What to Look for When Selecting Tack for Your Horse

It seems that no matter what you do when you have a horse farm,  horse property or equestrian estate; it always ends up costing you more money! And buying tack to ride your horse with is just one of those expenses. The sort of tack you use and the quality you want will depend entirely on what disciplines you wish to use your horse for and the amount of money at your disposal.

There is also the issue of whether to buy new or second hand. Quite often you can pick up a real bargain if you know where to look and good quality used gear may be better than buying new cheaper gear, so long as it’s in good condition.

Make Sure It Fits Your Horse Correctly

One of THE most important issues to remain aware of when buying tack especially saddles, is to make sure that it fits not only you, but your horse correctly. This can quite often create a lot of leg work for the poor owner, because something that is nice and comfortable to sit in for you may end up causing your horse all types of problems.

So having a professional saddle fitter out to help you correctly fit your saddle is good idea. Don’t think that because you are too far from one, that lets you off easily! Quite often saddle fitters will travel and hold sessions in different locations.

Another little tip for saddle fitting is to take a cut out of your horse’s withers. No, I don’t mean you should cut your horse up into itsy bitsy pieces!  For this you need some light plain wire; you will carefully mound a piece of wire over your horses wither so it takes the wither’s shape.

Once you have the shape then you transfer the shape of the wire to a piece of cardboard, by tracing around the wire. Cut out the shape and there you have your horses wither shape, which you can take with you when you go saddle shopping.

Of course, it is wise to remember that even if you have bought a saddle that has been properly fitted, your horse’s back and shape will change with work, so it’s a good idea to keep checking that your saddle remains a good fit.

Should You Go “Leather” or “Synthetic”?

Another factor to take into consideration is whether you want leather or synthetic. Leather, if properly cared for, will usually outlast synthetic, and we all know that there is just something nice about the smell of good quality leather.

Synthetics are a great alternative, however, especially for kids and for trail riders. It doesn’t matter if a synthetic saddle gets wet or dirty as a quick rub over with some soap and a hose off will see it come up like new again. They also have the added advantage of being light, so allowing kids – and you – an easier time when it comes to saddling up.

With the popularity of synthetics some of the big name brands like, Sid Hill (Australian stock saddles), Bates and Thornwood (dressage, jumping and all-purpose saddles) are all making good quality synthetics.

Other Tack You’ll Need for Your Horse

Other tack, like bridles, martingales, halters and boots, are all relatively easy to fit. Like everything horsey there is a wide range on the market and at the end of the day what you buy will come down to personal preferences.

Again, like saddles, there are a variety of leather, pvc and synthetic bridles. What you choose will again depend on your budget, time and the disciplines that you ride. For instance, endurance riders quite often use pvc or synthetic bridles, but you will probably find that most dressage riders prefer leather.

About the author: Rebecca Carter is a passionate writer at UK-Essays.com. There is her own section on this website where she can describe her experience of pet care. By the way, she is a happy owner of two wonderful puppies. She likes spending her spare time with them.