What age for fitting a Saddle

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Joyous70

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At what age would you consider having a saddle fitted for your horse?

Just pondering really, as i will be looking to back my youngster this summer which of course got me to thinking of saddles.

I have 3 at my immediate disposal which may or may not fit, i haven't tried as yet, but may possibly do as a get by until ready for backing/breaking.

My question really though is when do you decide to get a new saddle fitted, as obviously the grow and change shape whilst they are still maturing, my girl will be late maturing due to her breeding, so do i make do with what i can until she's nearly 6, or do i have a saddle fitted when she's backed is it possible to keep the same saddle for a lifetime with appropriate flocking and adjustments etc?
 
I would go with a well fitted 2nd hand saddle then go from there. The most important thing is that it fits correctly.
 
It is very unlikely that a young horse will still fit the saddle that fitted them when first backed even a few months later. They don't just get taller as they grow, they change back shape and they grow in fits and starts - therefore they often need different shaped trees at different times.

You just have to resign yourself to the fact that you are likely to need to check and possibly change saddles frequently - it ain't gonna be cheap however you do it I'm afraid. If you know a good saddle fitter with a range of good quality second-hand saddles you may find you can part-exchange one for the next, and don't get hung up on colour or branding - go with what fits.

As for when they stop growing? - that depends upon the horse but for example my Sec D is 9 this year and we suspect she may have another change in shape this spring so we haven't yet got her a 'permanent' saddle.

Get one that fits really well for backing - you want to give a youngster the best possible first experiences of being ridden.
 
catkin said:
It is very unlikely that a young horse will still fit the saddle that fitted them when first backed even a few months later. They don't just get taller as they grow, they change back shape and they grow in fits and starts - therefore they often need different shaped trees at different times.

You just have to resign yourself to the fact that you are likely to need to check and possibly change saddles frequently - it ain't gonna be cheap however you do it I'm afraid. If you know a good saddle fitter with a range of good quality second-hand saddles you may find you can part-exchange one for the next, and don't get hung up on colour or branding - go with what fits.

As for when they stop growing? - that depends upon the horse but for example my Sec D is 9 this year and we suspect she may have another change in shape this spring so we haven't yet got her a 'permanent' saddle.

Get one that fits really well for backing - you want to give a youngster the best possible first experiences of being ridden.
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Thank you - this is what is was wondering, if they would need different tree shapes, this is my first youngster and i want to do things right by her and want her to be comfortable.

I understand that she will not be fully matured until 6 or 7 years of age, so a long way off yet :)

Looks like i need to find someone who is happy to fit second hand saddles then, mostly the saddlers i know of will only fit and sell new saddles. I'll have to do some research.
 
I'm planning on getting the saddle fitter out before I back my boy this summer to fit the wintec 2000 tht I have then again after the winter when he comes back into work then when he finally stops growing ill look at getting him a decent saddle
 
Definitely have something that fits really well - young soft backs damage more easily than mature muscled backs. I fit mostly natives and cobs and actually find that many of them don't change as much as you might think - I do think our saddles are versatile and we know what works with types and breeds, but the right saddle often has scope for if they pop a little more wither etc.

Work with a fitter you trust, and if the horse is easy to fit at the moment then you may end up with a cheap option which you know can be changed easily. Most of my customers do not have easy to fit horses and some even end up buying a brand new saddle for an unbacked baby!
 
sbloom said:
Definitely have something that fits really well - young soft backs damage more easily than mature muscled backs. I fit mostly natives and cobs and actually find that many of them don't change as much as you might think - I do think our saddles are versatile and we know what works with types and breeds, but the right saddle often has scope for if they pop a little more wither etc.

Work with a fitter you trust, and if the horse is easy to fit at the moment then you may end up with a cheap option which you know can be changed easily. Most of my customers do not have easy to fit horses and some even end up buying a brand new saddle for an unbacked baby!
Click to expand...

Thank you - im not sure if she will be an easy fit or not to be fair. I currently have a Kent & Masters GP saddle only 3 years old, that im hoping may fit with some flocking etc., but around my area im not sure of fitters who deal in second hand saddles as well.
 
My horse is 6 this year and I have only just got him a really nice, quality dressage saddle fitted. Previous to this, I used saddles with adjustable gullets and had the saddler out every 6 months or so to refit. The difference between him at backing, 3 year old, and now, is so huge that some wouldn't even believe it is the same horse! I've gone from a fairly narrow saddle, to a wide tree 10 inch d ring to d ring saddle.
 
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