Saddle fitters- grrr

[Marusenka]

Why won't saddle fitters round here just come out and measure my horse and tell me which size saddle i need to buy:confused: ? Or have i just found the most unhelpful saddle fitters ever?

I need a saddle for my youngster who i am just starting off but i don't know what size i need for him or me- i was hoping to get a wintec with the changeable gullets so it will fit him as he changes shape as he grows. I don't want to buy one without knowing if it will fit properly but the saddle fitters are just being hopeless- they want to see him in walk, trot and canter to make sure it fits properly etc etc- i understand the importance of that but he doesn't know how to walk, trot and canter under saddle yet- surely you can just measure him to find out what size saddle is needed and then make minor adjustments as you go along?

Am i right and are they just being hopeless? Surely they have to fit youngsters who haven't had a saddle before occasionally? Perhaps a bit of stropiness is in order!!!

[Sarah-B]

It sounds to me that the saddler is just doing his/her job!! Be thankful you have found one that is so thorough!!

Horses backs change shape completely when they move, you can't just fit a saddle on a stationary horse and be sure it fits, it's vital that your youngsters first experiences of a saddle are postive and not painful, so I would listen to what the saddler is saying....

[capalldubh]

Yes, that sounds unhelpful to me. My fella has no muscle to speak of, and has not yet learned to balance with a rider at walk 100% of the time, let alone trot. Canter is a long way away... so a saddler that said that to me wouldn't be much use. What's the idea? You just use any old saddle to back horse and teach basics, then once back and muscles are throughly messed up, the saddler will finally come and tell you what saddle you need?

I guess that's why I've been doing all the basics with a bareback pad so far, and am looking at treeless for the next stage.

[MeMe]

I would NEVER expect my saddle fitter to just tell me a size, all saddles are different and 1 make in a Med 18" for example dosent come up the same as another, its like buying shoes and clothes, there are no set fast rules.

I had the same prob when I bought Stevie the work he was doing was less, and his condition/shape was worse, he is changing shape all the time, and we are now on our 2nd saddle in 6 months, and we WILL need to change within the next 6 months Im quite sure.

However I accept that with changing shape this is the way it is.

A good saddle fitter will fit seeing you ride to the horses capabilities and you should have the saddle regulary checked to make sure its still ok as the horse changes shape.

Our older horses have been changing shape the more we push their schooling etc (for the better) and have been on 3 monthly checks.

[Bay Mare]

Why won't saddle fitters round here just come out and measure my horse and tell me which size saddle i need to buy:confused: ? Or have i just found the most unhelpful saddle fitters ever?


Because like our clothes, not all sizes are the same. You saddle fitter doesn't sound unhelpful at all, he sounds thorough. I would have thought that any saddler would want to see the horse moving in the saddle to see if there's any bridging, pressure points etc. It's not like the horse's back remains static once it starts moving.

Maybe as MeMe says, look at a bareback pad or treeless for the initial stages even if you decide to go to treed later on. That's probably what I'd do too.

[Marusenka]

I appreciate that they are being thorough but if the horse being so young cannot yet do trot, canter under saddle then how on earth am i supposed to get a saddle to fit him if noone will fit a saddle to him without him being able to do this- it's just going round and round in circles!!!! There has to be a way of fitting a saddle to him without him having to do all that and then with regular checks when he has got to the other stages then minor adjustments can be made.
How do people start off youngsters otherwise? Just put any old saddle on and mess up their backs completely? What if the horse has never had a rider on before but they need a saddle for that stage surely you can get a saddle for them that fits them?
My boy has not been ridden for 3 months- he was turned away after being backed- he has no ridden experience to speak of so a saddler cannot see him moving properly with a rider on board- i need a saddle to further his education but noone will fit one without seeing him moving with a rider- how on earth am i supposed to move forward with him:confused:


I do have a treeless saddle for him but i find it impossible to ride him in- it was great on my older mare but he is so unbalanced and the saddle being treeless enhances all that and is very difficult- also the lack of knee rolls is a huge issue when he spooks at something and takes off round the school!!!

I don't want to get a saddle that isn't fitted to him and i appreciate the importance of saddle fit but how do i move forward from this and get a saddle that fits him?

[MeMe]

Maybe you just need the right fitter.

A newly broken horse on our yard has just had a brand new saddle fitted.

She rode him in walk in the indoor school bareback to get him stopping starting and turning.

And she had a saddle fitted last week and got a little trot out of him for a check, he is an established lunge horse though and is 7yrs old.

My saddle fitter done his and obviously done the best for him at this stage, and he and the owner are prepared for very regular checks as the horse develops and learns to canter etc and for the possibility of alterations and changing saddles if need be, in my view thats the only way around it.

[devonlass]

TBH,they do sound like they are being a little unhelpful by not offering you any other solutions,although as everyone else said perhaps they see it as being thorough.

I had a saddle fitter come out and see my mare when I first backed her,and she did not need to see her doing all those things under saddle (just as well as we had only got as far as walk!!).I explained I did not even want to buy a saddle off her,just an idea of size.
She was great about it,came out and did a thorough fitting,drew me 2 templates,gave me all her measurements,and showed me how to measure and where etc.She tried some of her saddles to give me an idea of what type would suit her best,and explained to me what ones worked best,what ones didn't work at all and why, (I found this really helpful when I actually was on my own choosing the saddle,gave me an idea of possible problem areas to look out for).I found it relatively easy to find her a saddle that fitted armed with all this information.
It can be done,but I guess it depends on the fitter and how they do things.
Perhaps try ringing around a few and asking if they will just come out and do you a template??
Sorry if no help,but just wanted to let you know there are ways around the problem of a first saddle!!
(Don't know what area you are in but if it the south west,can give you name of lady I had.)

[Kate F.]

I don't think they would necessarily have to see the horse ridden in walk, trot and canter at this stage - but they would need to see the saddle on the horse in movement (without rider) to assess whether it accommodates the movement of that particular horse.

Unfortunately, saddles aren't like clothes where you can say "he's a size 14, so any 14 is likely to fit" - although one can't even really do that with clothes, can one? So much varies with the cut and style.

Saddles are the same. They are usually hand made - and the same saddler can produce 3 saddles on the same day to the same specifications and they'll all be slightly different so saddle fitting really is an art.

I think I'd be a bit patient with your saddler and go along with it - it's well worth getting a saddle that fits properly when you're starting a horse. If their first experiences are uncomfortable ones, it can put them off the whole idea of having a rider on board! ;)

[Chip]

Spot on Kate F;)

[amandal]

My saddler had to leave a saddle with me on trial as I couldn't actually mount my mare in the time she had for her visit. She left it with me for 2 weeks and then came back to see us "moving" in it, can you ask if you can have one on trial ? Perhaps a week at a time ?

However my saddler had been visiting my mare for a while by then and knew what the issues were with her shape/size.

We've got a Wintec with changeable gullet.