Saddle fit + wonky pony + hormonal pre teen daughter = loosing my marbles!

I have also used a synthetic Maxam with a cutaway head for a short backed cob, before we went treeless. Built for a small rider and seemed to fit pretty much anything. Could not get on with Wintec due to the shape of the tree not suiting a flat back.
 
Palindrome said:
Have you had other fitters out to try saddles? What have you tried?

Wintec Lite tend to fit a wide range of horses but I would want to try it first, hence having a fitter out.
Personnaly I would keep the Wow and return it with the pony and sell the saddle you bought for your daughter when pony is returned.
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So far have tried:

2 x Dever working hunter saddles (1 better than the other but slipped backwards)
An ideal gp (looked good but produced horrendous canter on one rein and refusal to jump)
Kent and masters (slipped sideways at the back)
A TG synthetic (tree not flat enough)
 
SEL said:
But they have a tonne of different seat styles so if one doesn't suit then your fitter should get bringing loads more out to trial.

I have different seats on different horses because they are different shapes. If I'm tipping it needs adjusting. If you feel it's perching you too high then it's not fitted correctly
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Unfortunately the fitter didn't have what she thought we need (size 0 flat Y academic) and in 6 months I have found one second hand which I was too late to buy.

Will take some photos today to share how it sits. Fitter and friend say that's how it's meant to be but it just seems too much saddle for a not very big pony!
 
I’m with you daughter I’m afraid, it’s horrible riding in a saddle that makes you feel insecure, and if pony is stopping and she’s flying off, then I don’t blame her.
If she likes the saddle pad, I’d just let her ride in that for a while and see where it takes them. In the meantime, you can just take a breath and leave them to it for a bit.
 
lrw0250 said:
Unfortunately the fitter didn't have what she thought we need (size 0 flat Y academic) and in 6 months I have found one second hand which I was too late to buy.

Will take some photos today to share how it sits. Fitter and friend say that's how it's meant to be but it just seems too much saddle for a not very big pony!
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It would be cheaper to buy the seat from WOW than a new saddle wouldn't it? Size 0 are hard to come by because people don't like spending thousands on small ponies which kids grow out of.

I have a size 0 flat Y on my 13h native and had to buy new.
 
WOW are advertising on their Facebook page at the moment that they have a number of second hand seats in stock. You have to email them to find out if they have what you want.

A size 0 flat academic does sound like a rarer one so probably a long shot but it's probably worth a try and they might be able to suggest something similar if they don't have that specific one.

I'm a WOW fan having gone through lots of experience of other saddles not fitting. I find them really comfortable but it does have to be the right seat and flap set up for the rider. There are some combinations I've sat in that I haven't liked at all.

PS. I use the back stirrup bar pretty much all the time and always for jumping. I definitely wouldn't like to jump on the front bar and think ejection would be much more likely if I did!
 
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Lucky Snowball said:
If daughter is happy with the pad then I’d let her use it. If that means no competing then it’s her choice and will save you money! I also don’t like wow saddles. I’d happily use a pad rather than not ride.
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Why can't she ride bareback and have fun with the pony? She doesn't have to go to pony club and compete. OH as an adult rode his big Welsh Cob bareback a lot as it was so difficult to find a saddle that fitted him and the horse.
 
My horse used to have this exact conformation and honestly nothing worked on him, so I wouldn't assume you can get a treed saddle to work. Anything that seemed like it was working was actually only staying in position because it was going into his shoulders. He has a back injury now from a saddle that I thought was working. Fortunately he's changed shape enough for a reactor panel to work but they're very tricky with croup high horses and were impossible when he was younger. I'm scared of airbag saddles due to a previous bad experience but I found them lovely to ride on.

It sounds like your daughter is being precocious but if she's experienced and knows what she gets on with to ride on, and that that saddle is hindering her riding capability, I think you've got to respect that. If you and your daughter think there's a real chance of the suggested saddle part being a solution to the issue, I'd be putting my hand in my pocket, buying it new and giving it a try. If it doesn't work you'd get a good chunk of your money back if they're snapped up second hand and any other potential solution (new saddle, new pony, new child, etc) will be more expensive.
 
Flame_ said:
My horse used to have this exact conformation and honestly nothing worked on him, so I wouldn't assume you can get a treed saddle to work. Anything that seemed like it was working was actually only staying in position because it was going into his shoulders. He has a back injury now from a saddle that I thought was working. Fortunately he's changed shape enough for a reactor panel to work but they're very tricky with croup high horses and were impossible when he was younger. I'm scared of airbag saddles due to a previous bad experience but I found them lovely to ride on.

