The type of girth and how it fits is often over-looked, but it’s just as important as a correctly-fitted saddle.
To find your perfect girth, take a few moments to answer the questions below.
Armed with your answers, you’ll be ready to buy the right girth for you and your horse.
What type of saddle do you have?
This will influence the type of girth you use. If you have a mono-flap saddle, these will have long girth straps, so you’ll need a short girth.
If your saddle has two flaps with short girth straps, a long girth will be needed.
With or without elastic?
To ensure equal pull across the length of the girth, pick one with no elastic, elastic in the middle or at both ends.
You’ll get more stability without elastic but some horses prefer a bit of give that elastic provides.
Shaped or straight?
Shaped girths are most commonly used as they’re designed to fit around your horse’s elbow for comfort.
Some have a wider panel that sits on your horse’s breastbone to spread the pressure more evenly as well as for addtional comfort.
Leather or synthetic?
Whatever material you pick, it’s important to keep it clean. A dirty girth is likely to rub your horse and make him sore.
A leather girth will need a conditioner applying to keep it soft and supple. A synthetic girth can look just as smart as leather, and all they need is a quick wipe over with warm water to remove dirt and you’re good to go.
What size do I need?
Place your saddle, saddlecloth and anything else you normally use under your saddle. Using a piece of string and measure from the middle hole on one of the girth straps and pass the string under your horse, one hand’s width away from his elbow, to the corresponding girth hole on the other side. Measure the length of the string and this is the size girth you need.
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