Sheepskin Saddlepads/Numnah's - opinions please

HannahPatsy

HannahPatsy

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Hi - Please can you give me your opinions on Sheepskin Numnah's and saddlepads? Are they used just for show or do they provide extra comfort for the horse? Also do they help with ill fitting saddles?
Would people usually use saddle pads or full numnahs? And what is the usual price for real sheepskin (and best brand)?
Sorry for all the questions
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I am looking to buy a sheepskin saddle pad as have noticed a few people are using them in dressage, etc and would love to have your comments (good or bad) on these?
Thanks
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No substitute for a badly fitting saddle, but sheepskin/wool numnahs can help distribute pressure and keep the horse cool as air can circulate. I am a big fan of Nuumeds myself and they don't alter the fit of the saddle either as the wool compresses accordingly.

I think a lot of people use them just because they look pretty though! IMO not a good idea to just stick a pad under the saddle without having it checked by a saddle fitter as a thick pad can alter the pitch of the saddle.
 
IMVHO - they alter the fit of the saddle - my saddle is fitted to a cotton thin pad so if i wanted to use one then i'd get saddle refitted - saddler also told me this.

i think they have their place with endurance etc as they absorb sweat well - and maybe for full days hunting etc -also cold back horses, and maybe sentisive horses... and TBH they don't do harm so as long as they are fitted with saddle then each to their own
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but i do not think they should be used to compensate for a badly fitting saddle as i seem to see them being used for
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That's great...Thankyou! I currently have a Sue Carson with flair jump saddle, and would love a dressage saddle - but unfortunately can't afford another sue carson
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so looking to get a cheaper dressage saddle and hoping the sheepskin will make it more comfortable for my horse - only worry is she is hard to fit, hence why I got a saddle with flair.
 
I love my sheepskin numnah's. i have a Bartle one, a cottage craft one and a roma one. they are all the merino sheepskin ones and they are brilliant. I have felt others that have no mention of Merino and they feel harsh in comparrison so be careful in your homework.
My Bartle one is a little more original curly in feel and appearance but that may be as it is undyed?? the other two are dyed and much smoother. I wish I could line all my clothing in sheepskin, I love them more than the horses i think!
I find the Bartle one wicks away the wet the best but is the hardest to keep clean (maybe as it absorbs more)
I originally invested in one as I had a fussy mare who quite often got a little sweat sensitivity under the saddle and used to hate being girthed up (back check etc done) and she is now a little angel being saddled up and this is ever since my switch to sheepskin.
My bartle one was arounf £70ish with delivery
Cottage craft £65 and roman one was £50 on sale.
My bartle is half lined but other two are complete.

As far as durability goes, I have only had the CC and Roma ones about a 3weeks and they haven't been washed yet (i rub them and flick them off after wearing to remove excess moisture and majority of grease comes off with it. I have had the Bartle one a good while longer and I wash it every week/fortnight and the sheepskin is still fantastic but the fabric has faded and it has warn a little where my stirrups rub it.
 
r.e about them altering the fit of the saddle, my saddler has told me that they do not make them tighter as they merely lift the saddle slightly. As long as the saddle fits correctly (which I have always had done without any numnah present) then a sheepskin numnah will not change this.
each to their own on this I guess but I don't find it alters the fit of my saddles.
 
My saddlefitter said that my ultra thin (the new really thin ones as opposed to the standard ones) Pro Lite pad altered the fit of the saddle, but that a wool lined Nuumed didn't as the wool compresses/expands.
 
i use a Bartl one (and think im just aobut to get a stephens one as a spare/show one)

Ive had my saddle fitted with it as i really cannot see how it doesnt affect fit of saddle as they are mcuh thicker than a normal numnah.

my saddler said to always use it over a cloth or the sheepskin can become hard with sweat etc. which confuses me a bit as they make saddlecloths with it on the underside designed to be used on there own.
 
That is why I prefer Nuumed - the wool is stitched on to textile instead of using the whole sheepskin - which indeed can get hard if it gets wet.

I seem like I am completely sheepskin crazy, will remove myself from this thread immediately!
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i've gone off them totally, in fact i have about 10 really nice ones stored away somewhere! a think cotton pad and, if necessary, a prolite or felt pad are far comfier for the horse imho, based on what i have been told by Master Saddlers, trainers, etc.
sheepskins dramatically alter the fit of the saddle, like putting 2 pairs of thick socks on and trying to get your shoes on.
of the ones i've bought in the past, i thought Mattes and Nuumed were the best quality.
if you want a 2nd hand one, you're welcome to try mine!
 
I have both my saddles fitted to use half pads because my horse developed a really bad, painful sweat rash a few years ago and the vet recommended real sheepskin as the most antibacterial, best wicking thing to use in order to avoid a recurrence.

They do alter the fit of the saddle, which is why both my saddles are fitted with a sheepskin half pad next to the skin and a thin cotton saddlecloth over the top.

I have a Christ Horsedream one, two griffen nuumed ones (one with memory foam, one with pockets so it can be a front/rear raiser pad) and a roma one. My favourite is the Christ Horsedream one, it has worn the best of all of them, but all of them have survived regular washing and tumble drying.
 