It sounds like your daughter is being precocious but if she's experienced and knows what she gets on with to ride on, and that that saddle is hindering her riding capability, I think you've got to respect that. If you and your daughter think there's a real chance of the suggested saddle part being a solution to the issue, I'd be putting my hand in my pocket, buying it new and giving it a try. If it doesn't work you'd get a good chunk of your money back if they're snapped up second hand and any other potential solution (new saddle, new pony, new child, etc) will be more expensive.
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Like the idea of a new child.
 
Highmileagecob said:
If you can locate an older leather Barefoot treeless saddle, ie one made before the company was sold, it may help to put your daughter in a good balance whilst she works on the confidence issues. Treeless saddles do need good support pads, and pads that can be shimmed and altered are readily available - think of the saddle as a pony pad and the under padding provides the saddle profile. Your daughter might get away with jumping the pony in a treeless for now, but as she gets bigger she will need the support of a good fitting saddle. A size 1 Barefoot will fit your daughter.
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I've bumped an old thread for you. Look in 'what's new' on the top tool bar and it should be there.
 
Heather Moffet saddles might work for your daughter and the pony if you want to go treeless/soft treed.
The feeling is not too far from a pad but it's conventional looking for competing in.
 
HelenBack said:
WOW are advertising on their Facebook page at the moment that they have a number of second hand seats in stock. You have to email them to find out if they have what you want.

A size 0 flat academic does sound like a rarer one so probably a long shot but it's probably worth a try and they might be able to suggest something similar if they don't have that specific one.

I'm a WOW fan having gone through lots of experience of other saddles not fitting. I find them really comfortable but it does have to be the right seat and flap set up for the rider. There are some combinations I've sat in that I haven't liked at all.

PS. I use the back stirrup bar pretty much all the time and always for jumping. I definitely wouldn't like to jump on the front bar and think ejection would be much more likely if I did!
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Thanks I spotted their post today so will drop an email..
My worry is that even with a different seat, headplate etc it's still going to leave her perched with no real seat contact.
The previous rider had them on the front so we just kept it the same. Daughter rode again today and said her legs were in a better position but she still finds her shoulders tipping forward. I didn't get any photos or videos of them but I agreed from what a saw..
 
Smogul said:
Why can't she ride bareback and have fun with the pony? She doesn't have to go to pony club and compete. OH as an adult rode his big Welsh Cob bareback a lot as it was so difficult to find a saddle that fitted him and the horse.
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I'd certainly be happy if I didn't need to ferry them around to comps! This may well be what we end up doing, just having lessons and hacking at home but I do worry about the long term effects of a bareback pad on our ponies back due to the pressure points of the stirrups.
 
I sympathise with your daughter.
I can't stand WOW saddles and they make me feel so far away from the horse which can't be nice if the pony occasionally stops at fences.

I'd leave her to ride in the bareback pad if she is happy with that and perhaps contact Saddle Bank or similar to suggest a saddle you can try and return if it doesn't fit?
 
I hate uploading photos on here!! Twice as hard as it needs to be

OP - this little mare is 13h, sprung ribcage, croup high and kissing spine at withers and T18. I got through Solutions, AH, Ideal and Heritage before I asked a WOW fitter if she felt like a challenge. That's one of the reasons that even if she hates the feeling the air bags gives I think your daughter will struggle to find any brand that can work with the really challenging shaped any better than WOW.

Just make sure the fitters are emptying the air bags before adjusting the saddle. They aren't supposed to be pumped up like Katy Price's breast implants. I've got more in this saddle than my other horse to help balance it and stop me disappearing down her neck but I don't feel perched. If your daughter feels like she's tipping forward then it just needs balancing properly.

I've also got a fore girth on this to stabilise it. Dressage panels purely because I haven't got around up buying her anything else.

Its worth asking on the 2nd hand FB pages if anyone has the seat you need. There are people like me who have stuff they haven't got around to selling and might need a nudge.
IMG_20240303_111944148_HDR.jpg
 
SEL said:
I hate uploading photos on here!! Twice as hard as it needs to be

OP - this little mare is 13h, sprung ribcage, croup high and kissing spine at withers and T18. I got through Solutions, AH, Ideal and Heritage before I asked a WOW fitter if she felt like a challenge. That's one of the reasons that even if she hates the feeling the air bags gives I think your daughter will struggle to find any brand that can work with the really challenging shaped any better than WOW.

