Horse with high withers - do you use different saddle pads?

[doctordarling]

Uh, yes I do need a special saddle blanket - with the features that outerbanks described above. kudos to good advice given.

My wb/tb schoolmaster has the proverbial shark wither, big slab-like shoulders and quite a dip down to the saddle area. With any saddle blanket too soft, or not cut right, it would pull down onto his wither and then kick and wrinkle up behind my leg, no matter how much I pulled it up into the gullet of the saddle.

All that changed when I found these: Kieffer high wither dressage pads, with the crucial velcro tabs for the saddle Ds and a very high cut over the wither. Lovely stiff quilting, quite large size, good quality fabric, hairs just brush off.

Most importantly the saddle blanket stays where its put. Horse a lot more comfortable. I’ve got the blue for training and white for comps. Love love these.
http://www.ashbree.com.au/kieffer-dressage-pad

Looking around before finding the Kieffers, I have found out that the le Mieuxs would be much like the Kieffer high wither ones, and that in the UK the Nuumed saddle blankets have the high ‘swan’ cut at the wither and velcro tabs for the Ds. The latter are quite hard to get here though.

ddx

ps: don’t wash your saddle blankets using fabric conditioner, makes them floppy and slippery.

[mydogs]

@doctordarling

Uh, yes I do need a special saddle blanket - with the features that outerbanks described above. kudos to good advice given.

My wb/tb schoolmaster has the proverbial shark wither, big slab-like shoulders and quite a dip down to the saddle area. With any saddle blanket too soft, or not cut right, it would pull down onto his wither and then kick and wrinkle up behind my leg, no matter how much I pulled it up into the gullet of the saddle.

All that changed when I found these: Kieffer high wither dressage pads, with the crucial velcro tabs for the saddle Ds and a very high cut over the wither. Lovely stiff quilting, quite large size, good quality fabric, hairs just brush off.

Most importantly the saddle blanket stays where its put. Horse a lot more comfortable. I’ve got the blue for training and white for comps. Love love these.
http://www.ashbree.com.au/kieffer-dressage-pad

Looking around before finding the Kieffers, I have found out that the le Mieuxs would be much like the Kieffer high wither ones, and that in the UK the Nuumed saddle blankets have the high ‘swan’ cut at the wither and velcro tabs for the Ds. The latter are quite hard to get here though.

ddx

ps: don’t wash your saddle blankets using fabric conditioner, makes them floppy and slippery.

That is exactly what I was looking for! Thank you!!
I have the exact same problem that you described. I can pull the saddle pad into the gullet and no matter what different ways I have tried, it always falls down on my guy. My BoT leaves maybe 1.5 fingers of space while I am riding, which is more than any of my other saddle pads, but it isn’t as much as I would like.

[HunterMarc]

I love, love, love the PRI saddle pads. I really like the equi-felt filled ones which offer a little more pad versus the cotton quilted pads with foam center. I actually have both. I love the PRI pads for my jump and dressage saddles. I have a very high wither TB and this helps a lot. You can see from the link and pictures that it offers great wither clearance. The pads are usually are not cheap, but do hold up well in my opinion.I think Bit of Britain carries them, otherwise I just go on ebay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/PRI-100-COT…0Yu1l3RrmLtHNg

I also in addition REALLY like my Wither Freedom half pad. https://totalsaddlefit.com/shop/shop…skin-half-pad/

At the end of the day though, I won’t buy any other saddle pads than the PRI’s.

[Charanga2011]

Love this thread as it has given me some good options for my high withered OTTB as well!

[mydogs]

I know this even sounds super silly & ridiculous, but, as you can tell from my signature, I have a small tack company and I work with Waldhausen. Well, I finally had a chance to go through their website and, what do you know! They have the perfect pads that I was looking for! :lol:

[mydogs]

Thanks everyone! I was able to locate an affordable option of saddle pads with really high wither for less than $60. Super happy now!

[Luna]

https://ogilvyequestrian.com/en/store/product/dressage-profile-pad I like that there are also a lot of customizations available, including flap and spine length, round, square or European cut and a wide range of colour options for piping. I have had Ogilvy pads for many years and they have held up exceptionally well. Definitely great bang for the buck.

