to tight of a saddle?

Im not sure if this is where this suppose to go but im new lol.
Any way.
I bought my horse about three years ago. And I havent been able to ride her alot for the past two years. But when I do ride her, I sometimes ride her bareback. Well she listens very VERY well with that. I havent tried it out side the fence. So its mainly just in her pasture with the other horses. But when I put a saddle on her its awefull! I don't know if its because she isnt near the other horses any more or what. But she doesnt listen!
The old owners told us to keep tighting it until she squeals. Well know matter how hard we tigtend it, she never squealed. She doesnt bloat or anything. She sits there like a lady.
Do you think the old owners had the saddle on to tight. They told me that she would always try and head back for the barn.
Some one told me that since she is 17 she should listen pretty well. HELP PLEASE! If it is from the saddle being to tight, and that's why she doesnt listen is there a way to stop that at all.

Never tighten till she squeals! Its just like you with a belt would you want it tighted till you squeal?!? Tighten it till you can fit I think its 1 or 2 fingers between the girth and there stomach. He's probably acting up because its pinching him and its extremely uncomfortable!

Sorry if this isnt what you ment

You have been misinformed. Tightening a saddle that much is incredibly difficult for a horse to breath and function and it could be hurting her terribly. Tighten it only tight enough so that way you can mount from the ground without the saddle slipping sideways. You should be able to slide one finger underneath the horses chest where the girth is most tight, it shouldn't be incredibly easy, but you shouldn't have to dig around for a while to get it in there either.

I would not tighten it until she 'squeals'. ;) Like HAF said, you're supposed to have it tight enough that you can fit at least 1-2 fingers in there. Never make it TOO tight, that's not good for the horse & will probably cause girth sores in the future.

Another option is maybe seeing if the saddle's fitting properly?

I would strongly suggest that you have someone who knows horses come over and show you how the saddle is supposed to be placed and how to cinch it up correctly. They should also know what to look for in saddle fit.

It seems like you are putting your horse in distress and that could easily be the root of any of her problems. Not only should a horse never "squeal", the cinch should never be tighten all at once. It should be done in at least 3 stages. The rule of thumb is 2 fingers between the horse and the cinch but some horses need more and some can use less. The cinch is there to keep the saddle from slipping or falling off. If your horse has a good set of withers and you are using a good pad, it will stay in place with less tightening then a mutton withered horse and a poor saddle pad.

We don't tighting it that much. My uncle (who knows horses, and saddles her for me) always makes sure you can fit fingers through it. And my uncle went with them when they went and bought my new saddle. The old one was durty and gross. And the saddle, fits her perfactly. And we also bought a new saddle pad. The only other thing I need is a new bridle. Hers works just fine, it broke, and we had to fix so now it looks strange. Lol

How long have you ridden horses for? How much experience do you have riding horses?

I suggest for you to find and work with a trainer.

Tighten the girth till she squeals ... sounds about as good advice as throwing them & peeing on their head(yes, apparently a tried & tested method of gaining respect!)

The poor girl! If she's had a lot of that sort of experience, it'll likely take some time of good treatment before she overcomes her bad associations. At 18yo, with good training & management, yes, you'd *generally* expect a horse to be quite 'good' by then, but if she's had even a few years of bad training & management, she could well be 'worse' than a green horse. I too suggest you find yourself a *good* trainer/instructor ASAP.

I may just ride her bareback for a while. She hasnt had it that tight in over three years.
Im going to first see if she does better in the round pen, where she knows she can't get out, and travel back to the other horses. Because that may have been one of the reasons for her doing that. Since she always seems to want to head in that direction.
Lol

I doubt where you do it will have any bearing. It's either a memory & fear of pain, or it's actual pain causing this behaviour. Therefore, the very first things I would be doing are having her back & saddle checked out thoroughly.

Unfortunately, it's not as common as you would like to think that saddles are designed for the comfort of the horse. Horses and saddles also change shape over time & even if it was very well fitting to begin with, they should be checked & adjusted if necessary at least every 6 months.