Just make sure the fitters are emptying the air bags before adjusting the saddle. They aren't supposed to be pumped up like Katy Price's breast implants. I've got more in this saddle than my other horse to help balance it and stop me disappearing down her neck but I don't feel perched. If your daughter feels like she's tipping forward then it just needs balancing properly.

I've also got a fore girth on this to stabilise it. Dressage panels purely because I haven't got around up buying her anything else.

Its worth asking on the 2nd hand FB pages if anyone has the seat you need. There are people like me who have stuff they haven't got around to selling and might need a nudge.
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Which FB pages do you suggest? We have been searching for a year for bits of a Wow saddle our fitter has told us to look out for but they seem to be like hens teeth so any suggestions for places to search would be gratefully received!
 
SEL said:
I hate uploading photos on here!! Twice as hard as it needs to be

OP - this little mare is 13h, sprung ribcage, croup high and kissing spine at withers and T18. I got through Solutions, AH, Ideal and Heritage before I asked a WOW fitter if she felt like a challenge. That's one of the reasons that even if she hates the feeling the air bags gives I think your daughter will struggle to find any brand that can work with the really challenging shaped any better than WOW.

Just make sure the fitters are emptying the air bags before adjusting the saddle. They aren't supposed to be pumped up like Katy Price's breast implants. I've got more in this saddle than my other horse to help balance it and stop me disappearing down her neck but I don't feel perched. If your daughter feels like she's tipping forward then it just needs balancing properly.

I've also got a fore girth on this to stabilise it. Dressage panels purely because I haven't got around up buying her anything else.

Its worth asking on the 2nd hand FB pages if anyone has the seat you need. There are people like me who have stuff they haven't got around to selling and might need a nudge.
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Thanks so much for sharing. I've been trying to find a good photo of just pony and saddle but can't find a decent one.

My friend emptied the airbags and reinflated yesterday with minimal air to help with balance and its certainly helped from what I can see but its not me riding in it. Also took away the foregirth as she felt it was pulling the saddle down at the front. I do wonder if the fact my daughter is so lightweight means she isn't squishing the airbags down which is making her feel perched and off balance? It seems to me to sit high before she mounts - I can almost fit my whole arm down it when tacked up!
 
Photo from a few weeks ago in the Wow. It's a screenshot taken from a video of them cantering during a jump lesson. This is the typical position we get which results in instructors constantly telling her to sit up! Granted this was before the tweaks made yesterday..
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Flowerofthefen said:
I sympathise with your daughter!! I had my tack stolen. Whilst waiting for my new saddle I bought a cheapie. I have never felt so unsafe in a saddle in all my life. My friend questioned me so I let her ride in it. She said the same!
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Was your riding tack ever found by the police
 
lrw0250 said:
Photo from a few weeks ago in the Wow. It's a screenshot taken from a video of them cantering during a jump lesson. This is the typical position we get which results in instructors constantly telling her to sit up! Granted this was before the tweaks made yesterday..
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That just looks all wrong! I'm not sure what seat is on that saddle but it isn't doing her any favours.
 
SEL said:
That just looks all wrong! I'm not sure what seat is on that saddle but it isn't doing her any favours.
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My friend has taken the number to send to Wow to find out which seat it is. We know its from 2016 on a flat y bar, has plastic stirrup bars and we suspect a leather tree. I thought it was flat but friend thinks it's a deep which has just been really pommel low.

I do have a photo of the saddle on the pony from last summer pre fitter visiting but ignore the girth as this was before her owner got a new sternum plate for the girth as the original one had broken. At this point I suspect there was practically no air in the bags as the fitter said they were pretty much flat when she came out a few months after this was taken.


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lrw0250 said:
My friend has taken the number to send to Wow to find out which seat it is. We know its from 2016 on a flat y bar, has plastic stirrup bars and we suspect a leather tree. I thought it was flat but friend thinks it's a deep which has just been really pommel low.

I do have a photo of the saddle on the pony from last summer pre fitter visiting but ignore the girth as this was before her owner got a new sternum plate for the girth as the original one had broken. At this point I suspect there was practically no air in the bags as the fitter said they were pretty much flat when she came out a few months after this was taken.


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It doesn't look like her bum and legs would be in alignment - I know you've changed the stirrup bar but I'm not surprised she's out of balance.

I hope you can find what you need. A different seat would really help
 
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