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11-09-2015, 08:47 AM
For a little detail on the packsaddle design, here's an excerpt from John Mionczynski's The Pack Goat (used with permission):
"Some homemade saddles... have design flaws that can be devastating. The angle of the tree should be eighty-five to eighty-seven degrees. A ninety-degree angle, which is easier to build, will not distribute weight but will put excessive pressure on the goat's vertebral processes (the side wings on the vertebrae) and eventually cause debilitating sores. Sharper angles will hurt the ribs and constrict breathing. The inside surfaces of the bars should be beveled on top and bottom for a better fit and to compensate for wider or narrower backs. An overall tree length of 12 inches fits most goats of packable size (150 to 300 pounds)."
"Some homemade saddles... have design flaws that can be devastating. The angle of the tree should be eighty-five to eighty-seven degrees. A ninety-degree angle, which is easier to build, will not distribute weight but will put excessive pressure on the goat's vertebral processes (the side wings on the vertebrae) and eventually cause debilitating sores. Sharper angles will hurt the ribs and constrict breathing. The inside surfaces of the bars should be beveled on top and bottom for a better fit and to compensate for wider or narrower backs. An overall tree length of 12 inches fits most goats of packable size (150 to 300 pounds)."