Saddle pads for high withers

[elliehb]

Looking for some advice from fellow owners of high withered equines! My mare is quite high withered and a lot of saddle pads tend to slip and then press on her withers. I was wondering whether saddle pads with the foam at the front (e.g psos/ le mieux memory) help with this? Want some feedback from fellow owners before purchasing anything only to find it doesn’t help. Thanks in advance

 

[mariew]

Nuumed used to have high wither numnahs, have you tried these?

 

[exracehorse]

Nuumeed dressage pad

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

Was going to suggest the Nuumed high wither.

 

[HollyWoozle]

Also like the Nuumed high wither options.

 

[Birker2020]

I have the same issue so following with interest.

 

[Nudibranch]

Personally I'd not be using anything padded unless you're using it for muscle wastage, but even then it needs to be kept clear of the withers. You need one cut for high withers - there are quite a lot around but Nuumed as mentioned above is one. Anything not high wither cut will just pull down and rub.

 

[Keith_Beef]

Another thread on the subject:
https://forums.horseandhound.co.uk/...thers-what-are-your-educated-opinions.801314/

 

[sbloom]

I think the padding mentioned is where there is a vertical roll coming down in front of the pommel to stop the pad slipping back - https://www.naylors.com/ps-of-sweden-floret-dressage-saddle-pad-grey

Pads slipping can be to do with construction (some are too thin and floppy imo), shape (lack of shaping to the topline), poor attachment of any fixings or it's actually the saddle trying to move but the pad taking up the slack as it were. I like a nice firm pad, they usually have a thin felt as the wadding inside, with a decent topline shaping but some are OTT unless you have a very high wither, and cause their own issues. For instance many riders use the Nuumed high wither on horses without high withers, they ARE quite soft/floppy, and so they just collapse and wrinkle at the front.

 

[elliehb]

Thanks for all the replies - I think sbloom has hit the nail on the head - my mare is too high withered for normal pads but not quite high enough for high withered pads! I was wondering whether the extra structure that the foam roll gives may stop the pad flopping and slipping and keep it more in place