[Featured Discipline] Saddle Seat Equitation

The proper saddle seat mount of any breed must have a fairly long, high set neck, prominent withers, and a good angle to their shoulders and legs.

A short neck, while not as desirable, will be fine as long as it is set fairly high and comes neatly out of the shoulders. If the horse’s natural head carriage is low, it will be more difficult to set up in the bridle, and the horse will also tend to move in a lower frame with less animation.

Long legs are a big plus because they can cover more ground per stride, even with the high action. The horse should have a fairly long pastern, ideally, to give a more suspended look to the horse’s gaits. While this is ideal, many a horse with shorter pasterns has been very successful in the show arena.

As with all breeds and seats, the horse must have a correctly formed forehand and hindquarters. I believe this is exceedingly so, however, for a saddle seat horse, because of their typically heavier shoeing, which increases the likelihood of the horse injuring itself if it takes a misstep.

While the Arabian and Morgan saddle seat riders place more value in a vertical face in their mount, which may limit the horse’s action and ability to work at higher speeds, Saddlebred riders value a higher neck with the face less tucked, as the horse will thus have a better ability to move high and fast. Therefore, if you are looking to purchase an Arabian or Morgan horse, you will want a horse that can produce great flexion at the poll and still move quickly. If you are looking for a Saddlebred, the horse must have a good, clean throatlach area, though it is not necessary that it sets its head so that its face is vertical to the ground.

Resources:
- Saddleseat Riders Online

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