i have just bought a dressage saddle & monoflap saddle so i need a short girth. i have used my trainer’s devoucoux short girth and i measured it to be 29" but the girth is marked 60 cm/24 inch. the horse uses a 50 or 52" girth. i always thought you subtracted 20 from the long girth so i need a 30. what size should i be getting? i have to buy online so i want to get it right.
Measure from buckle to buckle for the girth size. That is confusing that a girth labelled 24" is actually 29". I can’t imagine it would stretch that much.
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I’ve never heard that convention (subtract 20), I think it varies depending on the saddles. The girth I use on my jump saddle (Stubben Portos) is a 48", and for dressage (Stubben Juventus) it’s 24".
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I use a 54 jumping girth and 28 dressage girth.
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I would measure buckle to buckle, and then order that size since you know it fits. If it really has stretched out that much, then you’re getting the accurate length rather than what’s stamped on the girth. Not sure about that conversion… I know for sure it wouldn’t work on my mare! But I also like only a couple of inches (2-3") between the bottom of the flap and the start of the girth’s lining. Too much space between the end of the flap and the girth can cause pinching and uneven pressure distribution. My mare goes in a 58" long girth with my jump saddle, and a 30-32" with my dressage saddle. Once it’s fully tightened on my dressage saddle with the short girth, I have it on about the 4th-5th billet hole
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My mare wears a 54" jump girth, probably could bump to a 56" with my current jump saddle but I’m just doing dressage with her for a while. I bought a 28" dressage girth when I got a dressage saddle because it was on super sale (got it for like $10). With my saddle, it’s a smidgen small, I’ll be getting a 30" at some point. With my trainer’s saddle, it’s perfect if not a bit too long, her billets are a lot longer than mine. It really depends on the saddle.
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That is the old style saying - we use to say that 25 years ago… Even then, it wasn’t accurate - it seems it is more like 24". I find MOST horses seem to take about a 24 to a 26, with the really big bodied ones going to 28, or maybe 30. Ponies and small cobs might go down to 20 or 22.
It also varies a bit depending on your saddle, AND girth. Some brands run bigger or smaller. Some stretch more then others. Ideally, when girthed up, the girth hits just below the flap - you don’t want more then a couple of inches of “horse flesh” showing.
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The old rule of thumb conversion I learned was, “half the length of your long jumping girth.”
Of course, that’s hardly perfect… I used a 54" girth with my old jumping saddle. Got a new jump saddle last spring and downsized to a 48" in girth because the billets are longer and positioned differently.
My mare takes a 26" in girth with her dressage saddle-- half of 54" is 27", which puts it in the correct ballpark. But a 24" girth (half of 48") really doesn’t work well with my dressage saddle… usable, but I have to fight to get it on the lowest billet holes.
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The conversion is usually 24". Also, make sure you measure buckle to buckle. Some girths have a lot of leather past the buckle so you need to take that into consideration.
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