Saddle Fitting
State Wide
Independent Saddle Fitter
Shantel is a fully qualified and insured saddle-fitter that travels the state of Tasmania on a daily basis. Shantel has a passion for finding the riders dream saddle, without sacrificing the fit for the horse. She is always up for the challenge and happy to help dissect any tricky situation to help provide you with some answers.
Shantel is working towards her SMS (society master saddlers) qualifications, which is a world wide recognised qualification and one of the highest qualifications you can acquire as a saddle fitter. This qualification makes shantel the 3rd most qualified saddle fitter in Tasmania, alongside former PSF fitter Tammy, and a saddler located south Tasmania.
Performance saddlefits fitters are trained in comprehensive evaluation, which is why we can achieve an ultimate fit for both you and your horse. The unique fitting system we use, enables us to problem solve even the most difficult to fit situations.
Shantel is a fully qualified massage therapist which means she understands more then just 'how the saddle is suppose to sit and feel'. It means she has a deeper understanding on what the horses can and cannot have, should and should not have, as well as looking at the horse as a whole to ensure she is making a positive impact on the horses body and way of going.
Saddle fitting can impact the horse in ways such as: over loading a certain leg making it hard to canter on a certain lead, struggle to flex one way, muscle soreness, restrict the horses movement, effect their behaviour (naughtiness or even being shut down), and many many more reasons.
so CONGRADULATIONS, on making the first step towards making both you and your horse happy, comfortable, and healthier.
To get in touch, simply fill out our form below or contact us via facebook for fast replies.
How a saddle-fit works:
A saddle fit requires a close eye, a lot of muscle sense (to recognise the changes you’re making and what it will do to the horse), as well as being OCD with what you’re doing! Saddle fitting isn’t just about the panel, but the position and textures you use to correct it. To get the maximum quality fit, this is a process that needs to be done in person. There are SO many things that could go wrong when fitting blind!
So, here is what a standard saddle fit appointment looks like:
1. Ask about the horse for name, age, injures, etc and what problems they are having.
2. I feel the horses muscles to gain understanding of what their bodies are doing and how to create a better feel and comfort of them and the rider.
3. I check the health of the saddle and make sure the tree and flocking is healthy and no damage is done. This way I we know what to touch and what to put back on the shelf.
4. “Dry assessments”. This involves me assessing the horse without being girthed, and feeling around the panel to check for inconsistencies from front to back, side to side, balance, and matching of the horses muscles. I may sometimes watch the horses move without the saddle during this time also.
5. “Ridden assessments”. This involves watching the rider and horse move as one with how they currently use their saddle - after this we make a variety of SMALL changes to the saddle and work our way through the issues. The ridden assessment is the most important part of the saddle fit, because we determine how the rider makes the saddle move and how the saddle moves to the horse.
During the Ridden assessments we use a scale from 1-10 where the rider can be picky and brutal on how they feel and what they want improved. This scoring system is what I live by - if you give me a 9, then let’s find where 10 is!
The assessments can take anywhere from 20mins through to 2hours. It’s important that when you book your appointment that you leave a lot of time aside so we can gently change things and keep our brains and eyes focused on the task at hand.
I push to give you and your horse the best feeling possible, so this process cannot be rushed! As a saddle fitter it’s important to feel and watch the saddle in action to confirm a fit.
I’m 100% open to any form of saddle conversations as they are so important to have! So please never be afraid to talk no matter how "silly" the question sounds -message me and lets start the discussion.
Let’s talk about it and create a plan on how to fix it for you.
