02/03/2026
** White Hairs under Saddle Area **
Let's talk about white hairs, what are they? How do they occur? What to do...........
White hairs under the saddle area are the hairs loosing pigmentation due to pressure, owners and or riders can become extremely concerned upon observing the development of white hairs under the saddle area and sometimes this rightly indicates a current saddle fitting issue to be addressed immediately, other times some introspection is required 😉 White hairs can take four to six months to become visible from the triggering event. A very common dynamic is owner or rider become aware of need to Saddle Fit BEFORE the white hairs develop, quite often the signs are observed before the Saddle Fitting is requested and although the outcome of this Saddle Fitting is very good not long after those previous observations manifest visually and the panic sets in.....the logical answer is to associate the visibility of the white hairs with the very recent Saddle Fitting and the unfortunate assumption that the Saddle Fitter is too blame - sometimes they actually are but that's a story for another day and I certainly don't advocate blind professional loyalty BUT! here's a really hard truth - the vast majority of people have ZERO Saddle Fitting maintenance, we've reached a point where maintenance Saddle Fitting is barely undertaken and has been replaced with problem reaction Saddle Fitting or new Saddle purchase SaddleFitting. I empathise with how our life situation and animal ownership has become significantly more challenging financially and I also will never shame anyone anywhere when they do eventually reach out for Saddle Fitting help - I will be there for you but we need to know Saddle Fitting IS like shoes - or something else for our barefoot friends, it's something that is a recurring feature of horse care. Do you call your hoof care professional after the shoes fall off and the horse can't be ridden without issues? I certainly hope not.....but this is how Saddle Fitting is working for the vast majority. How can I educate you? What's the best way for me to help here?
