Best dressage saddle for high withered hanoverian

Hollycat

Hollycat

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I have a new horse with very high withers! Are there any particular brands of dressage saddle good for high withered horses? We are going to get a selection from the saddler to try so it would be nice to know of some brands that are good for this type of horse. I have a fab WOW saddle but my friend that I have bought the horse with does not like it. I love it though and will be using it for my own horse (I am looking for another now!) so agree we should buy a saddle we both like for this shared horse. She seems to be something between a medium and wide so we also need a saddle that has a medium wide fitting. We have a saddle fitter booked but we need to provide a variety of saddles for her to try so it would be nice to know what is likely to fit.

We have tried a wintec isobell which wasn't right even though it is very adjustable.

Thanks!
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With a horse like this with a higher back profile have you thought about a ideal suzannah?

I have a majorly with withered horse and the tree and pannels have been designed with exactly this type of horse in mind.

The tree points are longer to give it more lift and the pannels are very deep so its very adjustable by a good saddler.

Not cheap at 1100.00 ish but it really suits me and my horse.
 
Thanks Claire. It looks like a nice saddle and I will see if I can get one to try. Not too fussed about price - would rather pay more and get something that really suits her and both of her riders!
 
I have a Black Country Eloquence and can honestly say it is the best saddle I have ever ridden in, I have had Jaguar, WOW, Frank Baines, Kiefer, Isabell & Albion but the Black Country is by far the best for comfort (I even hack in it for hours) position and the freeness of the horse's movement. Black Country is owned by a guy that used to be one of the top designers for Albion whom left there and started up Black Country. It is very rare to find a second hand one but I have seen the odd one on e-bay. They retail new about £1300 for my model.

The other option is a Kiefer with a cut back head although I found them too wide at the twist for me so was really uncomfortable especially in sitting trot.
 
Thanks for everyones opinions - def ordering an ideal suzanna and a black country saddle to try. Checked with my saddler and he stocks both black country and ideal so should be no probs getting them.
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Another vote for Black Country. I had 2 other saddles made for my Hannoverian neither of which fitted well, and then we discovered Black Country who I don't think charge more for made to measure. Mine needed a wide tree at the back but medium at the withers, if that makes sense so we had a wide built up at the front and have had it for 4 years with no problems.
 
Oooh another vote for black country. I hadn't heard of them til I started searching for a saddle for my high withered trakehner. I got a good second hand one from my local saddlers for just less than £500.
It's very comfy and it is specially designed for high withered horses so fits him well.
 
Grrr - why are saddlers so difficult! Our local saddler is supposed to be an agent for black country but when we went in and asked about them he was very dismissive and had none in stock for us to try. He was also dismissive of the ideal suzanna - agggggggggggggggg. Anyway - tried an ideal (other model) but it was not a good fit on the horse. We also tried 17.5 albion (can't remember the model either) and it also wasn't such a good fit on the horse - also it was tiny - I felt like a beached whale in it and my bum really hurt where it was squashed up against the back of the saddle. My friend has her heart set on an albion sadly, as I don't like them. She thinks it will be possible to have the stuffing adjusted to fit even though the saddle dropped right down near her withers once it was sat on.

We saw a few nice second hand Amerigo's advertised for sale onlne so perhaps will try them - though they were only 17.5 - maybe too small for my bum if they fit like the albion. Luckily I am having my WOW adjusted to fit the horse so there's no real panic about another saddle until I find a new horse - which could take ages. Hopefully by then my friend may come round to the WOW which I adore and the horse seems to move very freely in it too. The 18 WOW has loads of room for my bum and doesn't make me feel fat and like a freak. I know its stupid but I felt so depressed being squashed into that tiny saddle
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I wonder if I contacted black country direct they could reccommend a more sympathetic saddler to send us some to try?
 
the only thing I would be careful about is whether your horse can take an 18" - the saddler was getting you to try 17.5" saddles for a reason.

In terms of seat size, remember that the deeper the seat (i.e. dressage) the less room there is. also I would try to get something with a square cantle if possible as gives you an extra 1/4 inch of room.
 
Horse is 16'3 and a mare so a little longer in the back. She is wearing my 18'' WOW at the moment which is good on her in terms of length. All a bit complicated. Saddle fitter couldn't make it - she is independent but works with local saddlery shop who provdes saddles for her to fit. Saddler wasn't doing a fitting for us - he gave us what he had in stock that was MW for us to try on her first before the saddle fitter then comes out to fit anything that was suitable. 17.5 was all saddler had in MW - and only 2 different types of saddles so despite what I was told on the phone about stocking black country etc - not exactly a huge range of dressage saddles to try!!!!!! Will look out for a square cantle
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I think we may have to try something like saddles direct to get a selection to try on her.
 
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