[cour10ay]

@DFL

I have heard a lot of people say that the Le Mieux saddle pads rub their horses. I think the Lettia CoolMax ProSeries pad does a good job of staying off the withers. I also like Eskadron.

Yeah I had that problem

[Pico_Banana]

No one has mentioned these, but I really like the Kingsland dressage pads. I have three of these:

http://usa.kingslandequestrian.com/cat/products-5301/horse-gear-5308/prod/dressage-saddle-pad-90424/

I still pull them up in the gullet, but what I think makes these work is that they are definitely on the thicker side, so they don’t really pull down like the thinner pads seem to.

Of course, they are Kingsland so $$$. Mine are all about 4 years old and I got them on super sale for $25 a piece when a store that carried them discontinued carrying that product. At 4 years old, some of them are starting to show some wear, but I really only rotate through these (and my BOT in the winter), so they’ve gotten a lot of use.

[Mutlu1]

I use LeMieux, but my former saddle fitter sold them to us for sub $50. You can order straight from the UK and it should be cheaper. Plus, my trainer started ordering her LeMieux from there and it came to us faster than when the saddle fitter sent them.

[Mutlu1]

@IslandDQ

Another vote for Ogilvy! So many pads slip back on my horse and never these. I also have a monoflap saddle so appreciate the d-ring billet attachments on the profile pad. Bonus is they wear really well and have a lovely soft suede underside that wicks moisture away from the horse.

Hmmm, I’ve been considering Ogilvy, but was afraid they would be a bit too thick. Are they thicker or thinner than the Le Mieux pads?

[CindyCRNA]

I just got this one from Smartpak which is nice and $26 : https://www.smartpakequine.com/pt/smartpak-octagon-and-diamond-deluxe-dressage-saddle-pad--14136

[mydogs]

@CindyCRNA

I just got this one from Smartpak which is nice and $26 : https://www.smartpakequine.com/pt/sm…dle-pad–14136

Even better!! Thank you!! And I LOVE the colors.

[IslandDQ]

@Mutlu1

Hmmm, I’ve been considering Ogilvy, but was afraid they would be a bit too thick. Are they thicker or thinner than the Le Mieux pads?

Ogilvy is thinner, really nice pads.

[FireMeetsFire]

My old TB only really fitted Eskadron DL saddlepads, though I can’t say I’ve tried a Le Mieux on him.

[The_Blonde_amp_The_Bay]

@mydogs

My horse has some pretty high withers and is built uphill. So one of my biggest challenges is finding a saddle pad that has a big uphill sweep at the withers so the pad doesn’t lay on his withers.

LeMieux has some saddle pads that look as though they would be high enough, but spending $100 on one saddle pad, eck.

LeMieux standard pads are $60 for cotton and $65 for suede so especially with a coupon code they are very reasonable. I do sell them so full disclaimer this is my site but the only ones we have over that $65 pricepoint are specialty pads with fleece lining or acavallo gel. http://www.centerlinestyle.com/brands/lemieux/

I have a very high withered gelding and they have the best wither clearance I’ve ever found. I rode in Ogilvy for years and while I still love the look of the pads themselves, I hated how they were so flimsy and would slide down to his wither and have that wrinkle behind my leg. Someone gifted me a LeMieux and I was instantly hooked. The LeMieux wither clearance specifically is the best I’ve seen and the pad stays off his wither, plus the pads hold their shape, wash incredibly well and have a nice bamboo lining on every style so they won’t rub and absorb the sweat. I can’t say enough good things about them.

[Mondo]

Foxtail - do elaborate! You put naked saddle on naked horse’s back? Does the sweat not stain it? You feel this is the most comfortable for your horse? I ask in all seriousness - not dissing you or judging in any way. I would like to think we don’t need saddle pads, but most saddles need a little help in the fit department, even the custom-fitted saddles.

Thanks!

[LoriW]

I agree with the Ogilvy and PRI pads, both terrific choices for high withers!!

[LarkspurCO]

@Mutlu1

I use LeMieux, but my former saddle fitter sold them to us for sub $50. You can order straight from the UK and it should be cheaper. Plus, my trainer started ordering her LeMieux from there and it came to us faster than when the saddle fitter sent them.

When I ordered LeMieux pads from the UK recently the shipment came in three days. I placed the order on a Monday and received it on Thursday.