[QUOTE=Piaffe~Passage;3650315]
tericada(Sp?)[/QUOTE]
Terra cotta
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What are the differences between the Euro fit, Coulture collection, and regular mattes pads? I’m thinking of purchasing one of the full pads for my low withered high rump quarter horse/ warmblood shaped mare. (not quite sure of what breed she really is) I’ve been told she has the build of a lipizzaner, whatever. Would this benefit her? Mostly i was thinking the pad would offer some shock absorption. Right now i have a shoulder elevator(what it’s called escapes me) and a quilted pad. I thought the mattes would be a better all in one. THoughts?
Honestly I bought mine for the looks, I have a paint, he is brown and has a white belly, and my normal hunter pad would lay on the brown and white areas, but my new white half pad by itself stay just in the brown, and gives my paint a clean cut look that i love!
I have a ThinLine Saddle Fitter pad and LOVE it. The quality is at least as good as the Mattes. I have the Ultra ThinLine shims in all four pockets, and it makes my saddle fit my horse like a dream–just as well as with a Mattes correction pad, but cheaper. And I like having both sheepskin AND ThinLine material to cushion my horse’s back… and he needs it when we work on the sitting trot.
Reviving a VERY old thread here. My horse has a tight back and the Mattes pad seems to help. HOWEVER, they are very expensive and high maintenance (3 days of line drying…) Has anyone had any experience with other brands/materials that seem to offer comfort to the horse without bulk? He doesn’t seem to like a fleece half pad (I think too much bulk) or a Thinline pad. I have one old pad that has some faux sheepskin under the saddle and he likes that one better than a plain, skinny pad.
My saddle was fitted to him by the maker, so a good fit. I have a friend who recommends Equitex, but I can’t find anyone else who has tried it. It does seem easier to care for than the Mattes.
Any help appreciated!!
My PRE does not like bulk or thick sheepskin pads, such as his lovely and now unused Mattes pad. Even if the saddle is fit with that pad. I’ve used Prolite and he’s gotten along with that well. I now have a Thinline (more for my back issues) that he’s fine with too.
Thanks for the response. My horse is also a PRE. He starts work short and tight and works out of it, but seemed to be more relaxed from the get-go with a borrowed Mattes. I have a Thinline and he doesn’t seem to react one way or another to that.
My friend with the Equitex says those are great for her back, as well. But they ain’t cheap, either!!
The Prolite is more affordable and easier to keep…
Do you have the half pad or a full pad? Do you need to use it directly on the back or can you put a liner pad down?
Because I only ever had one Mattes and didn’t want to deal with washing it (in fact, in 15 years it’s never been truly washed), I have always used my sheepskin Mattes half pad with a regular square pad underneath. You get the benefits of the extra padding but not the exact same effects if it were placed directly on the back. You’ll have to see if it works for your horse like that or not.
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I have a Dover fleece half pad and he doesn’t seem to like that. Seems to do better without it. The full Mattes pad isn’t as bulky as the Dover half pad and he seems to stride out more quickly and easily. Two other riders at the barn use no other pads, but have a couple of Mattes pads per horse…
Do you think the Mattes half pad has less bulk than, say the Dover? I just looked at it at Smartpak and maybe it is less bulky. TBH, I’ve never washed my Dover half pad, either.
Just trying to find a lower cost, easier maintained alternative…
I have no idea which is “bulkier” but I do make sure the fitter checks my saddle fit with the Mattes on to check that it’s not affecting the fit.
If you can get away with using something underneath the Mattes, I would spend the money. Mine is 15 years old and other than some dust, one billet keeper I had to remove, and a bit of wear along the front roll from my hands, the sheepskin and cotton are in excellent condition. My fitter actually flocked the shim pockets for me with wool for a growing horse years ago.
I can’t guarantee the quality is exactly the same, but I’d spring for another Mattes if I needed one.
