After you've finished tightening your cinch (Make sure to read about the proper way to cinch a horse), there's one more step to ensure your horse's comfort and prevent saddle sores. That's the Cinching Stretch.

Lift and gradually stretch each front leg out in front as far as your horse will allow. If you're doing this for the first time with your horse, make sure you move very slowly and gently to introduce the concept. After a few times, your horse will learn the routine and will willingly participate, but always be gentle and stretch slowly.

This stretch will remove any skin wrinkles that have gotten caught under the cinch that could cause irritation and sores.

The "Used Saddle Pick of the Week"

Every week we scour the Internet searching for a particularly juicy bargain on a high quality used western saddle and feature it here on the WSG Saddle Blog. The saddles featured are listed for sale on ebay as of the date of the post.

Checking out our Picks each week will give you some great insight into buying used saddles. Make sure to click through to the actual listing to see all of the photos and description from the seller.

The Western Saddle Guide is not the seller of the saddles featured and does not make any representations about them. We encourage all potential buyers to do their own due diligence on the seller and the saddle before purchasing.

LAST WEEK'S PICK:

Last week's pick - a very solid and little used 15" Circle Y Show Saddle - is flying under the radar. There's still some time left on the auction as of this writing and there has yet to be a bidder. The starting bid price of $500 may be scaring folks away, and probably was a mistake by the seller. The saddle is definitely worth $500 but probably not too much more than that. If you're interested in a nice little show saddle, you might want to see if you can sneak in and scoop it up for the $500 minimum.

THIS WEEK'S PICK:

This week we've chosen a Teskey saddle. Teskeys is a Weatherford, Texas-based western tack store that produces it's own line of saddles in addition to carrying many major brands. Teskey saddles are solid, handsome saddles.

This week's pick is a very attractive Teskey's Barrel saddle that is in like-new condition. The saddle is in natural light oil with a hunter green suede seat, rough out fenders and jockeys, and oak leaf tooling and basket stamping.

But this isn't just a "pretty" saddle. It's also a well-built saddle. The saddle has a rawhide-covered wood tree with a 6 1/2" gullet

The starting bid price is $750, which may seem a bit high, but this saddle is definitely worth it. It's in such good condition it can pass as new. This saddle will outfit your youth rider and get you a good price at resale when they outgrow it.

We present the Saddle Blog's Used Saddle of the Week:
13" Teskey Barrel Saddle

Check out other Barrel Racing Saddles for sale in our tack shop.

If you're reading this blog, then you probably feel as I do that there is no more beautiful animal than a horse. And the most beautiful of all is our own horse.

I have tons of photographs of my horse, but what I treasure the most is an original portrait that I had done recently. It's not just a picture, it's a work of art.

The artist, Jill Stefani Wagner, works in lush pastels that seem to really capture the richness of her subjects. She has a special affinity for animals and creates wonderful portraits of pets of all kinds, but it's her horse portraits that really mesmerized me.

You can view all of Jill's work on her website - JillWagnerArt.com.

By the way, just thought you might want to know that the portrait of the little sorrel in the lower left corner at right is my guy, Skip.

The "Used Saddle Pick of the Week"

Every week we scour the Internet searching for a particularly juicy bargain on a high quality used western saddle and feature it here on the WSG Saddle Blog. The saddles featured are listed for sale on ebay as of the date of the post.

Checking out our Picks each week will give you some great insight into buying used saddles. Make sure to click through to the actual listing to see all of the photos and description from the seller.

The Western Saddle Guide is not the seller of the saddles featured and does not make any representations about them. We encourage all potential buyers to do their own due diligence on the seller and the saddle before purchasing.

LAST WEEK'S PICK:

Last week's pick - a very solid and handsome 16" Custom Grant Willis Ranch Saddle - didn't sneak by unnoticed even though Grant Willis isn't a household name. The saddle generated 14 bids with a final sale price of $775. The buyer got a very good saddle by a very good saddle maker.

THIS WEEK'S PICK:

This week we go back to a classic production brand - Circle Y.

This week's pick is an attractive Circle Y show saddle with very few miles on it and in great condition. This is as close to a new saddle as you can get when buying used.

The saddle is medium oil and has a 15" dark brown suede seat, floral tooling, and tasteful silver trim. The seller does not mention a saddle bar type or gullet width, so make sure to inquire before bidding.

If you're looking for a solid saddle for the show ring, this is a great choice - attractive, solid, and in great condition.

We present the Saddle Blog's Used Saddle of the Week:

15" Circle Y Show Saddle

Check out other Circle Y Saddles for sale in our tack shop.

The cinch connecting strap (also called a cinch hobble) connects the front cinch and flank cinch together. This is a small, but important, piece of equipment on double rigged saddles. Without this piece, the flank cinch can slip backwards into the horse's flank and convert your well-mannered horse into a bucking bronc.

You should never use a flank cinch without this strap connected. A replacement is available from most tack stores. If you ever find yourself without one, just remove the flank cinch, and ride with only the front cinch. It's that important.

The cinch connecting strap usually comes with the flank cinch, but can also be purchased separately. The strap is threaded through small rings on the front cinch and flank cinch and can have buckles, snaps, ties, or any combination of these. When connected, it must be short enough to keep the flank cinch in the correct position.

The "Used Saddle Pick of the Week"

Every week we scour the Internet searching for a particularly juicy bargain on a high quality used western saddle and feature it here on the WSG Saddle Blog. The saddles featured are listed for sale on ebay as of the date of the post.

Checking out our Picks each week will give you some great insight into buying used saddles. Make sure to click through to the actual listing to see all of the photos and description from the seller.

The Western Saddle Guide is not the seller of the saddles featured and does not make any representations about them. We encourage all potential buyers to do their own due diligence on the seller and the saddle before purchasing.

LAST WEEK'S PICK:

Last week's pick - a wonderful little  15" Vintage Simco Show Saddle ended up being pulled by the seller. Disappointing because this was a little gem ready to be discovered. Not sure if the seller sold it off ebay or decided to keep it.

THIS WEEK'S PICK:

This week we've found another gem - a well-built custom saddle from Canadian saddle maker, Grant Willis. Willis is a talented craftsman out of Penticton, British Columbia.

This is a classic ranch working saddle with some miles on it, but many, many more left in it. The saddle has a 16" seat and, is a half-breed style - meaning it has rough out seat, seat jockey, and fenders and tooling (basket weave) on the skirts, cantle and fork.

The seller doesn't mention a bar type for the saddle tree or gullet width so you'll want to inquire before bidding. But ranch saddles tend to have wider gullets to accommodate a variety of horses with some padding.

This is a really solid saddle that would make a great all-around ride. As of this writing, there's only one bid at $599. I think someone may be hoping few folks have heard of Grant Willis.

We present the Saddle Blog's Used Saddle of the Week:

16" Custom Grant Willis Ranch Saddle

Check out other Ranch Saddles for sale in our tack shop.