The saddle must give adequate clearance to the horse’s withers so that it doesn’t rub Place one of your hands perpendicular to the ground and slide it into place between the withers and the pommel. You should be able to fit two to three fingers into the space without difficulty.
How do you know if your saddle fits correctly?
With your saddle correctly positioned, put your hand underneath and slide your fingers along the panel. If it doesn’t feel equally snug from front to back, it’s “bridging” –and the places where it’s tight will becomes sore from the extra pressure.
How do you tell if your saddle doesn’t fit your horse?
- Avoidance behaviours – trying to walk away when being tacked up.
- Ears back/head shaking when saddle comes close by.
- Excessive tail swishing both in the stable and when ridden.
- Pawing the ground.
- Threatening to bite you when you come close with the saddle.
How do you break in a
new dressage saddle
?
Treat your saddle with some products and oils to help it soften up Lederbalsams, leather creams, hydrophane, and neatsfoot oils are all readily available to help your saddle “break-in” by conditioning it.
How do I know what size saddle I need?
If you know your
seat size
in an English saddle, a
good rule
of thumb is to choose a Western saddle with a seat size two
inches smaller
than your typical English saddle size Sit in the Western saddle. There should be about four inches between your body and the swell of the saddle.
How do I know what width saddle my horse needs?
Make sure you can fit 2-3 fingers in between the horse’s withers and the front of the saddle If you can fit less than 2 fingers between the saddle and the withers, the saddle is probably too wide for your horse. If you can fit more than 3 fingers, your saddle is probably too wide.
Should a saddle fit the rider or horse?
Important is always that the saddle fit the rider first – because if it doesn’t then no matter how well the saddle fits the horse, the rider’s discomfort due to poor rider saddle fit will always translate down to the horse. This limits both the horse and rider in attaining optimum performance.
How tight should my saddle be?
You should be able to put one index finger under the cinch to your finger’s first joint If you can reach in at the back of the cinch more than that, it’s probably too loose. If you can’t fit a finger in at all, it may be too tight.
How do I know if my saddle is too small?
While you don’t generally see many people riding in saddles that are too large, it’s common to see riders in saddles that are too small. As a rule of thumb, you should be able to fit at least a four-finger width between the end of your seat and the cantle Any less than that and the saddle is too small.
Where should a dressage girth sit?
As a rule of thumb, you should be able to fit about two fingers between the bottom of the saddle pad and the top of the girth. For a long girth: The girth should sit below the crook of the rider’s knee, about two to three holes from the end of the billet, depending on the length of the leg.
Why do dressage saddles have long girth straps?
Girth in a dressage saddle is short. Although, the straps are long. It helps the rider experience close contact with their legs The longer straps also ensure that the girths are buckled underneath the saddles, and not below the rider’s legs.
Why does my saddle lifts at the back?
The most common reason for excessive movement and bounce at the back of the saddle is panel related If, as above, the panel is badly flocked, uneven in fit and consistency or over or under flocked the saddle will not conform to the shape of the horse’s back and movement may occur.
References