A D Saddlery, LLC

09/18/2026

In today’s episode of WITAF, I present to you a half pad which was shimmed with strips of a bath towel. Consistency in flocking material or shims is highly important. If you’ve ever had your sock wad up in your shoe, you understand how annoying it can be to have fabric not laying smoothly in an area that is subject to pressure. If you’ve lost your shims, or if they’ve broken down with age, please consider upgrading to a new pad. Ideally, one made of better materials than the one you purchased before. High-quality sheepskin with a channel and felt shims will always be my first choice. A worn out cotton half pad with strips of bath towel will always be my last choice.

09/16/2026

Mare owners: give your girls a little extra grace at this time of year. They are in what is known as the transitional phase of their estrus cycle. It is nature‘s last Hail Mary for them to catch and have a foal for next year’s season. If anyone has experienced PMS you can certainly understand an extra strong hormonal swing causing her to have discomfort during this time of year.

Another day. Another episode of IT’S NOT ALWAYS THE SADDLE.

Following on from yesterday’s post about the horse who went lame only in their shiny new dressage saddle (go find it if you missed it, it’s worth a read) here’s another one.

I had a LOVELY regular client with a VERY cute young mare. Eventually she was old enough to have her very own saddle made.

And oof.
It was gorgeous.
Saddle delivered. Lesson the very next day.

Pony went AMAZINGLY.
Never gone so well.

Marvellous. Aren’t I clever. Lovely saddle. Everyone delighted. WOO! **pats self on back for another job well done**

Next ride?
Pony wasn’t quite right.
A bit unhappy. A bit uncomfortable.

Client, quite reasonably: ‘Could it be the saddle?’

Me, also quite reasonably: ‘Erm. Yes. It could.’

Because when a horse is absolutely fine, gets a new saddle and then immediately starts behaving differently, you don’t need to be Poirot to identify your prime suspect.

So I went back urgently.
Checked it.
Nothing.
Saddle fitted beautifully.

‘Crack on,’ I said.

She cracked on.
Pony got worse.

‘Are we SURE it’s not the saddle?’

Back I went.
Still fine.
Get the vet.
Vet came.
Nothing obvious found.
Pony got worse.
‘Are we SURE it’s not the saddle?’
Yep.
Another vet visit.
Things investigated. Things treated.
No real improvement.

‘Are we SURE it’s not the saddle?’
YES.

By this point I was starting to feel like the saddle’s increasingly desperate defence solicitor.

YOUR HONOUR, MY CLIENT IS INNOCENT.

Meanwhile, the pony’s behaviour was deteriorating dramatically.

Her back became so sore that even touching it gently could make her almost sit on the floor. She became aggressive. Difficult to handle. Completely unlike herself.

And every single bloody sign was standing there wearing a sandwich board, clapping their hands, doing star jumps saying:

LOOK AT THE NEW SADDLE.

But the saddle was fine.

And this is where I have to give a massive shout-out to her bloody fabulous owner.
Because every time the vet came and didn’t find the answer…
Every time something was treated and nothing really changed…
Every time that completely understandable question came back…

‘Are we SURE it’s not the saddle?’

…she trusted me when I said yes.

And instead of accepting ‘well, we can’t find anything’ as the answer, she kept pushing.

More investigations.
Look again.
What else could it be?
And eventually…

BAM.

They checked her hormones.

Off. The. Bloody. Scale.

She had a MAHOOSIVE ovarian cyst.
Removed it.
Never looked back.

And honestly, every time I see that mare now, I glow a little bit.

No pain. No aggression. No grumpiness. Lovely happy pony living her best life…

…in the SAME super-yummy saddle that had spent several months being fitted up for a crime it did not commit.

The timing said saddle.
The sore back said saddle.
The behaviour said saddle.
The enormous flashing neon arrow said SADDLE.

It wasn’t the saddle.

And that’s the point of these posts.
Where a horse shows pain isn’t necessarily where that pain started.
Sometimes you have to keep looking.

And sometimes you need a flipping fabulous owner who refuses to stop asking questions until somebody finds the answer.

09/13/2026

We have been sold “the twist is for the rider” for far too long. A horse shaped like an oil drum and a narrow twist cannot exist in the same space. You as a rider, owe your horse better. If you can’t stand to ride that horse ba****ck because they’re too wide, you need to learn to sit a wider twist, or find a mount more suitable for your pelvis.

If you are horse shopping and know that you need a narrow -twist-thigh-seat- really anything with the word narrow, dont buy a creature that looks like this.

This is my potato chonk princess who is a delightful sofa if you also like a wide twist. To put her in a narrow twisted saddle would be physically impossible, or outright cruel. The only compromise would be to build up the saddle sooooo tall that you compromise stability.

To understand why, lets look at the sketch. Everything in blue and teal shows where and how a proper tree would fit her, giving clearance for her spine and ligaments, and allowing the saddle to wrap around her for ample security without sticky pads. The red is what a narrow twist would look like if put on her back. You can see how that would inhibit her topline from lifting, and put pressure on the structures that cannot take weight. It also doesn't look terribly stable.

Us fitters have some tricks up our sleeves to make things more accommodating, like stirrup bar placementsand seat bellies, but a true mismatch where horse and rider are on opposite ends of the spectrum is an impossible ask.

09/03/2026

THIS is why I can’t say enough good things about these saddles. I have never been more grateful to finally find a horse forward approach. Life changing.

07/24/2026

Sneak peek! Super excited for these halters and leads from Erreplus!

07/07/2026

Panel failure after a “foam to wool conversion” on a French saddle. THIS IS NEVER ACCEPTABLE and is NOT A SERVICE THAT SHOULD BE OFFERED LIGHTLY. To convert a foam panel to wool an entirely new panel has to be built which is a skill that is out of most layman fitter or basic tack repairman skill sets. Don’t waste your money and risk ruining your saddle and most importantly, your horse.

06/16/2026

My husband has been hospitalized since last Wednesday. I will respond to messages and appointment requests as I can. Thank you for understanding.

06/09/2026

If someone arrives at your barn and says they can work on any saddle, including adjusting fixed trees onsite, ASK THEM TO LEAVE.

06/04/2026

This spring has been a killer but I am thrilled to see so many horses going better and better after their spring appointments. No matter if it’s lessons, showing, or pleasure riding, it makes me happy to be a part of their teams. Putting the horse first pays off for everyone involved!

05/31/2026

I have a herd of antique stitching horses. These are two of my favorites. They don’t all fit me, as they were made to measure back in the day, but they’re lovely to have around.