Before you begin, make sure your horse is clean and dry and try saddles without a saddle blanket

• When you sit the saddle on the horse check that the sides of the saddle fit comfortably against both sides of the horse, without sitting out from the sides
• Check that the saddle is not ‘bridging’. Do this by placing your hand on top of the saddle and lifting the side of the saddle up. Look to see whether or not you can see light under the middle part of the saddle. If there is a gap under the middle part and you can see light, then the saddle is bridging and is not a good fit. The saddle should fit down evenly along the horses back.
• Stand back from the horse and assess whether or not the saddle sits on the right angle, rather than high at the front or high at the back. It may help to have an experienced horse person look at this with you.
• Look from behind the horse up through the saddle channel (so along the back bone of the horse between the horse and the saddle) to see if you can see light through the channel. If you can see light then the saddle is sitting off the horse along the channel which it needs to be in order for the saddle to fit.
• If the saddle seems to fit so far, add a girth to the saddle and do it up. Place a rider on the horse with the saddle on and check that the saddle is sitting well off the horses wither. Do this by seeing if you can place at least 3 fingers under the front of the saddle between the saddle and the horses wither.

If the saddle seems to fit the horse and you have had an experienced horse person check the saddle on the horse, then it may be time to work out whether or not the saddle fits you! If you are going to be spending hours in the saddle riding then it’s important that you have a comfortable saddle. There are enough options out there that you shouldn’t have to compromise with a sore backside. Choose a saddle length that means you are not squashed in a saddle that is too short for you or moving around in one that is too long.

Lastly, you need to find a saddle that fits your budget. A new saddle is always nice to have, but there are plenty of good second hand options.

Given that a saddle is a key part of your horse gear it’s worth taking some time to get this right and make sure you that have a saddle both you and your horse will enjoy.