First multi-day pack trip!

[Nanno]

Some goats will let you know if the saddle doesn't fit too, but some people don't read the signs. Some folks don't read the signs with horses either and often chalk their behavior problems up to poor training or other things, when all the horse really needs is a properly fitting saddle. Goats are the same way. When I see a behavior problem with a horse or goat, the first thing I look into is saddle fit. The animal has to be comfortable before he can do his job happily and to his full potential. Sputnik just about knocked my teeth out with the crossbuck one time when I used a wooden saddle on him. It wasn't a terrible fit (so I thought), and the saddle was not heavily loaded, but it still made him uncomfortable enough that when I tried to get something from the panniers he refused to let me touch him. Phil caught him and made him stand still, but when I touched the pannier he jumped straight up and almost hit me in the face with the saddle. Sputnik was never fussy about me messing with his Sopris saddle, so I knew it was not a training problem. He just wanted to let me know that the wooden saddle pinched!