Is Saddle Fit A Welfare Issue?

Wow! What an amazing response! Well into ‘four figures’ of you answered our question “Is saddle fitting a welfare issue?” reports Master Saddler and Master Saddle Fitter Kay Hastilow. I am delighted to say that out of all of these responses, only one person didn’t think that it was so. This has really cheered me, as many of you will know that I have been doing this job not just for many years but for a frightening number of decades and sometimes it felt that I was trying to push a heavy boulder uphill. This poll, however, shows that now the message is out there and that horses will really benefit as a result.

For many years we had people that said “It isn’t necessary. I can tell if a saddle fits or not.” Sadly, in the past this was sometimes the instructors, and their clients would ask them for their opinion. This was often to buy the saddle that they personally liked with absolutely no understanding of the intricacies involved in saddle fitting for both the horse AND the rider. Happily I believe that this is not so widespread as it once was and instructors understand and value the depth of knowledge that a saddle fitter has, and often fitter and instructor will work together to obtain the best possible fit for horse and rider. This really is as it should be, respecting the knowledge and abilities of other people and uniting for the best outcome.

If you employ a properly qualified saddle fitter such as The Society of Master Saddlers Qualified or Master saddle fitter you will know that they will have been fitting saddles under the guidance and support of a  well- qualified and experienced saddle fitter for a minimum of 3 years before they could even sit the exam, to ensure that they had plenty of experience as well as knowledge. Sadly, this is not so with many other qualifications. They also have a strict to code of conduct to which they should adhere, and there is a complaints procedure should you have a problem. Nothing is perfect but I believe that these are the best fitters that you can engage. Also, because I believe every SMS qualified fitter is either totally independent from any saddle manufacturer, or works for a retailer that is likewise totally independent, you can be sure that the fitter will be looking for the best saddle for you and your horse, not just the best from their manufacturer’s range. You will find that most fitters favour one brand over another, but all will hold a selection of brands and styles. It may well be that for that fitter they will know that the range from brand X suits the average type of horse, riding standard and budget within their area, but they are in no way tied to selling just that one brand. Nor do they have a sales target that they have to reach each month for any particular brand. That makes a big difference.

The depth of knowledge that a good saddle fitter has is incredible; our clients often having no inkling of many of the factors taken into consideration by them. Here are but a few.
Tree SHAPE, not just width.
Tree point length. (did you know that shorter points give less support to the panel, so with a high withered horse these are often fitted narrower than the horse’s shape, just to give clearance to the wither? We all know how that could end don’t we?)
Panel shapes and their suitability for various shapes of horse.
Girth strap options that may be necessary to keep the saddle straight for you and your horse. Ever wondered why a fitter is not showing you mono flap saddles with long girth straps? That might be the reason.

Perhaps these will be topics for further blogs. Please let me know if there is something of particular interest to you, or a factor of fitting that you would like explained as I would be happy to write blogs on the most often asked questions.

Stay safe and enjoy your riding. ___________________________________________________________________________________

Increasing your own knowledge of saddles and saddle fitting will help you work more closely with your saddle fitter and your horse will benefit  ...

Kay says; "Knowing when you need to book your saddle fitter is an important aspect of managing all ridden equines. Having spent more than 50 years working with saddles and fitting them to horses and ponies, I have retired from actively fitting saddles and I am now focused on sharing what I’ve learnt to help develop knowledge and understanding of what goes into achieving a correct saddle fit. I feel that video enables me to do that much more effectively than would be possible in a book, I enjoyed the project immensely and am delighted with early feedback from those who have already bought these two videos which are specifically to help Riders and their Trainers understand a little more about saddle fitting and why it is so important for every ridden horse and pony.”

Saddle Fitting Know How - For Riders and Trainers is available as two videos for unlimited download or streaming from Kay’s own Vimeo On Demand page for a one-off charge of just £35 per video – less than the cost of a good quality saddlecloth or a lesson from a trainer! 

The first video looks at Conformation and Movement of the Horse, Types of Tree and their Influence, Different Panels and the Position of Girth Straps.

The second video explains How to Assess a Saddle for Soundness, Straightness and Safety, Recognising a Good Fit, the Balance of a Saddle, When Saddles Move and finally, Rider Influences. 

These two new videos contain a huge amount of information and together they provide over an hour of expert Saddle Fitting Know How. Certain to become a ‘go-to’ resource, one that you’ll view again and again, Saddle Fitting Know How – For Riders and Trainers uses clever graphics alongside clear explanations and insight into many different aspects of achieving and maintaining a correctly fitting saddle.

Find out more and get access to these unrivalled and informative videos at https://vimeo.com/ondemand/saddlefittingknowhow 

 

Your horse will thank you in more ways than one! 

Click here to buy videos for streaming or download