16 Hands Equine Therapy

10/07/2025

10/07/2025

10/06/2025

Girths! They’re important

Great question on the Saddle Fit Questions and Answers page.

Here’s the answer:

1. Even pressure across its width. Gaps are ok as long as it is evenly gapped across the width.

2. Buckles are high enough to avoid costal cartilages, lateral thoracic nerve, and elbows AKA as high as possible, and preferably long so the buckles are over a thick leather sweat flap. Buckles must be padded.

3. Girth must have even pressure across sternum (no gapping at cranial edge), and never place pressure on Xiphoid Cartilage.

4. Well-padded along edges, and firm but soft support along the middle of the girth, so the horse can’t feel the nylon webbing that attaches buckle to buckle.

5. The shape and width of the girth should match the shape and width of the horse’s girth groove, and the first/front billet should hang straight into the girth groove so the saddle stays in place.

I’ve seen exactly zero horses an anatomic girth has benefitted, when these criteria are applied. They are bandaids for improper billet position or saddle fit issues. “Shoulder relief” happens in the saddle, not the girth. But tack sellers can charge 3-4 times more when they market their girths this way.

Contoured girths are helpful when the horse needs a point billet, but should never gap.

A wider pad at the sternum is fine, but that’s just a marketing thing. Pressure runs in a straight line. Anything forward or behind the buckles is not really distributing pressure.

String girths are the #1 go to for horses who have narrow, super forward girth grooves. They’re soft and have the most surface area of any girths on the market.

The Prestige “donut girth” aka sternum relief has been getting good reviews. TBD long term but so far I like the concept — however, it is not a bandaid for a horse with sternal pathologies/injuries.

Neoprene should never be used, and if you use leather, it should not have hard edges, and needs to be cleaned and inspected after every ride for cracks. Same goes for the cheap girths like Wintec sells — those crack and can cause abrasions.

What did I miss?

10/05/2025

10/02/2025

When you work on the equine body and you see first hand the stress and injuries that occur due to modern training, horsemanship and care practices- it’s really, REALLY hard to look the other way.


What’s even harder is realizing that a lot of the problems are ‘man made’.

👉Starting horses too early
👉Putting their bodies under too much stress
👉Tack that doesn’t fit
👉Training methods that are too harsh
👉Improper hoof care
👉Lifestyles that impede development
👉Lifestyles that cause anxiety

We end up stuck in a vicious cycle of trying to correct problems that we, ourselves as an industry are causing.

If more equestrians were educated on how to care for and manage their horses correctly- we could solve a lot of these issues for our horses.

We would see less behavioral problems, less injury, more longevity, far fewer issues with soundness.

We can make a difference in our horse’s future and I think that’s what most of us want.

We just need to be willing to adjust our expectations a little.

The change starts with individual knowledge.
Critical thinking skills.
Giving your horse the time they need to develop and recover when necessary.
Seeing through marketing.
Understanding the equine body and mind at its core.

🫶WE can do this- YOU can do this!

⭐️If you’re ready to make this shift within your own horsemanship, my Equine Wellness Academy is an amazing resource.
📚More info in the comments

09/30/2025

La Crosse WI and anyone in between!

I’ll be making the trek out there on Oct 20th - Oct 21st** and have availability for both Stübben saddle fittings and body work appointments.

Send me a message to get on the schedule.

09/17/2025

Last minute trip down south this coming Sunday, have room for one or two saddle fittings!

Message me to get something scheduled.

**Depending on schedule could also add in Madison area**

09/15/2025

“The conditioning of the horse has an obvious relevance to saddle fitting.” -Elwyn Harley Edwards. 🐴

Make sure your saddle fits perfectly — book your saddle fitting with 16 Hands today!

09/08/2025

How do you know if your horse needs bodywork? 🐴
Swipe left to see the signs! ➡️

Book your appointment today and keep your horse feeling their best. ✨

09/06/2025