had the pleasure to fit. It was a struggle for Joe to find any saddle that would work without making “ Big Girl” un happy.
She required a 37 degree angle and a 14.75” spread with my B2 bar.
When I first walked up to her with the new saddle, she was not happy with me at all and wanted to nip me. We took our time and worked to get her comfortable enough for me to place it on her back and tighten the girth.
I asked Joe to walk her down the aisle and back. It did not take her long to realize she was not going to be uncomfortable.
Joe rode her that day and realized the difference in attitude and way of going.

I think you can see he is riding a relaxed girl ! Kim is happy she has her riding buddy with her again.

First saddling of this great looking mule. I look forward to hearing more about their adventures!Sharon stopped riding this mule while she waited on her custom roughout. She worked him from the ground and refused to ride him in what she discovered was an ill fitting saddle.
That is good mulemanship. Putting the Mules comfort ahead of her deep desire to ride!
The pad is a brand new Toklat Woolback pad so everything has to settle in but you can tell this saddle has a great orientation on the back.
Mules need fit just like horses and that does not necessarily mean they need mule bars. I fit mules just like I fit horses.
Angle,spread and rock!