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Synthetic Fleece Girth Cover
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Attention: Nichole Andrews or Ellie Monteith
400 Broadway
Methuen, MA 01844
52 Ash St
West Newbury, MA 01985
Girths come in a variety of materials and shapes, and each offers unique benefits to the horse. The right type of girth for your horse will depend on your horse's conformation, how your horse moves, skin sensitivity in the girthing area, allergies to textiles and how much he sweats during work.
The most important aspect about the material and shape of a girth is that it works well with your horse's conformation and gaits to distribute pressure evenly along his barrel. The girth needs to move very slightly with the hair (horizontally) and not against it (vertically) in such a way as to chafe.
Straight girth styles are fashioned like a belt. Anatomically contoured styles are designed to provide room for a horse's elbows during movement- ideal for horses with big shoulders or big gaits. Some long girths have built-in belly guards appropriate for jumpers; the guards protect the horse's underside from being injured by shoe studs while its hooves are tucked up over jumps.
Girth Materials
- Leather: Offers the most traditional look and durability; may be elegantly simple or feature two-tones of leather, fancy stitching and overlays. Clean and condition with leather care products.
- Neoprene: Affordable and cleans with soap and water. Often a solution to slipping problems with leather girths. Be aware that some horses are allergic to neoprene.
- Synthetic: Economical, durable and easy-care. Clean with soap and water.
- String: In mohair, wool, cotton or nylon string, a popular choice for combating slippage, for horses that get irritated skin in the girth area and to alleviate certain pressure points. Natural string girths should be hand washed in cold water; nylon can be machine washed.
- Wool/Synthetic Fleece-Lined: Genuine wool or synthetic fleece may be attached to fabric or leather girths to help horses who need a soft surface against their skin. Genuine wool wicks sweat as an added benefit. Care varies depending on the style.
- Webbing/Fabric: Soft and affordable. Can be machine or hand washed in cool temperatures.
A girth with the correct length for your horse and saddle will be adjusted on the same billet holes on each side-regardless of whether you're using a long girth or a short (dressage) girth.
For a long girth, ideally the buckles will not be located high under your thigh where they can feel bulky. When this happens, it means the girth is too long for the horse. Always be sure that you have at least two billet holes available above and at least one hole available below the buckles.
When looking at a short girth length for a dressage saddle or monoflap event saddle, be sure that you have at least three to four fingers' width between the top of the girth and the bottom of the saddle pad and saddle flap on both sides. If the girth comes too close to the edge of the saddle pad or flap, your horse's skin can feel pinched.
How to Estimate Girth Length
A genuine sheepskin fleece girth cover provides your horse with the many natural benefits inherent in wool fibers, including luxurious softness, resiliency, breathability and moisture wicking. Here's how to prolong the life of the wool fibers to ensure your horse receives maximum benefits.
If the girth cover is damp with sweat after a ride, remove it from your girth. Brush the wool gently to remove dirt and fluff up moist fibers. Some people favor using a stiff dandy brush, while others get good results restoring loft to the fibers by using a fine-tined cat or dog grooming brush. Allow it to dry naturally, wool facing up, away from artificial heat sources and sunlight.
Wash your genuine fleece items only when necessary. You can tell washing is necessary when the fibers tend to remain clumpy even with brushing, or they feel salty and stiff against your fingertips.
Use only a gentle cleanser that is intended for the purpose, such as Mattes Liquid Melp Sheepskin Cleaner. Machine wash the girth cover in cold water on a gentle cycle, and hang it to dry in a well-ventilated area. Heat sources such as sunlight or radiators will dry and stiffen the leather backing, causing shrinkage or warping.
Optimize laundering results by gently stretching the hide, fluffing the fibers with your hand and flipping the article during drying. Depending on humidity, most genuine girth covers dry naturally within 24 hours.
100% Satisfaction Guarantee
The Easiest and Best Guarantee in The Business
Shop with 100% confidence at Dressage Extensions. If something doesn’t fit you or your horse, return your original purchase within a year, and we’ll make it right with a refund, exchange or replacement.
Our experience as riders and horse owners ourselves is that in most situations a year’s time is fair enough to evaluate proper fit and function. PLUS: For manufacturer’s defects, we’ll extend the manufacturer’s warranty to a maximum of 24 months, regardless of their individual policies. (AND: Manufacturer warranties longer than 24 months will be honored and supported by us as well up to the length of those warranties).
Exceptions: Safety items such as helmets and protective vests may only be returned within 30 days, with their original tags intact. Saddles and riding boots may be returned within the one year period, but are subject to a prorated refund based on usage. Used saddles may be returned for 30 days only. For everyone’s protection, treats and vet meds which have been opened are not returnable, and returned blankets must clean and free of debris.
To protect all customers and ensure that every return or exchange is handled fairly, we may require a receipt or decline a return in these situations:
• Item was not purchased directly from Dressage Extensions. (It was purchased at a used tack sale or from a retailer or online seller other than Dressage Extensions.)
• Item is missing a label or has been defaced.
• No receipt and no valid identification in our stores.
• Item is wet, dirty or contaminated, or until it has been cleaned. (For health and safety reasons, we cannot accept returns on used, defective or poorly fitting blankets if they are UNWASHED.)
• Item has been lost, stolen, damaged, or misused.
• On rare occasions, based on the nature of prior transactions.
• Supplements have been opened or used.
• Multiple returns of the same item.
• Personalized items may not be returned unless defective.
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Dressage Extensions understands your concerns regarding online security. We share in your concerns and therefore work hard with experts in the field to maintain a highly secure ordering environment. Along with our comment to security, we offer you a Secure Order Guarantee - this gives you 100% protection for your credit card transactions on DressageExtensions.com.
Our Secure Order Guarantee means that you will never have to pay any money related to unauthorized charges to your credit card account, as long as those charges are a direct result from a transaction on DressageExtensions.com.
How it works: If you experience credit card fraud, the Fair Credit Act specifies that your credit card company can hold you liable for no more than $50.00 in fraudulent charges to your account. Our Secure Order Guarantee will reimburse you for any amount up to $50.00 billed to you by your credit card company for unauthorized charges to your account, if those charges result from an order you placed with DressageExtensions.com. For this protection you must promptly notify your credit card company of fraudulent charges and follow their procedures as outlined in your credit card agreement.
Synthetic Fleece Girth Cover keeps your girth cleaner and makes your horse more comfortable. 3 1/2"W x 30"L.
Imported.