When backing youngsters it is often the case that an old saddle or half treed race exercise saddle is used which ‘sort of fits’ and ‘will do the job’ for the time being. For some people this may be an acceptable solution; however we believe that the horses’ introduction to the saddle should be a safe and positive experience with maximum emphasis being placed on the horses comfort and well being.                           

                                                                    Further to this we believe that the use of an incorrectly fitting saddle can create long term ridden problems as well as potentially causing musculo-skeletal problems.

The Starter Saddle is manufactured by The Saddle Company in Walsall. The prototype was designed with the help of Grant Bazin – demo rider to Monty Roberts and part of its testing took place on Monty Roberts Tour of the UK in October 04 and Feb 05. The Starter Saddle continues to be used on tour.

Starter Saddle is designed with the following features:

• Long girth straps so it’s easy to girth up without lifting and holding up saddle flaps

• Rawhide girth straps – their extra strength means they should stand up to longer term wear and tear

• Girth straps attached separately for even more security and safety

• Secure and strong front handle for lifting onto the horse’s back and rider security when first backing or for problem horses that buck, rear or spin.

• Lightweight and easy to lift onto the horses back

• Low cantle for easy clearance with leg when mounting and dismounting

• A range of D rings for attaching ‘dummy riders’, breast girths, side reins etc

• A suede seat for extra rider security

• The panels are finished in serge, a hard wearing material which helps make the saddle more comfortable for the horse.

• The panels easily cleaned using a vacuum cleaner ‘nozzle’ attachment. It is recommended that a thin cotton numnah or saddle cloth be used under the saddle to help keep it clean.

• The tree is easily adjustable to fit all horses. The saddle width can be adjusted from Narrow to XX Wide.

• If the saddle is too wide for some fine horses, and a temporary solution is needed, it can be altered or a separate riser numnah is available to further increase the range of horses the saddle can be used on.

 Sarah has been trained by Master Saddler Dave Johnson, to fit The Saddle Company range of saddles. In addition, she has attended the Society of Master Saddlers Foundation course in Saddle Fitting.

http://www.thesaddlecompany.co.uk/