Recently, I purchased a new jumping saddle. I went back to my beloved Antares. Antares is a French owned company that produces top notch saddles, brides, helmets, and other basic riding essentials. I have had my last Antares for over six years and was looking to get another as mine was starting to get very warn.
When buying a saddle many factors come into play such as fit, style of saddle, price, comfort, and recently a new factor has come into play hide. Traditionally all saddles have been made from calf hides but now more and more saddles have been made from buffalo hides instead.
Now you may ask the difference between buffalo and calf hide. Well, I am here to tell you! Calf hide is a softer leather than buffalo and can be worked with greater easy and it takes less time to break in. Buffalo on the other hand is a stronger hide that is ideal for those people who ride several horses a day or very often. Saddles are very expensive ranging from one to seven thousand dollars. And just like anything else you get what you pay for.
When the saddle fitter came to Wild Wood to measure Rudolf’s back for my new saddle she encouraged me to spend the extra money on the buffalo hide instead of the calf based on how quickly my old Antares has warm out. I do ride a lot and I felt that spending the extra money would be a smart thing to do in the long run.
Below is a short video on how to properly fit a saddle to a horse’s back. Often times people with multiple horses will own more than one saddle. I have five different jumping saddles and every time I purchase a new horse I have to buy a new saddle in order to make sure my horse can perform at his or her best. Consider wearing a pair of running shoes on a long jog that do not fit correctly. It isn’t very comfortable is it? Same thing goes with a horse and their saddles.
When buying a saddle many factors come into play such as fit, style of saddle, price, comfort, and recently a new factor has come into play hide. Traditionally all saddles have been made from calf hides but now more and more saddles have been made from buffalo hides instead.
Now you may ask the difference between buffalo and calf hide. Well, I am here to tell you! Calf hide is a softer leather than buffalo and can be worked with greater easy and it takes less time to break in. Buffalo on the other hand is a stronger hide that is ideal for those people who ride several horses a day or very often. Saddles are very expensive ranging from one to seven thousand dollars. And just like anything else you get what you pay for.
When the saddle fitter came to Wild Wood to measure Rudolf’s back for my new saddle she encouraged me to spend the extra money on the buffalo hide instead of the calf based on how quickly my old Antares has warm out. I do ride a lot and I felt that spending the extra money would be a smart thing to do in the long run.
Below is a short video on how to properly fit a saddle to a horse’s back. Often times people with multiple horses will own more than one saddle. I have five different jumping saddles and every time I purchase a new horse I have to buy a new saddle in order to make sure my horse can perform at his or her best. Consider wearing a pair of running shoes on a long jog that do not fit correctly. It isn’t very comfortable is it? Same thing goes with a horse and their saddles.
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