sbloom can you advise please?

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sodapop

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Hi
I have read your contributions to posts about saddles and was hoping you wouldn't mind advising me please.
I have a 13.2ish native pony that is round and slightly bum high despite being 8. She is my daughter's pony but I also ride her to keep her sane and safe. We havent had her long but finding a saddle that doesnt go up her shoulders or slip sideways is proving a bit of a problem. I am trialling a 2nd hand thorowgood at the moment which isnt too bad but does move, more so with my very inexperienced daughter. I am not sure I have the budget to solve the problem at the moment but wondered if you could give a roughish price guide for saddles that are likely to suit. The saddle fitter I use is pretty much the main one in my area so how do I find someone like yourself that specialises in native types in the Worcestershire area? I am thinking of keeping this saddle while I save up as it is the best so far and riding will be more limited over the winter. I think the pony is used to having girths over tightened as she is very sensitive being tacked up but she is a lovely little girl so I want to get it right for her.
Thanks in advance.
 
In the short term try some non slip matting under saddle so you don't have to girth so tight. Bought it in b*q - designed to stop floor rugs moving. I used it whilst waiting for a fitting saddle for new horse, horse was happier. Friend works at a racing yard and they use it daily with no issues.
Disclaimer - not suggesting its a substitute for proper fitting saddle, just a short term fix.
 
Which way is it moving? Could you post photos? Girthed up firmly, no pad, one shot of the whole horse from the side with the saddle on, and one from the shoulder showing the whole saddle from pommel to the bottom of the flap. Other pics are useful but those two tell me the most :)

I fit for www.nativeponysaddles.com, I do adjust other saddles but I'm afraid that on tricky natives and cobs I have yet to come across more than a handful of individual saddles that work anywhere near as well. My colleague Clive Whereatt's details are on the website, he covers Worcestershire :cool:
 
right if your pic is on facebook, right click on it and select 'copy image URL' this will give you a code ending in .jpg

paste that on here

but add
to the ends (no spaces)
 
sodapop said:
Hi
I have read your contributions to posts about saddles and was hoping you wouldn't mind advising me please.
I have a 13.2ish native pony that is round and slightly bum high despite being 8. She is my daughter's pony but I also ride her to keep her sane and safe. We havent had her long but finding a saddle that doesnt go up her shoulders or slip sideways is proving a bit of a problem. I am trialling a 2nd hand thorowgood at the moment which isnt too bad but does move, more so with my very inexperienced daughter. I am not sure I have the budget to solve the problem at the moment but wondered if you could give a roughish price guide for saddles that are likely to suit. The saddle fitter I use is pretty much the main one in my area so how do I find someone like yourself that specialises in native types in the Worcestershire area? I am thinking of keeping this saddle while I save up as it is the best so far and riding will be more limited over the winter. I think the pony is used to having girths over tightened as she is very sensitive being tacked up but she is a lovely little girl so I want to get it right for her.
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

If you can't afford a new saddle maybe in the mean time try a gel pad to make it more comfortable on the Ponys back or a riser pad :)
 
The front photos are a little close in to really show the width but I think even if the width is right, which it may be, the front looks perched - a lot of clearance under a quite narrow pommel - and the tree looks curvy from front to back - can you see the little bit of "air" under the back of the panels? Both issues will cause instability.

If you used a gel (NOT a fan) or riser pad (only needed if a saddle is out of balance, not a universal fix all) it would make this saddle fit worse.
 
:( So there are no temporary fixes until I can save some money? It is so frustrating that these ponies seem to pose so many problems, it's not like they are the few. Thank you for advising.
 
w1bbler said:
In the short term try some non slip matting under saddle so you don't have to girth so tight. Bought it in b*q - designed to stop floor rugs moving. I used it whilst waiting for a fitting saddle for new horse, horse was happier. Friend works at a racing yard and they use it daily with no issues.
Disclaimer - not suggesting its a substitute for proper fitting saddle, just a short term fix.
Click to expand...

The poundshop (poundland?) here sells it too.
 
sodapop said:
:( So there are no temporary fixes until I can save some money? It is so frustrating that these ponies seem to pose so many problems, it's not like they are the few. Thank you for advising.
Click to expand...

Not that I can see, sorry. There are loads of wide and/or flat backed ponies around whose saddles just do not fit well, but its the best the local saddle fitter can do. Synthetic trees are expensive to develop and they just don't offer the fitting options that you get with leather and laminate treed saddles. Budget does go against you with these tricky fits, and of course ponies and cobs CAN be cheap to buy, so people really struggle getting their heads around the fact that the only saddle that fits may well cost more than the horse!

And I'd really not recommend any sticky pad - you are simply pinning a saddle in place, if indeed it does keep it in place, that doesn't fit. It will mean there is pressure, in this instance, in the middle of the saddle, and it will still rock from front to back, it just might not move sideways so much.
 
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