I’m looking for suggestions on saddle brands/types to fit a pony. He’s just under 13hh, short backed, not much wither.
Seat needs to be a 17"…
Is there even anything out there that would fit him and myself??
Needs short panels…
Any suggestions/thoughts welcome.
It might help if you specified dressage/jump/all purpose…
for my short backed pony, I ended up with an older berney. No deep gusseted panels that are so common now.
What type of saddle are you looking for? Jumping, dressage, close contact, etc?
If you like a deep-seated jumping saddle, the Stubben Juventus might do. It’s a youth saddle but the seat is 17".
http://stubbennorthamerica.com/product/juventus-s-youth-jumping-saddle/
It also comes in a dressage model. I think it comes in various widths. I see them on e-bay sometimes, so you might be able to get one used.
We had just this situation this winter with ac15 year old who outgrew her 16" saddle on a 13 welsh pony. We ended up with a Toulouse Annice. The saddle fit the pony across the back and shoulder and we just had to get the correct gullet for her next to no withers!
Oops…knew I forgot something.
Just a general all purpose. Something that allows you to do flat work or jump comfortably.
Look up the Thorowgood Compact saddle.
It comes fully synthetic:
http://www.thorowgood.com/t4-saddles/item/1-t4-compact-gp
Or a slightly nicer partial leather version:
http://www.thorowgood.com/t8-saddles/item/21-t8-compact-gp#.VRQsRTvF9XY
The first one is right around $600, and the second closer to $850?
Great saddles, wool flocked, adjustable gullet. They actually tend to be shorter paneled in general, across all models, but the “compact” model is particularly compact! 
Stubben Siegfried. I rode for years at a lesson barn that was almost all ponies, and they used the Siegfried almost exclusively because it fit them so well. The Juventus is a youth saddle so the flaps may not be long enough for an adult, but it’s certainly worth a try. The wool flocked panels have a rounded shape that takes up less of their back than some other saddles.
This is not my saddle, but it’s for sale now on eBay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/STUBBEN-WOMEN-HORSE-SADDLE-ALL-LEATHER-/181700040163
It’s a Juventus (in an admittedly odd color, but it’s $100). Since the seller is not a horse/tack vendor, you’d have to contact them and have them measure the seat size properly for you. They also have a Juventus dressage saddle.
I have a 12.2h pony and a 13.2h pony that I (or a helper kid) ride in one of 2 saddles. An old Devoucoux Biarritz (which fits the 12.2h pony beautifully) that’s a 16 1/2" saddle and a new County Sensation which is a 17" saddle. The Devoucoux has a curvier tree which fits the smaller pony better and the County is a bit flatter which fits the medium pony better. But both saddles seem to work for the shorter-backed conformation quite well. But then I don’t think the principles of saddle fitting change much for the ponies (versus horses). What I do change up a bit are the saddle pads I use - I prefer using pony-sized saddle pads in lieu of regular horse-sized pads.
[QUOTE=Hinderella;8074410]
They also have a Juventus dressage saddle.[/QUOTE]
You got me super excited because I’ve been looking to pick one up, but that other saddle is sadly, very much not the Juventus dressage. 
Still a good deal though, since it looks brand new with tags…
[QUOTE=Hinderella;8074410]
This is not my saddle, but it’s for sale now on eBay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/STUBBEN-WOMEN-HORSE-SADDLE-ALL-LEATHER-/181700040163
It’s a Juventus (in an admittedly odd color, but it’s $100). Since the seller is not a horse/tack vendor, you’d have to contact them and have them measure the seat size properly for you. They also have a Juventus dressage saddle.[/QUOTE]
Off topic but $100 for shipping?!? That’s crazy. I have never paid over $50 with insurance!
Thanks for all the ideas/recommendations so far! Will be looking into them and seeing what I can find available to ‘test out’.
All Juventus jumping saddles have a 17" seat. I doubt that one linked on ebay will end up selling for $100–though it would be worth a bid.
