Antonia Wills Saddle Fitter

01/10/2026

01/10/2026

I was delighted to help find a saddle for this lovely, but immature five year old. An Amerigo Vega, fitted with a thin half pad to compensate for the lack of top line, was the perfect solution.

14/09/2026

𝙃𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝘼𝙥𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙃𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙮, 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝𝙮 𝙃𝙤𝙧𝙨𝙚

In the course of my travels, I have found that most people really care about their horse’s welfare, but they tend to pay disproportionate attention to some things at the expense of other equally important areas. As an SMS Qualified saddle fitter it is my job to ensure that your saddle fits as well as it can – even if that means using a half pad, or recommending a change of saddle. However, there are lots of other issues that can have an equally positive or negative effect on the horse’s performance, welfare and comfort. Here are a few of my bugbears:

𝙏𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜: The best saddle in the world cannot make up for poor training or riding or irregular schooling. However well-schooled the horse was when you bought it, it will go downhill very quickly if you don’t keep up the training, and a happy horse is one who knows what it’s being asked to do with clear and consistent aids.

𝘼𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙖: Heavy surfaces, (such as we saw during the drought) or hard surfaces put untold strain on the horses’ joints, and clouds of dust don’t help the airways.

𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙫𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 (a particular bugbear of mine): if you walk into your stable and the air is heavy and smelly, imagine living in it! A window at the back to ensure a through movement of air makes such a difference to the horse’s airways. Also, rubber matting on the floor is great for insulation, but it needs a good thick bed on top to soak up the “pee” and encourage the horse to lie down.

𝙒𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 : I’ve often written about how hard it is to fit saddles to overweight horses and the health issues they face, but occasionally I see riders who are plainly too heavy. What a tricky subject! The 20% rule says that you and all your clothes and tack should weigh less than 20% of your horse’s weight. I’d say it depends on what you do with your horse, what its build and conformation is, and how well balanced you are as a rider, but it should always be a consideration.

𝙁𝙚𝙚𝙩 (don’t get me started): Shoes that are hanging off, toes that are too long, resulting in crumbly hoof walls and the broken foot pastern axis – despite the rising standards and knowledge nowadays, I still see way too many bad feet that could be easily improved with regular correct shoeing.

I could go on – this just a fraction of what goes in to maintaining a healthy, happy horse. What are your particular bugbears?

I am an SMS Qualified Saddle Fitter, former international event rider and accredited coach. Please feel free to call me! 07941 512933

28/08/2026

Adjustable, all leather, reasonably priced, what's not to love!

09/08/2026

𝓝𝓔𝓦 𝓗𝓞𝓡𝓢𝓔 - 𝓝𝓔𝓦 𝓢𝓐𝓓𝓓𝓛𝓔?

🆀: 𝓘’𝓿𝓮 𝓳𝓾𝓼𝓽 𝓼𝓹𝓮𝓷𝓽 𝓪𝓵𝓵 𝓶𝔂 𝓶𝓸𝓷𝓮𝔂 𝓸𝓷 𝓶𝔂 𝓷𝓮𝔀 𝓱𝓸𝓻𝓼𝓮, 𝓼𝓸 𝓬𝓪𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓹𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓮 𝓶𝓪𝓴𝓮 𝓶𝔂 𝓸𝓵𝓭 𝓼𝓪𝓭𝓭𝓵𝓮 𝓯𝓲𝓽❓

🅰: Yes, possibly, particularly if your old saddle is adjustable and the two horses are similar in build. But how ever adjustable they might be, some saddles do not transfer easily between horses. If for example the previous horse was a skinny high withered type, and the new one has a flatter back, it may be impossible to “make it fit”. Also the old horse may have accommodated a 17.5” saddle but the new more compact one might only take a 17”.

🆀: 𝓒𝓪𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓫𝓻𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓸𝓾𝓽 𝓼𝓮𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓭 𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓹𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓮 𝓪𝓼 𝓘 𝓬𝓪𝓷’𝓽 𝓪𝓯𝓯𝓸𝓻𝓭 𝓷𝓮𝔀? 𝓞𝓱, 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓬𝓪𝓷 𝓲𝓽 𝓫𝓮 𝓫𝓻𝓸𝔀𝓷, 𝓪𝓼 𝓘’𝓿𝓮 𝓳𝓾𝓼𝓽 𝓫𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽 𝓪 𝓫𝓻𝓸𝔀𝓷 𝓫𝓻𝓲𝓭𝓵𝓮❓

🅰: Again yes, if I have the perfect used saddle for you and your horse that’s great, but stipulating a colour reduces the choice. Why not buy the saddle first and then choose a bridle?

