I Don't Need More Tack, I Don't Need More Tack

But I DO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gah! Why can't I be content with what I have? I only have about 3 horses worth of tack, if not more. Shouldn't that be enough?

Never!

What really sucks is that I don't quite have what I really want. When I have what I want, I'm happy and don't feel the need to acquire more. But when something is slightly off, even if it's functional, I'm not happy and thus stay on a constant search for new things.

What's bugging me now, you might ask? Saddle pads. I've FINALLY got a saddle that I love and would pet and squeeze and name George if it wouldn't get me locked away in the loony bin. The trouble is, I don't have a saddle pad that really fits it.

My old AP pad is both ludicrously small looking and uncomfortable for Cherry. As you can see, the panels rest right on the back seam of the pad, which then digs into her back. Good times!


















This is the "for now" saddle pad that I got for $20 from Dover. It's plenty long enough in the spine, and even has a nice, high wither clearance, but the front is cut fairly straight down. My saddle has forward flaps and thus they poke over the edge of the pad. At least this setup only bothers me, Cherry couldn't care less.



BTW: That's the huge-ass wither cut-out sticking up in front of the saddle, NOT my horse's withers.












I've been looking at oversize AP pads, but they are elusive at best and come in crappy color choices. Boo! This one, a Fritz Somthingorother, was suggested, as it's got a 27" spine AND a forward cut front. But alas, it only appears to come with red trim. Ugh! Red looks awful on Cherry. Why can't it come in plain white like the picture?








Another option is trying to find a contoured pad, a la this Toklat one. I need to measure my saddle to see if it will even come close to fitting. What a pain in the ass long thighs are. Even if my ass was smaller, I'd still need a big saddle to accommodate my ridiculous leg.









Right now I'm stumped. I had no idea buying a new saddle would mean buying a whole new kit for it. I mean, I knew about the new girth, that was a given, but a new saddle pad too? Oh, and new stirrups, but I kind of needed them anyway, regardless of the saddle purchase. My ankles and knees thank me.

Someone else suggested an Aussie or western type saddle blanket. At first, I was like, "Pfft! You can't used a western pad with an English saddle! Der!" Then I thought about it a little more. Why the hell not? Actually, now that I think about it, a girl at the barn used a folded navajo pad with her close contact saddle. Hmmm, I also like the idea of wool, it's by far my favorite pad material, but it isn't used so much for English pads.



My biggest concern with a saddle blanket is the whole wither clearance deal. I don't want the pad to bind Cherry's withers, and I have yet to see a contoured saddle blanket. I think it's worth a try, though. At least trying it out won't cost me any money. I already have a wool saddle blanket (which is fantastically, garishly teal) that I can use. If I like it, I might abandon the English pad altogether.






Here are my criteria for my ideal saddle pad, in no particular order:

• Fits saddle with no part of saddle poking over pad
• Isn't too ginormous, as horse is small and easily swallowed up by a large pad
• Comfy for horse
• Doesn't change fit of the saddle, it fits and I don't want to fuck with that
• Comes in fun colors, preferably teal
• Looks nice and is aesthetically pleasing to me

Basically, it's got to fit, be comfy, and look pretty. If it only fits and is comfy, that's okay, but I do have to look at it. If it's only pretty, that's right out. I have one of those already. *sigh* I guess I'll just have to keep looking around. As much as I love tack shopping, I love having tack that I like even more.