Saddle Fitting Courses?

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Rainbowrider

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29 November 2005
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Hi,

Has anyone done this? Do you know...

What's involved?
How much it costs?
Where you can do them / who with?
What qualification you can end up with?
How long it takes?
How easy is it to actually use the qualification and can you make any money out of it?
Insurance/other requirements to be (a) freelance & (b) work for a shop/brand.

Sorry for all the questions! I am hoping someone has done this and could give me some good advice.
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There is only one 'official' qualification for a saddle fitter. It is the SMS qualified saddle fitter. You have to be a member of the SMS (to do this you have to have a shop or be a qualified saddler), or work for a member. You need 3 years practical experience fitting saddles. You then have to do a foundation course in saddle fitting and a year later do a 5 day course with an exam at the end. If you pass you can call yourself a SMS qualified saddle fitter.

I personally think the SMS are a bit bonkers, they continually say dont use an unqualified fitter yet expect 3 years of fitting experience before you can do their training course, which is only 5 days long. IMO there are good and bad 'qualified' fitters just as there are good and bad 'unqualified' ones. Anyone can actually go out and fit saddles, just like anyone can currently call themselves an equine dentist. The good fitters in my experience are those that arent just after a sale and have the horses welfare as a priority. They are few and far between though, with a distinct lack of knowledge of even basic anatomy and physiology.
 
Yes I wish that there were saddle fitters out there who worked independently ie not just interested in selling you a new one but actually interested in getting the right saddle for both horse & rider and just charging a fee for doing so. I think there must be an opening in the market for this !
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Hi Rainbowrider,

I am a BHS instructor and an independant saddle fitter (SMS Qualified) with a passion for horse welfare: I don't sell saddles, but do assist my clients to find what's right for their needs - I too felt that sadly there are way too many 'saddle-fitters' of all kinds who should simply be re-titled 'saddle-salesmen',
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, which is why I took the unusual step of NOT selling saddles, but offering my fitting skills and experience to clients as a service instead!
Please feel free to pm me if you want to chat - I love doing what I do now, and have absolutely no pressure on me to 'make a sale' just to boost a retailer's profit margins! A cautionary note, though : you won't get rich doing this job, (although I do get huge job satisfaction).
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