Pony Saddles - The Types of Pony Saddle Explained

The main variety of saddle used for general pony riding is the English Saddle. It has a spring tree as a foundation and is well padded for the comfort of both pony and rider. This kind of saddle allows the pony to move freely so it can jump, gallop or perform dressage.

The chief designs of English Saddle are:

The All Purpose English Saddle. As the name implies a general saddle useful for hacking, jumping (occasional), showing, dressage.

The Jumping Saddle is designed for show jumping, cross-country and fox hunting. The main distinction between this and the all-purpose saddle is how the forward-cut flap is designed to make it possible to use shorter stirrups to ensure the legs are in the perfect jumping position. The flap incorporates additional knee pads to support the knees.

The Dressage Saddle is designed for working on the flat, therefore the flap can be straighter cut than a jumping or all-purpose saddle, with the seat designed to be deeper and further forward, all to allow for the rider's straighter leg and body position. This saddle has less padding so the rider has more contact, and thus more fine control of the pony. Longer girth straps are used with a dressage saddle as they are fastened much closer to the pony's elbow .

The Showing Saddle is for use in showing, where the judges need uninterrupted views of the pony's conformation, thus it is small and light. It has a small amount of padding and not much support for the rider, with no knee rolls.

 
The Western Saddle was used as a working saddle, providing both security and comfort to cowboys riding the range across rough terrain, working cattle for extended periods of time. The Western Saddle has a horn on the front to be used to fasten a rope to control a cow.
A western saddle usually has fancy decoration with tooled leather and silver plates, and is often decorated especially for the rider. The tree is bigger than an English saddle and without padding for that reason it is crucial for the pony's comfort to use a saddle blanket.A cinch is used with this saddle instead a girth, the cinch being attached to the saddle with a flat leather or nylon strap (the latigo). The stirrups are fixed to the saddle and do not separate in case of a fall by the rider.

The most important kinds of Western Saddle are:

The Barrel Racing Saddle is designed for the sharp turns and high-speed runs used in the rodeo event of barrel racing. It is a small, lightweight saddle with a flatter seat and high cantle and pommel to give the rider a more secure seat.

The Endurance Saddle is lightweight with a larger tree to spread the weight of the rider over a bigger area to make it more comfortable for the pony while engaged in long treks over uneven ground 

The Show Saddle generally has a lot more tooling and silver decoration and a deeper seat than a normal Western saddle

 
The Treeless Saddle. Instead of the saddle having a rigid tree as a foundation the treless saddle has a fibreglass pommel and cantle to give a firm base. If your pony has a very broad back a treeless saddle will probably fit better than a standard saddle.