How long is too long bareback?

I am having an aweful time fitting my mule with a saddle. Looks like I am going to have to get something custom made for her, but just don't have the cash right now so will have to just use my bareback pad for a while. Just got me curious though, how long is too long to ride bareback? I would just be trail riding at a walk.

I don't think that there is a definitive answer for this:) I would just ride bareback until you find the right saddle:) I'm sure your mule is very happy with you to, not making her/him wear a saddle that is going to cause problems:)

I bareback all the time some times for up to 4 hours with a few breaks here and there and I've never had a problem. It just depends on how used to bareback your mule is and how balanced/comfortable you are riding bareback. It great that you're willing to ride bareback until you can find a fitting saddle. Have you tried mule saddles on her? Some companies make special brands to accommodate the different shape of mules.

Yes I have tried one mule saddle on her and it did not fit her. The saddle had just as much rock as the tree on my crates saddle. Most of the mule saddles are either cheap junk or expensive custom saddles. I also tried a treeless on her, but the rigging was too far back on the saddle so would pull it forward.