Barefoot saddles

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Megz04

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Hi everyone, I am looking to get a barefoot saddle for my pony as I have a bad knee and find riding in an English saddle very uncomfortable now and my pony is a typical NF (13.2hh, no withers and like sitting on a table) so is difficult to fit a saddle to. Has anyone had any experience of barefoot saddles? Also I am not sure what size I would need? Diesel is currently ridden in a 16.5in MW gp saddle, and I am a size 16 (which suggests a size 2 barefoot but I'm worried it will be too long on diesel's back).

Thanks in advance
 
I have never sat in a barefoot saddle so cant help with that one. But I used to get terrible knee pain riding, and as I was riding othrr people's horses I could never change saddles. So I got new stirrups that have shock absorption built in, made a massive difference to my knees! Maybe a cheaper option to explore first if you haven't tried it already? ( I am always on a budget so thats what I would do :-))
 
We have one I think it's the Cheyenne, it's not really a saddle more of a bareback pad. It doesn't offer you or your horse any support just a bit of padding. A couple of horses who have been ridden in it humped their backs at canter (don't do it in the solution saddles) and one who was ridden in it for years has developed kissing spine so we have switched to a solution for him too. I appreciate this can't be related directly to the saddle but he goes miles better in the solution.

They say the size doesn't matter (heard that before!) because there's no hard parts to put pressure on the back. All treeless saddles are like this I think?

I don't like the stirrup attachment as it's closed so I don't think it's safe. I also worry that the pressure from the stirrups is not distributed properly.

Also there's no twist so if you're sitting astride a barrel you will feel it :)

I don't know what your knee problem is but if you're looking to an alternative to English would a western saddle work?
 
We have a 13.2hh NF with a very flat back. Years ago we tried treeless.

Barefoot saddle - slipped right round her middle when she spooked. Also had to buy the smallest size (0 I think) to fit on her.
Freeform - great for her, but not much security for the rider (pony likes to duck out of jumps!).
Couldn't afford a Solution/Ansur so didn't try.
Bought an expensive foam model designed by a lady and named after a fictional bird. Seemed great but caused awful pressure points , leaving white patches of hair and damage to back. Due to the shape of her back the saddle wasn't able to distribute pressure as it was designed to.

Gave up and went back to treed/bareback.

I hope you have more luck than we did!!
 
I have the barefoot Notting Hill saddle on my 13.3hh very wide and flat withered pony. I absolutely love it! I hack all over Dartmoor in it climbing tors, have lots of gallops and jump in it too. It doesn't slip either and I can get on from the ground as well with no problems. I'm a size 12 and 5ft8 and the size one fits me perfect. I did have the Cherokee in size 2 but was a bit big for me but it didn't look too massive on my pony. I have nerve damage in my intercostals and I find I hurt much less in my barefoot than a normal treed saddle. If you're thinking of getting one I would recommend getting one second hand, much cheaper! I got mine on preloved with physio pad included for £400 and only been used about 3 times.
 
I use a barefoot on a new forest and have done for many years.

I have no issues with slipping.

I use peacock stirrups with the elastic as advised as the stirrup bars are closed making them safer.

I do everything in my treeless including galloping and jumping.

I love mine.
 
I've got a barefoot its great, my horse goes really well in it.

Unless the solution saddle that gave him a bad back...
 
Unless you are set on Barefoot I would talk to Louise at Equine Whispers if you want to try treeless, she sells Ghost and Trekker and is very helpful, both of these saddles have a narrower twist and possibly better stability than a Barefoot ( which i really like too), she offers a test saddle which would be a really good idea for you before you commit, buying second hand Barefoots is a good idea but most of the ones i see on Ebay are ancient and should be avoided, always ask the age , for example older Cherokees have a fixed point for the stirrups, newer models are on velcro, you would need a size 2
 
You might find the size 2 looks really big on him-I know they arent supposed to cause problems being too long, but they look stupid IMO. I like the quality of the Barefoots but thought the size 2 looked daft on my 13h Exmoor and yes, it was slippy as heck. I do now have a Nevada (a 1.5) which looks better and is fine on him with a non-slip pad. Also looks good on the other one and seems more stable than the cherokee although theoretically it should be the same.
I use endurance stirrups anyway because they stopped my knee pain. sometimes you need to work out which pad works best with your horse and the good ones are not cheap.


eta if I had the money the ones I would want to try are the Treefrees, the Trekkers and Ghost treeless saddles.
 
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