saddle advice

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sarah23

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My little lad of 8 wants to start riding my little mare. My saddle is far too big for him (17") so i need to buy a new one for him to ride in. Do you think a 15" saddle would be OK.

I have never had to fit such a small bum in a saddle before so i have no idea where to start for size. I know somebody on here will have a son/daughter about the same age, which will be able to point me in the right direction.
 
Answered this elsewhere. As long as both saddles fit the horse, there should be no problem.
 
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Answered this elsewhere. As long as both saddles fit the horse, there should be no problem.

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Thanks for your reply. What i was now asking, is what size do i go for, as i have no idea. He has been riding our Shetland in a cub saddle, which i think is 12", so just needed to know whether a 14 or 15" would be best.
 
you need to take him to saddlers and sit him in a few and see which he's happiest in. tbh it depends how secure his seat is, whether he's happier with longer or slightly shorter stirrups, how forward the flaps are cut, whether he has long thighs or not, i think... just as for an adult.
 
The problem about a small saddle on a larger horse, is that most small saddles are built for ponies and the tree is not suitable to distribute weight evenly over the horse's back.

The saddle fundamentally has to fit - so the panels and tree have to be suitable for the horse. Having a seat 2" smaller means that the weight will be centered more in the middle of the horse's back.

As for seat size, as Kerilli said, it depends on what style of saddle, style of seat, how tall your son is (distance from hip to thigh) etc just as for an adult. Best thing to do is to speak to your saddler.

It is very tempting to buy pony saddles on ebay but the majority I have seen have been very poor quality indian leather saddles which have uneven panels and are stuffed with carpet fibres. Not what you want on your mare!
 
my 2 children have a 15" saddle, they are 4 and 6years old but its on a welsh A. i always thought it was more important that the saddle fitted the horse properly so that the riders weight was distributed over the correct part of the horses back. i can also ride her in the 15" saddle but im only 5ft3 and slim.
 
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