I use the Stephens ones. I've got the half pad and the full saddlecloth version. I use the half pad over a dressage saddlecloth and then use the wool saddlecloth (its 1/2 lined underneath) for everything else. My horse loves it. He used to be cold backed (saddle/back etc. all checked several times at the time!) but grew out of it, I just keep using them as he seems to like them. Stephens are a good make of them - they wash really well and have lasted years! Think I paid about £40 for the half pad and about £50 for the saddlecloth (but think I managed to get saddlecloth at trade price
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The 2 thick socks in shoes is a bad analogy...back, pad and saddle are layers, not enclosures. As a mathematical shape, the 'saddle' stacks without having to alter fit...Pringles are an example. The horse's back, however, only has one plane of symmetry, not the 2 of a Pringle. The wither-rise is not mirrored at the rear. So if a lambskin(the best to use) pad is used on a perfectly fitting saddle it will lift the front slightly. It will not, however, 'narrow' the fit as the fork angle remains the same. (draw it front on and see). This change is not drastic when the other fit-factors are taken into account - compression with use of the flocking, seasonal fat changes, seasonal changes in work programme, etc.
The advantages of lambskin are the wicking, the consistant cushioning against impact, the way the pile moves away from areas of higher pressure and fills in areas of lower, the minimisation of the shear forces that occur when living moving stretching hide is pressed against a non-stretching surface. It's ancient technology, used for millenia. The 'Thinline' pad seeks to replicate lambskin's advantages with it's structure of thousands of miniscule hollow vertical tubes (running from topside to bottomside) which i believe are open ended. And it's very thin.
 
thanks for putting me right, Rats. i was given that analogy by a saddler, oh dear.
i think i have to disagree about it narrowing the fit at the front of the saddle, however. in my experience, a thick sheepskin definitely makes a big difference.
 
Rats it does narrow the fit - it has to - it is the equivalent of say an extra layer of flocking in the saddle - which is what you would put in to narrow the fit, and yes, therefore lift the front of the saddle. Why is the front of the saddle lifted? Because it is on something (the horse) which is now wider - and if you have had it fitted to something narrower, instead of 'stacking' as you put it, it will be something fixed (the saddle) being forced (by the weight of the rider) onto something wider (the horse) than the shape it was designed to fit. It isn't like pringles at all IMO, and you are completely ignoring the fact that the weight of the rider will force the saddle down, onto the (now wider) shape beneath it - thus stopping it from stacking, and causing it to pinch.

This is why my saddles are fitted to the horse with halfpad and saddle cloth, not without - if I use them without, the saddles are too wide.
 
agree spotted cat. That is why Prolite pads and sheepskin should be used on a saddle fitted with those taken into account, as they fill in the "gap" usually occupied by the horse
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Gel pads work well with close contact saddles, as they dont adjust the width of the saddle as they dont fit in the gullet. I cant use a sheepskin pad with my Barnsby, as it simply blocks out where my horse needs to go
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i think sheepskin numnahs and pads are great - but deffinitley not a substitute for a badly fitting saddle. i use Nuumed sheepskin numnahs (around £50-60) - and they are great for hunting/xc/hacking as they distribute the pressure, absorb sweat and allow air to circulate. i have a Roma sheepskin saddle half pad (£30-40) which i use aswell as a normal square numnah when i showjump a it gives extra cushioning and looks smart...

however if you have a very neat fitting saddle that fits with a thin cotton pad under it, then i wouldnt get a thick sheepskin numnah (i had this problem with my tb - his saddle fitted v well, but if i put a thick numnah on him it pinched and he freaked out) - as long as the numnah fits with the saddle, i would definitley reccomend sheepskin
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they wash really well aswell, and last aaaaaaaaages
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xxx
 
We use 'fluffies' for our mare- she's ridiculously sensitive and she seems to like this- they also stop her sweat from drenching her so her hair doesn't fall out.
 
Sheepskins will alter the fit of a saddle but not uniformaly across the back - the front is lifted and the seat and back of the panels are compressed under the rider's weight.

They have their uses and agree they should only be used if the saddle is fitted to take it into account. Most horses dont need them, but they have become very fashionable.

I have about 50 or so as one of my horses cannot be ridden in anything else (long story) and have probably every single make except nuumed which I find scratchy and not very soft. The best ones are the le mieux and cottage craft ones - very soft and wash well. but as they are all natural products, you really need to feel each sheepskin to find the one that you like. For example I have one in baby pink which I think is hideous colourwise (sorry to all pink fans) but the sheepskin is incredibly soft so the poor boy is occasionally hacked out in it.
 
Sorry but have to disagree with you there Rats. The saddle tree (in most cases) is rigid. There is therefore a finite gap between the points of the tree. The horse's back is pretty much a fixed shape too (not including seasonal etc changes here). Put more and more pads under the saddle and they actually squeeze into that gap at the front between wither and points of tree. So you are getting the thickness of the pad twice for each one you add (on the left and right).
Really badly explained! But I hope that makes some sense.

Using your Pringles analogy you could just keep on adding and adding and it wouldn't make any difference. This is definitely not the case and they do alter fit slightly. Just not usually enough to cause a problem with a well-fitting saddle.
 
I think you misunderstood me Jul. The addition of a sheepskin halfpadwill lift the pommel slightly with respect to the cantle as you say, because, as you also say, there;s a tad more extra concentrated under the fork than under the panels. But - it does not alter the angle of the fork. Try drawing an arch to represent the inner shape of the fork front on, like a wintec gullet. Now draw a lining of equal thickness. The angle between the arms remains the same. The effect of the pad is to tilt the saddle back slightly.
 
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