Thoughts of an Equestrian Chiropractor

My name is Dr. Steve Katz. I’ve been a chiropractor for 40 years. I received my certification for animals and started doing chiropractic work on horses over 30 years ago. I had a mixed practice of humans and horses for about 17 years, but I gave up my human practice and have been working exclusively with horses now for the past 15 years.

My interest in saddle fitting came on very early in my equine chiropractic career, around 1992. Early on, it became apparent that saddle issues were a major cause of back discomfort and performance in horses. Back then, in the early 90s, there was little access to trained saddle fitters. It was frustrating to me from a chiropractic standpoint that I knew that the saddles were causing the issues that I was seeing, but I couldn’t fix it. I could make the horse more comfortable, but I couldn’t fix the problem long-term. 

I decided that I was going to learn how to fit saddles. At that time, there were no schools in the United States that taught saddle fitting. There are now, thank goodness. So, in the beginning, I learned what I could from some of my show clients who were from the Northeastern United States.  They came to South Florida for the winter where I was living.  I shadowed a few saddle fitters that also came from the Northeast to Florida for the winter. These horses seemed to have fewer issues.  I decided I would go to England to saddle school,  which I did somewhere around the year 2000. I also took courses by the Society of Master Saddlers.

I was an independent saddle fitter for many many years before my wife Sheri and I purchased Duett Saddlery. Over my last 30 years working with horses I’ve fit thousands upon thousands of saddles. I would help and guide people in selecting a proper saddle, both English and Western.  

I’ve long wanted to do some type of blog or education, and I’m finally at a point in my career where I have some time to sit down and share the things I’ve learned as a chiropractor dealing with horses with back pain and how saddle fitting fits into this whole picture. 

I’m going to do a series of blog posts, and I’m going to start from the beginning and answer questions like:

• How do I know if my saddle actually fits my horse properly?
• What are the signs of a poor saddle fit?
• Is there a way to check saddle fit myself without hiring a professional?
• What’s the best way to measure gullet width for a wide horse?
• Can a poorly fitted saddle cause back problems in horses?  

Then, I will discuss how to help a horse recover from back issues from a chiropractic standpoint and how I have helped many horses rehab successfully by working with vets and other practitioners.