Sheepskin and wool

[Ready_To_Riot]

Essentially they are the same thing, correct?

I feel really dumb, because it never occurred to me that sheeps hair is wool so sheepskin is wool still attached to the skin.

So my real question, when buying a half pad, is wool just as good as sheepskin. I was in the tack store a few weeks ago looking to replace my fleece works pad and they have a wool version and then a sheepskin version. The wool is $50 less. Does that mean sheepskin is better?

[Soaponarope]

As I understand it, sheepswool is wool attached to a synthetic or cloth backing. Sheepskin is what it sounds like. I don’t know whether or not Mattes pads are sheepskin but you really can’t beat them although they are expensive. Just has to be washed with that Melp stuff or a leather wash product.

[skipollo]

[QUOTE=Soaponarope;8465124]
As I understand it, sheepswool is wool attached to a synthetic or cloth backing. Sheepskin is what it sounds like. I don’t know whether or not Mattes pads are sheepskin but you really can’t beat them although they are expensive. Just has to be washed with that Melp stuff or a leather wash product.[/QUOTE]

Correct. Fleeceworks offers two options for a lot of their products: wool and sheepskin. The sheepskin is “nonrenewable” where wool is “renewable” (you can sheer a sheep multiple times to make more product, but with sheepskin…) The wool option is cheaper.

Mattes pads are sheepskin.

[Skip_s_Rider]

Mattes also makes a Gold line that’s wool attached to a fabric backing. I’ve only used their sheepskin pads, so I can’t comment on the quality of the Gold line. Their sheepskin pads are excellent, however.

[keatssu]

http://www.horsehealth.co.uk/lemieux/half-pads/half-pads

These are wonderful half pads - the do run large though. The small will fit a 17" saddle. Medium fits my husband’s 17 1/2".

The price with shipping is around $120 with shipping (you can change the prices to U.S. $.) These are less expensive than the comparable Fleeceworks pad. My trainer has an older Fleeceworks that needs replacing, and after seeing mine is going to buy one.

[Ready_To_Riot]

but wool and sheepskin offer the same effect on the horses back?

Keatssu, I actually saw those last night in my search for the perfect half pad

[keatssu]

I’m really not sure about the difference between wool and fleece, but I think the fleece might be cooler, perhaps better at absorbing sweat? I love the feel of the fleece, but I have never felt a wool half pad. As far as price difference - in my experience, you pay a little more for a better product, in general, so if Fleecework’s wool pad is less than their sheepskin, I would assume it’s slightly inferior.

[keatssu]

I found this on the Lemieux link above:

LeMieux Merino+ marks a milestone in saddle pad innovation and longevity. The result of extensive research & testing to find the elusive ‘pure lambswool pad that has all the density & softness of Merino Lambskin but can withstand the trials of regular washing and daily wear’. The combination of fine WoolMark accredited Australian Merino wool and beautifully engineered fabrics put these Merino+ pads in a class of their own - naturally conceived technically achieved

Many issues experienced with real lambskin pads are associated with the skin getting hard and brittle. With the new Merino+ pads the lambswool has been removed from its skin and integrated with a unique backing fabric that can expand & contract, whilst retaining its inbuilt strength. The fabric aids wicking & moisture control, each fibre holding up to 30% its weight, keeping the surface of the back cool & dry. Temperature variations are also minimised. The density and consistent depth of the Merino+ wool means it offers a perfect fit. Its dynamic nature also means it moves and remoulds to the horse’s shape without too much bulk.

The lambswool, dyes and fabric are all tested to human medical standards by a Swiss laboratory, so work in harmony with even sensitive skin.

Each half lined numnah & square is stacked with features from a Swan neck & high cut-back wither profile to contoured D-Ring attachments and reinforced girth protection are

[Soaponarope]

[QUOTE=Ready To Riot;8465360]
but wool and sheepskin offer the same effect on the horses back?

Keatssu, I actually saw those last night in my search for the perfect half pad[/QUOTE]

I am not sure about the feel for the horse:) And, I may be comparing apples and oranges. But when I bought DD a fleecework full pad, she found it too bulky and couldn’t feel her very large pony’s sides. She went back to a regular show pad after that. Next horse needed a half pad. She always noted that the Mattes half pad was more tailored yet had as much loft. She has always wanted a Mattes hunter pad but they are so pricey. It definitely seems to me that Fleeceworks pads are floppier and bulkier than Mattes.

You are embarking on the Goldilocks search for that loft that is just right for you and your horse. Good luck and be strong!

[Ready_To_Riot]

Soaponarope, thanks

I’ve ridden in just a fleece works half pad for years, but my neighbors dog got ahold of it and I’m now in need of a new one so I thought I’d try to figure out the difference between sheepskin and wool.

Based on keatssu’s post, it appears as though those lambskin pads are not actually lambskin at all. It’s just the wool on a synthetic backing.

The actual skin is the backing and doesn’t touch the horse. I’m curious on the effects of the actually skin vs the synthetic backing. I guess that should have been my question. Lol the actually material is the same and feels the same. What it’s attached to isn’t.

[Scribbler]

I have three sheepskin half pads pads (with the actual original skin attached), a mattes, a HORZE, and I think a Champion? I use the mattes and the champion under my jump saddle with no cloth pad, fleece right against the skin, because maresy has indicated that this is her preference :). I wash them quite often in MELP or Leather Therapy, hand wash cycle cold on the washing machine, dry flat, brush up a little, and they are holding up very nicely. No problem with the skin drying out.

BTW, I chose these pads because they had a “gullet” down the spine. I believe that the fleeceworks pads I’ve seen don’t have a gullet. It seems to me that a gullet in the pad pulls up a bit better into the gullet of the saddle.

So I don’t see any downside to using real sheepskin. I would worry that the “manufactured” pads might not be as sturdy. It seems to me they would be more expensive to manufacture, yet as they cost less, I can’t help thinking that some loss of quality or quantity has to happen along the way.

BTW, sheepskin is a renewable resource, in the sense that sheep (like trees) reproduce plus I expect that the sheep are slaughtered for meat as well as their skins. Non-renewable resources are, technically, things like oil that are finite. But, yes, the sheepskin does represent a dead animal. I know my horse is always very interested in new sheepskins, they definitely signal something different than my other gear.

[Bogie]

I have both because I like the wicking characteristics of wool. They both work well. They both last a long time (some of my pads are 15+ years old). Wool pads are probably easier to take care of than sheepskin.

Buy the one you like best.

[Foxtrot_s]

I have both, too. The real sheepskin is very dense, sets the saddle a bit high and I’ve not dared wash this particular one - although I’ve washed human baby sheepskin with excellent success. The Thinline shimmable pad is less dense and fits the horse better. Washes very well indeed (air dried) and fluffs up with a brush of the hand easily. I rather think the fabric pad lets the back breath a bit better.

Yup, get whichever one you like best.

[Posting_Trot]

It’s easier to wash the wool pad than to wash a sheepskin pad, because the sheepskin is leather, and water tends to cause leather to stiffen over time. Once it’s stiff it’s liable to crack.

Pads that are marketed as “fleece” are typically synthetic, not real wool. They’re even easier to take care of, but they often lack the wicking qualities of wool, and they sometimes trap the heat and moisture next to the horse’s skin.

FWIW, I have a LeMieux saddle pad that is wool, not sheepskin, and it’s terrific. Griffen Nuumed pads (another British brand) are also wool, not sheepskin, and I have had a couple of those that lasted 10+ years with regular wear and care. Toklat makes the Woolback pad (which is wool, not sheepskin), and I’ve had one of those 15 years. (Toklat also makes Coolback pads that are synthetic).