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Not sure how you’re washing/drying these but this seems… excessive. I just throw mine in the washer with some Melp detergent and then in the dryer (no heat) for maybe 20 min to get some fluff, then air dry overnight. Ready to go the next day. As long as you’re not using regular detergent (you need something specially made for wool/sheepskin) it doesn’t have to be a big production.
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Good to know. I was just going by what the other person was doing. I do know about the Melp.
For what it’s worth (my 5 cents) - I have a lovely Mattes pad that I like a lot. . . genuine sheepskin is
a wonderful material for pads - the breathability and cushioning are excellent - it’s a little bulky but
it didn’t really affect the fit of my saddle. . and in my experience, caring for it is easy. I wash it in Woolite on the gentle cycle, so it spins dry and that gets most of the moisture out and then I line dry it and it dries within a day…
However - I also have a couple of the Dover sheepskin lined pads. And . . … they cost less than half as much, and I have to say . . . they perform as well as the Mattes ones. They may not be quite as pretty to look at but they do the job just as well. I think any quality sheepskin lined pad will work and it doesn’t seem necessary to spend extra money, unless of course it’s burning a hole in your pocket. 
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Aha! No, money is not burning a hole; it’s flown the coop! I’m just trying to keep the horse happy/happier. Thanks for the input.
I just went to doversaddlery.com and they don’t have a branded sheepskin pad. LeMieux does have one a little less $$ than Mattes and seems to be easier care instructions.
FWIW, I have a couple Thinline pads with fleece, an ancient Fleecworks half pad, and a LeMieux half pad, and I have never washed any of them. Ever. Granted, I put them on with a dressage square pad underneath so they don’t really get dirty or sopping wet with sweat. I lay them with the sheepskin side up after my ride to dry the (very minuscule amount of) sweat dry and that’s it. I also don’t buy them in white, only black. 
I do like the LeMieux pad a lot - it has little holes that you can put the velcro tabs on your saddle pad through to help secure the pads together to prevent slipping. It’s not as bulky as the Thinline.
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I have a general question.
How do you get the combined fleece dressage pads clean?
I can wash a cloth baby pad. I can even take a sad grubby white pad off the barn giveaway pile and bleach it up to the point a broke junior is happy to borrow it for a schooling show.
I can wash a sheepskin half pad in Melp, spin and then line dry, and keep the fluff good for years despite the fact I use it directly on the horse (it makes her happy)
But how do you wash a combined pad? I have a no name white sheepskin lined dressage pad which is very functional but the top has gotten that sad grubby white pad thing happening and obviously I can not bleach it without destroying the sheepskin.
Perhaps the only solution is getting a very dark pad of that kind?
Good question. A barn mate has a white Mattes pad and, in desperation, tried bleaching it. So, some of the sheepskin fell apart. So don’t go that route.
I may have the same dilemma. In looking for the Dover pad, I found one at Smartpak, which I ordered. As I said upthread, my horse does not care for the half pad but seemed to like the full fleece Mattes pad. Unfortunately, the Smartpak only came in white so getting it clean will probably be a problem.I
I will probably save up to get a beautiful Mattes pad in a pretty color for showing and keep the white one for schooling.
I use a white Mattes sheepskin pad for showing and - maybe I have low standards - but I just:
- spray the white cotton pad part with Scotchguard when I first get it (not the sheepskin, obviously),
- wash with melp + some blueing.
I wash my white breeches similarly with blueing too, so maybe they look white because there is no different frame of reference? I guess there are some stains where my boot rubs, but doesn’t seem to bother the horse 
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I don’t remember my Mattes pad being that difficult to clean, to be honest.
I know I washed it a few times in the washing machine with Melp, but I tried to do so only when it was super-hot outside and I could line-dry it in a day. Otherwise, I flipped it so the sheepskin side was out after a ride, so it would dry quickly. Every couple of weeks, I’d wipe down the sheepskin with a damp rag and a bit of Melp, and make sure to hit the worst places, then let it dry and fluff it up again.
I don’t remember how much I paid for mine (didn’t seem too expensive at the time) and Alex LOVED it. I got custom colors (light tan with dark brown sheepskin), too.
