Favorite Anatomical Girth for horse with forward girth groove?

[MysticOakRanch]

[QUOTE=out west;8414337]
Found I needed 2 sizes larger in Fairfax. My mare liked it. TSF didn’t work at all. Ended up with two sizes so if anyone needs a 30 narrow gauge Fairfax - PM me.[/QUOTE]

TWO sizes? I just ordered one - keep hearing about them, so I thought WTH, I am due a Christmas Present… And - PSA to anyone who is looking - you can buy them from Divoza for under $300 with shipping. 243 Euro plus 30 euro shipping - and they ship FAST.

But I didn’t realize they run that small… Hope it works - I ordered a 60 (24 inches). My mare is pretty small - I could go down to a 55 (22 inches), but not down another size:eek:

[tollertwins]

Just FWIW…I was on Smith Worthington’s website just poking around and decided to look at their girths…They have a VERY shaped dressage girth.

http://www.smithworthington.com/index.php?p=product&id=731

[DressageChic2]

both ours are in their regular sizes in the Fairfax…

i did trial the Prestige RP girth last week and my horse definitely preferred the Fairfax so sticking with that!

[jaybird660]

I like the Prestige anatomic girth. It is cushy and well made.

[lovemytbs]

Wow Toller that one looks nice! Anyone have the SW one?

[quietann]

OK… I am in the process of getting several of these girths in the mid-range of prices ($150-$250, which still seems like a lot!) to try on my mare, since all are returnable and she’s not liking the TSF at all. So far the Prestige and the one from Passier have arrived from SmartPak, and I have ordered the Bit of Britain Bella Donna and the Smith-Worthington one. The two from SmartPak may get ruled out quickly as they are 24", which may be too long. Eyeballing the photos, the S-W may be the best fit, because the “bump” in the center is narrower, and the mare is really narrow, in front of her big round belly.

Ordering a Fairfax from Divoza is tempting, but I will hold off for now.

The actual trial will begin next Tuesday after her saddle is reflocked on Monday. I will report back on leather quality, fit, etc.

[meaty_ogre]

http://www.doversaddlery.com/ovation-gel-body-form-dressage-girth/p/X1-02194/?ids=p1jxn53jozj20oj2f3hn2rjy

I have this one and I like it a lot. You’re welcome to try it if you want. I haven’t had any problems with the buckles rubbing as mentioned in the dover saddlery reviews, but maybe the newer options have less padding there? At any rate, it works very well with my two broad-shouldered horses and it is very well padded and does not slip. Amazon reviews are largely the same, some people had issues with the buckles rubbing, but for the most part it seems to work very well.

[MysticOakRanch]

So, I ordered the Divoza Fairfax - currently using a Prestige (very nice quality), but Divoza sent me a bunch of loyalty coupons (I bought a lot from them this past year), so I thought WTH… Will post my mare’s thoughts on the difference in these two girths once I get it! I am curious to see if it makes a difference!

I am starting with a saddle that fits well (and was just reflocked/adjusted in September), so it will be interesting to see if she has a preference.

Over the years, I have tried the County Logic - hated it, hard girth with no stretch in the elastic - edges are hard, leather is hard, it was just not a nice girth and all my horses objected to it. Nunn Finer (piaffe or passage?) which worked well on some horses, and is well made, but my mare didn’t like it. Delfina - shape is great, but it is also hard and not padded. Treadstone - surprisingly nice girth for the $, and fit my stallion really well, but not my mare (who is narrower). So my princess pony mare is in a Prestige - will see if Fairfax makes her happier. She is a princess for sure! The stallions were much less picky about their girths…

[Draftmare]

I really like my County Logic girth. I found a pretty well used one for $60 on ebay, but so far it has held up great with very little attention from me.

I have heard less than stellar things about the Total Saddle Fit girths. A lot of people I talked to complained of them gaping in the back, and issue that I don’t have at all with my County girth. Also heard that the black color tends to start rubbing off within just a few uses. Since they offer a 110% money back guarantee they could be worth trying and forming your own opinion of. I have spoken to the owner in the past when I was looking for a brown dressage girth before they started making them, and he seemed like a really nice person.

I had a Nunn Finer Piaff girth that gets two big thumbs up from me. Really nice quality, love the humane ends on the buckles, but not a true anatomical girth so I sold it.

I have looked at M. Toulouse’s anatomical grith. It is designed much like the Fairfax, and it appeared to be decent for the price. I just can’t ever bring myself to buy their products thanks to a bad experience I had with the company several years ago.

[JLR1]

I’m sad to say the Fairfax didn’t work on my horses body…it rubbed him raw under the elbow area. It is hands down the nicest girth I have ever owned.

[cute_lil_fancy_pants]

I like the Delfina Saddlery Anatomical Girth. I think it is better than the County Logic girth (same shape) and a lot more affordable at $89.95. I have had mine for about 6 years, no problems!

[Stacie]

[QUOTE=jaybird660;8415002]
I like the Prestige anatomic girth. It is cushy and well made.[/QUOTE]

+1 Love the quality of the leather. No rubs.

[scruffy_the_cat]

Help an ignorant horse owner out! Can anyone please explain why these girths are better than the $39 airflow girths you can get from most manufacturers? I’m not trying to be snarky- I genuinely want to know. My horse does have a forward girth groove but he seems fine in the cheap synthetic girth (I have 2, a long one, which was $3.95 on the SmartPak clearance floor and a short one that was a whopping $29 on the clearance floor).

Vain me would love a reason to need a fancier girth, but I’m having trouble justifying it. He doesn’t get rubs, he’s not especially girthy, the saddle doesn’t move, and he moves forward most of the time. Sometimes he has balky temper tantrums but for the life of me I cannot pin the behavior on the girth. Feel free to change my mind about that.

[no.stirrups]

Scruffy the cat, every horse is different. Some do fine in a straight girth like yours, and others need a shaped girth for various reasons. One of my 3 horses needed a magnesium supplement all the time, and the others never did, on the same diet. There is rarely a one-size-fits-all approach. You gotta do what’s right for you and your horse. When what is right is also cheap, life is good!

Although you might consider trying a shaped girth, to get your horse’s opinion.

[lovemytbs]

I ended up ordering the Nunn Finer Piaffe through Riding Warehouse at 20% off which came to $110. Thought I wanted the Bella Donna, but it looks to wide! Like the idea of the equalizing straps, will report back!

[scruffy_the_cat]

Thanks no.stirrups. I would like to try one- in fact I actually bought a Prolite girth, but when it came it was so cheap looking and the edges were so rough that I didn’t even try it on him and sent it back. I will keep an eye on the SmartPak clearance floor- they have a couple of returned Prestige girths that maybe I can try.