Saddles (again - sorry!)

[SarahR]

I have been reading the 'Passier saddle' thread with great interest and am hoping as you all sound so knowledgeable that you might be able to help me with my saddle problem.

Its a bit of a saga - so I will keep it as short as is possible.

I own a 22 (approx) yr old 15.2 TB/WC and we are having an impossible task trying to get a saddle to fit him. He has a high whither and a slightly dippy back and we cannot get anything to fit him. (he has always been this way - I have seen photos of him 14 years ago looking exactely the same). When he came to me we started off with a L&R narrow fit event saddle which he grew out of (previous to this he had done NO work for about 18 months) - I then splashed out and had a Farrington m-to-m for him (9 months ago).

I am now told by my saddle fitter that this saddle no longer fits him and because of his extraordinary shape it is almost impossible to get something to fit him. My question is:

Does anyone out there have a dippy backed horse - and if so what saddle to they use on it (or how have they combatted the problem). Quite frankly I am a bit disappointed that he has grown out of this saddle so fast and am quite reluctant to go down the same path again as quite simply it is a waste of money.

Or - are there any saddle fitters out there that are looking for the 'ULTIMATE CHALLENGE'!!

Thanks in advance
Sarah

[Maria]

Hi
Hi Sarah

Heather's saddles made by Barry Swain or the Saddle Company are made to template. I assume it must be possible to for the Saddle Company to design a tree to fit your horse given that tree is designed by computer to ensure it is symmetrical. But I'm sure that Heather will be able to confirm that abd give an idea as to price.

Kay Humphries is an excellent saddle fitter - perhaps Kay or Jill Shephard who works for her might be able to come and look at your horse and advise. Kay has a range of saddles made by Barry Swain and she also sells the Saddle Company's range - which is wider than just Heather's models.

Jill is based in Kent but travels - she is very good and came out recently to check the fit on Carrie's saddle and measure up another horse for one of the Saddle Company synthetic dressage saddles.

Maria

[Heather]

HI Sarah,

We have fitted really dippy backed horses with my Barry Swain saddles. One springs to mind, owned by a friend who is a physion, boht human and equine, so no back problems there! Horse, Thomas, was an ex show cob, lovely chap but had an incredibly dippy back! We fitted him with a custom made Barry swain with the holistic tree that we use which pretty much moulds to the shape of the horse over a periond and he never looked back.

Canm you send me a photo of him from the side on, without a saddle and then with a saddle?

Heather

[SarahR]

Hi Heather - yes I will gladly send you photos - I will take some tomorrow - so may take a day or so to sort out.

To be honest I am just getting really disallusioned with the whole process and fitters etc. etc., - like every loving horse owner out there I would gladly spend my last £1 on my horse - but at the moment I feel as if I am being taken for a ride (ha ha - or not as the case may be). I would happily buy him a new saddle again if I knew that we would get more use out of it than 9 months(Honestly - who ever heard of a 22 yr old muscling UP!!!) - but I really don't know who I can trust to do this any more!

Thanks Maria re: Kay - I do have a friend who has her's fitted and made by Kay but to be honest I personally found the saddle very heavy. As my horse is getting on a bit (although he doesn't know it) I am trying to not add extra weight to him.

The only requirements I have for the saddle are that is is suitable for all disciplines and will look OK in the show ring (and ideally that it is brown). Although Troy is 22 we still compete in sj, xc, dr etc., and would like to be able to do so. I also want something that enables me to sit up straight!!

Also - one other random question - at what point do you think it is OK to say to your saddle fitter 'I'm really sorry but I'm going to ask for another opinion'. (I'm such a wimp!)

Heather - I do get the phsio out regularly for troy as he did have an old injury - but it is fine now.

The major problem with saddles is that they are either too narrow at the front and so tip up and the front - or you get the back end sorted out (as he is flat behind) but then it sits too far down onto his whither!!! (I dispair!).

I am currently using a 15yr old (approx) Ideal saddle which is almost level (although we could probably go for a wider fitting).

Thanks!

[Maria]

Hi Sarah

Jill lent me one of the Kay/Barry breaking saddles to try on Carrie and that felt quite light compared to my Heather/Barry dressage saddle. So some of them may be less weighty.

The Saddle Company synthetic that my friend has just bought feels lighter - and one of the reasons she bought it was to lessen the weight on her 20 year old TB's back. The synthetics are part leather part synthetic. Perhaps Heather can advise on suitability for showing.

You are quite entitled to seek a second opinion - whether your local saddler will do anything about it is another matter. Just over three years ago I bought a dressage saddle from a local SMS approved saddle fitter. When I went back to him a few weeks later to say I was having problems he said it was my riding that was at fault. I should have refused to accept this and got a second opinion. My riding wasn't the problem the saddle design given my build was. 6 months later I bought one of Heather's saddles. The first buy was a costly mistake.

More recently I've sought a second opinion on a GP I bought because I was having problems. That issue has now been resolved amicably with the person I bought the saddle from.

Maria

[Heather]

HI Sarah,

The Saddle co saddles are very light, and also both my current models ( pony and endurance soon to be added) have velcroed on knee rolls which are detachable and therefore the saddles- especially the dressage are very suitable for showing. I always showed my county level cob in one of my Barry Swain saddles, and the judges nearly always remarked what a 'wonderful saddle'!


If the jugdge is comfortable, then they get a better ride, which can reflect on the placings at the end of the class!

Heather

[Thinkerbell]

Just my two cents: I've seen Stübben (http://www.stuebben.de/) saddles successfully fitted to horses with hollow backs (if that's what meant by "dippy").

TB