Child Saddle that fits full size horse?

[beau159]

My daughter is probably at least a few years out (I’m guessing) for having any interest riding English. I primarily barrel race myself but we do go to local playday-type shows that sometimes have a couple English classes. She will be 7 years old next year. She’s a pretty timid rider (which is fine!!) and that’s why I suspect she wouldn’t be ready to ride English for a while. But who knows! She might surprise me. She came with me to just about everything I went to this year which are usually long days, but she loves it.

But I am curious - do they make children’s saddles that fit a full size horse? I was just browsing on the Dover site and clicked on children’s saddles and most of them had “pony” in the title.

I had this dilemma when buying her a Western saddle. There are very few saddle makers that make a child size seat on a tree intended for a full size horse but I did get her one. She rides in a 10" seat.

Is this the same problem in English?

For myself, I ride in an older Tad Coffin A5 saddle which I do love because it just seems to practically fit everyone. My daughter’s horse has a very well-sprung ribcage so a pony saddle will be a no-go for him.

Of course, I can’t make a post without a picture. She’s grinning ear to ear after she won her first ribbon this summer, and it happened to be first place! She won the walk-trot leadline class out of nearly 15 kids. She did great!

[NaturallyHappy]

I can’t answer your question but will say she is adorable!

[greywithchrome]

I have a Kent and Master’s pony saddle and I use it a few full size horses. They say its a “pony tree” which I would assume is just meant to fit a flatter (from side to side) back. While it probably wouldn’t work on most TBs it sits fine on broader warmbloods and draftier types.

[Bluey]

I am very small and have used for decades a Stubben Rex kid saddle, even shown in jumpers and worked cattle using that saddle, along with starting many, many colts for ranch and race use.

That saddle has fit practically every horse it ever was used on, from ponies to very large horses, with a light rider.
Looks similar to this one, not familiar with that seller, just to show the model:

https://saddlesource.com/stubben-rex-16-wide.html

I would get a saddle you can try, to be sure it fits comfortably.

[clanter]

yes there are English saddles for kids that fit full size horses, my youngest daughter was (and still is) horse crazy. At age four she was riding using a double bridle

this was 33 years ago, sold the saddle a long time ago

[ozone_joan]

I am a small adult too. I ride in a Black Country 'Pony" saddle. It fits my 16 hand OTTB just fine. Saddle Fitter approved. It has a more of a ‘U’ shaped tree that accommodates his large shoulders. I would look for a wool flocked saddle. Much easier to adjust if you need to. Most saddles made in England are wool. French made saddles are usually foam stuffed. French saddles tend to have more of an ‘A’ framed tree. Cute kid, btw.

[beau159]

@Bluey

I would get a saddle you can try, to be sure it fits comfortably.

Yeah, in my area, it’s hard enough to get somewhere to try a Western Saddle. Forget it for English saddles. So most likely, whatever we “try” is going to be back and forth online. It is what it is!

I do take lessons myself from time to time, and I’m not shy to ask to try on saddles if someone would have a child-sized one. That is how I found that the Tad Coffin fit my horses and me. My trainer had another client that was willing to let me try their saddle, and then I just went and found the same thing online.

@ozone_joan

I would look for a wool flocked saddle.
Much easier to adjust if you need to.

I honestly don’t even know WHERE I would have a saddle adjusted (since I can’t think of a single tack store in my state that even has an English saddle in stock) so I am hoping to just find something that fits, as difficult as that may be!

[QuestionMark]

I’m no help on the English saddle question but 1. what an adorable happy kid! and 2. can you share the details on that cute Western saddle that looks like it fits her big horse well?

[2DogsFarm]

@clanter

At age four she was riding using a double bridle

That’s a very cute kid!

That said, when I started riding (called Huntseat back in the 50s) @ 8yo, we all rode w/double bridles.

ETA:
OP, Can’t help with the saddle, but your daughter is adorable

[Renn_aissance]

I actually think that a lot of pony saddles are “good enough” on a horse- they often have a nice wide gullet and broad panels, meant to suit a flat-topped pony back, and that gives them enough room to fit a horse-sized back. Possibly you will pair this with a wither-relief pad or a creative shimming solution depending on the shape of your horse.

Off the top of my head, two models I’ve seen used on horses are the Beval Stamford and Pessoa Pony.

[ozone_joan]

If you can get tracings done of the horses back, you can send them to saddle consignment places that have English saddles in stock. They can make recommendations to you as to what might fit your horse. You can have them shipped to you for a trial.

[Mango20]

A lot of pony saddles have wide trees to fit fat ponies, so should work fine on your chunky horse. I have found the Pessoa Pony Saddle fits a variety of horses/ponies, and is fairly easy to find and not too expensive.

[clanter]

That’s a very cute kid!

33 years later she is still at

[beau159]

@QuestionMark

I’m no help on the English saddle question but 1. what an adorable happy kid! and 2. can you share the details on that cute Western saddle that looks like it fits her big horse well?

Her saddle we got from Corriente. Their quality is more entry-level to middle-of-the-road (certainly NOT top of the line) but they do at least offer a lot of youth options on a full-size QH tree and a good price point. And it fits her and her horse so that’s all that matters.

I had to edit my original post because I mistakenly wrote that her saddle was a 12" but it’s not. It’s a 10 inch seat. Not sure why my brain was thinking that.

I did swap out her stirrups (it came with normal aluminum stirrups) for these pony tapardero stirrups, which lucky that they fit on the stirrup leathers just perfect!

I got pretty much an identical saddle for my son. His saddle brand is a Sheridan, which is a sister company to Corriente … so it’s pretty much the exact same thing. The tree fit is a tiny bit different and it fits my red horse a little better, plus the seat is a tiny bit smaller (even though they are both a 10") so the pairing works well for my younger son and wider red horse.

[QuestionMark]

Thanks for the info! Those kids and horses could not be any cuter!