🙏Please remember that the saddle is the next most important thing to consider after the choice of horse, and it’s wise to set aside the money for a new one so that you are not compromising in any way. Most people know that they have to afford a vetting, worming, dentist and insurance, as well as the cost of the horse, but they forget the most important thing – the saddle! 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐬 𝐤𝐞𝐲, 𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐚 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩.

If you would like to have a chat about all things saddle related please contact me ☏ 07941 512933 or 📧[email protected].

04/08/2026

𝓗𝓮𝓪𝓭 𝓢𝓬𝓻𝓪𝓽𝓬𝓱𝓮𝓻𝓼❗️

As a saddlefitter I am used to seeing horses with tricky conformation – but to see two so completely different examples on the same day got me thinking! 🤔

🟢Firstly: 𝐝𝐢𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 with muscle wastage either side of the spine. Some horses get more dipped with age, this lovely mare is 26 and still going strong! It’s difficult to find a tree that corresponds to the shape of this back, most trees would be too straight or flat and would be inclined to “bridge” ie have contact at the front and the back of the panel, but not in the centre👎. The solution is to flock through the centre of the saddle to fill the gap, or put shims in the panel (depending on the make). You can also buy half pads with three pockets each side, and you put shims in the centre pockets. Luckily the saddle area for this horse is relatively level, she only rises sharply behind the saddle, so it wasn’t as tricky as first thought.👍

🟢Secondly:“𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐭” – ie croup high and wide behind the saddle area. This Irish boy is only four and it is sure to grow, develop more of a wither and level up. Until then, the danger is that saddles will tend to tip the rider forwards and possibly slip forwards over the shoulders👎. He would need a saddle with a flat tree and a relatively shallow panel at the back. Using point straps would help the saddle stay put.👍

If you would like to discuss your horse or possibly arrange a visit please contact me on 📞07941 512933 or email 📧[email protected].

27/07/2026

𝐅𝐈𝐓𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀 𝐒𝐀𝐃𝐃𝐋𝐄

𝓒𝓪𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓪𝓼𝓼𝓮𝓼𝓼 𝓼𝓪𝓭𝓭𝓵𝓮 𝓯𝓲𝓽 𝓸𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓵𝓾𝓷𝓰𝓮❓

𝐍𝐎❗ Most saddles will bounce around on the lunge, particularly new ones that haven’t bedded in.😖

There are three stages to assessing saddle fit:

🐎𝓢𝓽𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓬 – ie sitting the saddle on the horse to see if it looks balanced front to back, does not “bridge” or sit too high, and that the tree roughly corresponds to the shape of the horses back. Several saddles may “pass” at this stage.

🐎𝓖𝓲𝓻𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓭 𝓾𝓹 with a normal numnah/pad – is the saddle still in contact all along the panel? Or does it lift at the back and swim around as the horse walks? This may eliminate one or two of the choices.

🏇𝓓𝔂𝓷𝓪𝓶𝓲𝓬 - ie ridden in – the most important part! I am looking for: adequate clearance under the weight of the rider (not a certain amount of fingers, just space above and either side of the spine) at the front and the back; a saddle that sits “reasonably still” in all paces and doesn’t slip to either side on a corner; a saddle that sits the rider centrally (not tipping them into an “armchair position” or on to their fork). And critically a saddle that the horse is comfortable and moves freely in, and the rider feels "at home" in. I need to see the horse walk and trot at the very least, and ideally canter on both reins.

If you are really unable to ride on the day (young or unbroken horse, rider not available etc) I will normally do the best I can with a static fitting, but will need to come back for the ridden assessment.

If you would like further information about what I do please go onto my website: www.wills-saddlefitter, or contact me on📞07941 512933

26/07/2026

Fairfax have really taken the science of saddle design to a new level to achieve maximum comfort for horse and rider. Of course the saddle has to be well fitted as well!

25/07/2026

The prolite layer also makes the saddles easier to flock, you get a nice smooth finish.