English Saddle vs Western Saddle Riding Styles

Horse riding is a popular and ancient activity. When it’s time to choose saddles for your horse, you often find yourself stuck between English saddle vs Western saddle. While both options allow for a comfortable ride, they have distinct approaches. Therefore, it’s important to select the one that enhances your overall experience. English saddles and Western saddles differ significantly in their use across various disciplines. While comparing them can be challenging, this article will list the features of both saddle types to help you determine which one suits your preferences better. Let’s dive in and make your decision easier.

In simple words, Western saddles focus on offering a higher quality leather as it is used for many disciplines that require endurance in the saddle to make it last for long periods. On the other hand, the English counterpart is made from leather or synthetic lightweight material that enhances the horse’s performance and looks as if it will be used for dressage, show ridings, and many other similar activities.

However, this is not all that should be said as there are much more features that can not be ignored when making a serious comparison. Now it is time to dig deeper to discover for what kind of purposes and activities are the different types of saddles used.

– WHAT ARE WESTERN SADDLES USED FOR?

Originally, this kind of saddle is used for plains and there are many disciplines that rely on the usage of this unique style. All of them have their origin from working ranch horses in the old west. They focus a lot on providing protection to the rider’s legs, and this is obtained by relying on sturdy materials that do not compromise movement at any moment.

Trail, pleasure, and working ranch riding are where these saddles can shine better. Also, they are perfect for endurance shows, horsemanship, pole bending, cutting, reining and so much more.

– WHAT ARE ENGLISH SADDLES USED FOR?

On the other hand, it is well known that this type is mostly used in a culture where the riding style is different from the one found in the west. Curiously, English riding is seen as the traditional way of doing it, but that does not mean that their saddles are the best as the competition is tough.

They will be used for eventing, hunting, dressage, showjumping, show and pleasure riding, endurance activities, and especially racing. So it is safe to say that these models must promote durability as they will definitely receive some hits during some of these previously listed activities.

– PARTS OF WESTERN SADDLES:

Normally, these ones come with parts like seats, cantle, swell, horn, fender, rigs, cinch, and skirts. Back in the past, western riding was used to meet the needs of cowboys and people that worked on ranches, these seats are created to distribute the rider’s weight-efficient even when they are under tough conditions and environments that could cause discomfort in the rider if the correct saddle is not used for the discipline.

– PARTS OF ENGLISH SADDLES:

While they come with certain similar parts, most of them are completely different from the ones listed in the counterpart. It features a seat, cantles, pommel, knee rolls, panels, flaps, and a stirrup holder. In these modern days, these are not as sturdy as they were made in the past, but still, they focus on enhancing performance at all moments even during the toughest conditions and environments, making them wonderful for any contact or endurance discipline.

– HOW TO FIT A WESTERN SADDLE:

It is important to let the horse stand square on the surface to place the saddle on the horse without requiring any pad. Also, keep in mind that between the horse’s whither and the gullet, there must be two or three fingers of space to avoid comfort issues in the future. Balancing things proves to be an important task as the seat needs to be level and parallel to the ground, try to move everything a bit forward and back to balance everything.

The bars should never make contact with the back of the horse as this could reduce movement and put pressure on the horse’s back, proving to be a threat if it is not done properly, so avoid causing unwanted situations in the future. Finally, the front cinch should not be over-tightened by any means as this could cause movement issues, also, measuring everything in this part is important to balance everything.

– HOW TO FIT AN ENGLISH SADDLE:

As always, try to stand the horse squarely on a flat surface (if it is possible) to place the saddle on the horse without requiring the assistance of any pad. Keep in mind that the seat should appear flat and it does not have to be tilted towards any position. The rider must be able to fit in 2 to 3 fingers between the pommel and the horse’s whither to make sure that everything will make the horse feel comfortable even during tough conditions.

In many cases, the channel width is often overlooked in fitting checks. It is crucial that the spine is not touched by the panels under any circumstance as this could prove to be annoying and troublesome for the horse if it is not measured properly. The billets should lie straight down. If they look crooked then this could mean that the balance is off, causing issues in the long run.

Finally, it is important to choose the best fitting saddle for your horse as it should never extend further back than the last rib of your horse as this would prove that the weight-bearing will be placed into a vital part. Also, the panels should stay in contact with the back without any kind of gaps to allow weight-bearing others a larger and less relevant area. Always look for something that enhances movability without compromising protection and comfort for both the horse and the rider.