SITTING ON YOUR HORSE FOR THE FIRST TIME - why it's important for you to have a fitted saddle! скачать в хорошем качестве

SITTING ON YOUR HORSE FOR THE FIRST TIME - why it's important for you to have a fitted saddle!

How many times do you see broken/knackered saddles for sale, advertised as a 'breaking' saddle? Implying it's ok to use an unfitted, awful saddle to introduce your horse to a saddle for the first time... it's NOT. You want your horse to ENJOY life as a ridden horse, you need them to be COMFORTABLE from day one, and you don't want them to resent being tacked up and ridden. For this reason, we always say you should have your saddle fitted to your horse before you ride them... and then checked again when they're under saddle. In this video, Poppy visits the yard of a young dressage rider, Leanne Kerry (Leanne Kerry Equestrian) to fit a saddle to her young horse. He's a 3 year old Hanoverian, and this was his first time with a saddle on. Usually we wouldn't expect to see a rider get on during this first saddle fitting, but Leanne has done a lot of work with Ferdi leading up to today and felt he was ready to be sat on. I think we can all see how very chilled out he was about the whole affair - he literally barely blinked as she got on. Despite it being a VERY windy day! Usually we would expect to fit a saddle statically (without a rider) and to pop back and check it as soon as they're being 'ridden away' - this is because saddle fit changes when a rider is on board. So we try to fit it initially with that in mind. I personally don't charge for the ridden check as long as it's within a month of the initial fitting. Also, I know that people worry about paying for a saddle that will only last a few months if their horse changes shape, so if I sell them a saddle for backing, I arrange a good part exchange price towards a new one in future, so they don't lose much money (if any) when they have to part exchange it. I'm sure lots of other fitters do similar. Because, believe it or not, most of us want what's best for your horse, not to make £millions. We would also expect the saddle to be checked very regularly for the first couple of years of being ridden as the horse will change shape a lot during that time. This is explained at the first fitting... again, this is to make sure your horse NEVER has to feel that pain or discomfort that happens when a saddle doesn't fit. They never have to stress when they see their saddle coming towards them... and they never have to grit their teeth and wince as the girth is done up, or the rider gets on... Now, back to Leanne and Ferdi. We know he's going to change shape, a lot. So we fitted a saddle with that in mind. He's got a Fairfax GP which we tweaked to fit him. These saddles are adjustable and lightweight. Perfect for young horses. In a couple of years he'll get his very own grown up (PeeWee!) dressage saddle. But, until then, we're hoping this saddle can continue to be adjusted for him as he grows. He'll be very lightly hacked this summer, and then turned away for the winter, ready for life as a ridden horse when he's 4yrs old. I think we can all say we wish ALL youngsters were this chilled out. Especially when they're so utterly gorgeous. And no, he wasn't drugged... this is HIM, and he's a credit to all the work that Leanne has done with him prior to today. Poppy Webber is a Society of Master Saddlers Qualified Saddle Fitter, covering the East of England. She's also a magazine columnist, lecturer, writer and tea drinker. Media Enquiries: www.poppywebber.co.uk Saddle Fitting & Other Enquiries: www.peeweesaddlery.co.uk or /peeweesaddlery on social media. Alternatively you can search for #adayinthelifeofasaddlefitter Leanne Kerry can be found here:   / leannekerryequestrian