Pinpointed the problem

I went out to see Ruby this morning, and maybe ride her around at a walk.  As usual, she neighed at me when I walked around the corner of the barn, stuck her head into the halter over the stall door, and gave me goo-goo eyes while I groomed her.

'Whatcha doin' back there??'

She stood quietly for tacking, though she did flinch a few times as I placed the saddle pad.  I'm not actually sure what you call it, but I'm referring to that skin shudder they do when a fly has landed on them.  She sometimes does this, so I proceeded to place the saddle. I put more Desitin on the seams of the saddle pad and started tightening the girth.  I wasn't able to get the girth as tight as it needed to be for trotting, but it would work for walking so I led her into the arena.  As usual she stood stock-still for mounting and walked off when asked.  We walked over poles, around barrels, did baby leg yields and worried about what we couldn't see on the other side of the trailer parked in the arena.  She was great and I was thinking, let's just see if she'll trot over a pole one time with me riding.  But, if I wanted to trot, I needed to tighten the girth.  I hopped down and tried her left side - seemed tight enough.  I walked around to her right; this side could go up another hole.  I don't know how everyone else does it, but when I tighten a girth, I'm looking at the girth buckles and the holes in the saddle billets, not at the horse's skin.  This time, I noticed what must have been staring me in the face for the last several months...when the girth is fully tightened, it pinches her skin between itself and the edge of the saddle pad. 

Not currently pinching, but you can see how the Desitin was squeezed up between the edges

I noticed and mentioned to Heather that Ruby will sometimes pin her ears when we are trotting especially when I would ask her to turn. I had Heather watch me because I assumed it had something to do with my position, whether it be my legs, hands, or seat.  She never saw anything that might cause a negative response so I assumed Ruby was just a horse that only wanted to trot when it was her idea.  Or maybe she didn't see the point of running around in circles.  I figured that as we worked more and got to know each other better, she'd work out of it.

Wow, do I ever feel like a jerk.  I've thought several times that I should go ahead and buy a shorter girth but I've never needed to tighten beyond the billet holes closest to the saddle.  I figured another girth was something that I didn't actually need, as my current one wasn't technically too long.  I also worried that if I got a shorter girth, the buckles would place pressure directly on a massive vein that runs from near Ruby's elbow to her belly on both sides.  How wrong I was!  It is unreal to me that this mare has never attempted to buck, rear, bite, or otherwise throw or harm me considering that she has been getting pinched!  She had every opportunity and honestly would have been justified.  Ruby is a freaking saint. 

Saint Ruby just before untacking

I untacked her right there in the arena, gave her a huge hug and a thank you and let her graze to her heart's content on the 'special' (ungrazed) grass of the arena and the barnyard.