Saddle Fit Help please

[Pacificwonderlandequines]

I am new to dressage. I’ve been having the hardest time fitting my 16.0 -16.1 hh Warm Springs BLM gelding. I have gone through 15 varying types of saddles this year. I can only afford under $1k at this time, so we will need to search for a used saddle.

He has some atrpophy behind the wither due to an ill fitting saddle. I’m no longer riding in that saddle (barrel saddle), and working to build him back up.

I have attached photos of him.

Also note, I’m only 5’ tall 24" in seam. I typically ride in a 17".

[Pacificwonderlandequines]

[Pacificwonderlandequines]

[Pacificwonderlandequines]

[Scribbler]

What kind of help do you want and what has been wrong with the saddles so far? Do you have access to an independent saddle fitter? Can you get saddles reflocked to fit?

As a start, he has withers. This is good. Some stock horse breeds don’t and getting an English saddle to fit is a challenge.

[BlueDrifter]

Your images have some distortion, but he doesn’t look like he would be hard to fit. Do you have a saddle that you can place on him without a pad and then take some photos?

Usually one from the side,and then one showing how the saddle flap lays on each side of his barrel (but keep the horse’s neck straight), and then one from the rear.

Many times what folks think is a bad fitting saddle is a saddle placed incorrectly, or they misunderstand what they are seeing. (for instance, a too wide saddle falls down on the withers and then people think it is too tight because they feel the pressure at the wither area…)

[Pacificwonderlandequines]

So far I’ve tried a kent and masters AP, a Theo Sommer AP. Everything else has been western.

The fitters in my area are brand representatives unfortunately.

[Pacificwonderlandequines]

I can try borrowing a saddle but the only one I currently have is a barrel saddle. It is now too wide and pinching the top of his wither. A shimmable pad has not helped and so I feel like I’m willing to try a dressage saddle if I can get a better fit with my situation.

[Scribbler]

Do you want a dressage saddle specifically or are you just after an English saddle like jump or AP?

There are a lot of good resources online about fitting English saddles. You need to consider the width of the tree at the withers, but also how much the tree or the back curves front to back. If the tree is too curved for the horse the saddle will rock. If the tree is too flat the saddle will bridge.

It sounds like you are new to saddle fitting. Is there any reputable consignment store or evrn a trainer who can help you out?

No one can look at a photo of a horse and say oh yes, you need Brand x in size y. It’s really hard to explain this from scratch through a chat group.

[BlueDrifter]

I was going to suggest reading rodnikkel.com for saddle fit, but since it is western and you want dressage I was hesitant – I find it very useful for english saddles, too! westernsaddlefit.com is devoted just to saddle fit, whereas rodnikkel.com tells you A LOT about trees and specifically why it is hard to know if something fits just by the brand.

There are many FB saddlefit pages, too – but there can be mis-information on them unless you read a lot of posts and figure out who the educated posters are.

Can you borrow others’s saddles just for a photo op, to learn about the fit?

[outerbanks77]

I agree that he doesn’t look too hard to fit. I might be inclined to get a Wintec and a good shimmable half pad so you can make adjustments as he develops topline. Personally, I would try to find a used Wintec Pro Dressage with flocking instead of Cair panels. Since you’re more petite, you might also do well in the Wintec Isabell, and that would probably be easy to find.

That would give you a lot of options without blowing your budget.

[endlessclimb]

A wintec, or a Thorowgood.

Saddle fitting is hard, but lots of people turn it into a mystifying event. It can be, for a tough-to-fit back or an EXTREMELY sensitive horse, but most of the time it’s not.

[Mondo]

May I just say that if you aren’t working with a trainer or saddle fitter - dressage saddles tend to sit a little farther back on the horse than what you are used to with a Western saddle. You absolutely do not want the edge of the girth (cinch) in his “armpit” up against that front leg. The saddle flaps should give clearance to the back of the scapula so that the forelegs have full range of motion. I honestly wish I had a dollar for every time I’ve had to move a saddle back. I’d be able to afford a finished GP horse by now. Good luck!

[Jealoushe]

With that shape an Amerigo Alto might work: https://www.amerigo-saddles.com/saddles/alto/

Or the Cortina if the back is straight, hard to tell from the pics, one pic the back looks straight one looks like it goes slightly uphill after the wither.

[enjoytheride]

Despite what people maintain, fitting based on pictures is incredibly unreliable and no good fitter will guarantee fit.

Your best bet is to find a qualified fitter with a lot of used saddles and have them come out in person.

That said, where are you located? My mustang wears a hoop tree.

[Pacificwonderlandequines]

I was able to borrow an older collegiate. Their girth was missing so I couldn’t borrow it.

[Pacificwonderlandequines]

I have 2 other angles if needed but I was alone in his dark stall.

[Pacificwonderlandequines]

I’m in Oregon. I did find a used Albion hoop tree in my area but above my current budget.

[outerbanks77]

That Collegiate looks too narrow, but otherwise not a bad shape. Does it have a width stamped on it?

I believe that is the model that is a knockoff of the Passier Grand Gilbert. Assuming that Collegiate is a medium, a GG in a wide might work out. They can be found for under $1,000 fairly easily.

[Jealoushe]

agree, too narrow.