Q: What does it mean if a horse is cold-backed?
A: Being ‘cold backed’ is a catch-all term used by equestrians to describe a horse who is experiencing pain or discomfort in their back that makes them sensitive, particularly to being saddled up, being mounted from the ground or even, in some cases, being groomed. When ridden, these horses can also show stiffness or bucking prior to or during their warm-up. The sensitivity demonstrated tends to subside after the horse has warmed up and the muscles in the back have loosened.
Despite cold backed being a commonly used term, we must take these horses seriously and investigate the specific cause for the condition. Most of the time, we can find a cause, whether it be poor saddle fit, poor rider posture or a conformation, soundness or weakness issue in the horse.
What can you do?
The first thing to do is to ask your vet to look at your horse’s neck, back and pelvis to see if they can find any specific areas of sensitivity. They will also want to look at your horse move to look for any soundness issues or particular areas of weakness.
Next, you should get a professional, fully trained saddle fitter to come out and check your saddle. Saddles are a common cause of discomfort, and if the problem is caught early enough, the situation can easily be remedied with no long-lasting effects.
Then, if health issues and poor saddle fit are not to blame, you should ask someone to watch you ride to see if your position in the saddle or way of riding could be exacerbating the issue.
If all of the above issues are ruled out, and you know that your saddle fits, your vet is happy with your horse and your posture is as good as it can be, then you can take a few steps to minimise the impact of this cold back issue. For example, you can tighten the girth slowly over a few minutes; you can saddle up early and hand-walk your horse until he has loosened up enough to get on; or you can lunge your horse in his saddle for a while before you mount. These steps will help him get his back nice and loose for your riding session.
Top tip
Mounting from the ground puts massive stress on a horse’s back, whether they are considered ‘cold backed’ or not. It is always best to mount from a mounting block or get a leg up. If you have a cold backed horse, you must NEVER mount from the ground.