Saddle Pad Compression

I received my new saddle at the end of last week and it's absolutely beautiful! I've taken it on 3 rides, about 7-hours total, it fits me wonderfully but I'm a bit concerned about the fit on Jericho. There are dry patches right behind the shoulder on both sides about 3 inches across. I remember reading how dry spots indicate areas of pressure. What can we do?

Shawna T

The first thing I had Shawna do is try her EQUImeasure form back on her horse to make sure we had an accurate mold when we originally fit the saddle tree;  it still fit like a glove so we knew we had an accurate mold. I then asked her what kind of pad she was using and how thick it was and also asked her to press down on the pad to see how much it could be compressed. We found the culprit. Shawna was using a one inch thick wool felt pad with virtually no compression!

The problem was that such wool pads are made of compressed fibers that are packed together to form the pad. Her saddle pad had very little compression to it and it had basically taken a tree with a 7-inch spread in the bars and closed it in to a little over five inches. Picture what would happen if you had a pair of shoes that fit and then you put on three pairs of socks! It would obviously change the fit to the point where the socks were causing the pressure, not the shoes.

When choosing a pad for a Synergist saddle that has been custom fit to your horse it is important that the pad, under compression, not be more than a quarter of an inch thick. If the saddle fits the horse a saddle pad should just there to keep sweat and dirt off of the saddle.