My new saddle pad

I'd been shopping for a pure wool saddle pad and finally found one that was very affordable. Normally I'd order a Skito pad but I'm getting tired of the shipping and customs fees, so I had to buy German.

The pad is made in Germany with wool from Australia, the company is called Engel Reitsport. They have a US counterpart somewhere in the PNW, I just discovered. I ordered the treeless model which seems to be the right shape for my saddle (that's the last one on that German webpage).

Only 100 Euros for a pure wool (leather backing) pad?

Then it arrived, and I was disappointed.

It had no girth straps, the wool was not of even thickness, and worst of all, it had velcro openings on the HORSE SIDE of the pad, not the saddle side.

From the thickness of the wool, probably the velcro wouldn't touch the horse, but if......

Um, where are the girth straps?

That's a thick, unnecessary foam insert.

My thumb is on the ouchy velcro. I tried to get a close up so you can see the real leather backing.

WTH. I worked with the velcro and removed the extra foam inserts, trying my best to get the velcro to close in a way that would never, ever touch the horse, and I couldn't do it.

Now it probably wouldn't actually touch the horse, but if it did, it wouldn't just cause a little rub, it would tear up the back all bloody, I was certain.

I sent it back.

My husband was kind enough to help me print out the return form,  and contacted the manufacturer, Herr Reissner. The company was happy to refund me, but for some reason it was more important to them to make a product according to my needs. After a lengthy discussion on the phone, they agreed to make all the changes for me, for free.

I couldn't believe it, but about a week later, I got my pad back, competely renovated. The velcro openings are now on the front of the saddle pad, where they cannot make contact with the horse. The bottom of the pad is wool now, (before it was two strips of wool with an opening in the spine area), with a fluffy (extranneous) bit of wool that wraps over the front.

The girth straps are velcro, just like Skito, so they can be adjusted.

I was waiting to find mistakes, or uneven wool, but no, it's perfect.

From this angle it looks like a dressage pad. It's not. But what is that fluff up front? I don't need that.

The edging is not as trim as it could be, but it's luxurious!

The wool itself is indescribably soft, your hand just sinks in; it's hard to stop touching it. Mara buried her nose in it too.

I tried it on today and made sure my saddle's panels are completely supported by the wool part of the pad (the underside is not entirely wool, the flaps are just cotton/cordura, which I like because I don't need fluff under my calf).

Of course, the horse is laid up til we get her back worked out, so I cannot try out my new pad.

I don't know how well it will hold up over time, but I have high hopes. I've never had a wool pad before with actual lambskin (leather) backing. I have a feeling it's not gonna wear through like my Toklat Woolback.

Christ and Mattes are the two top wool brands, but not nearly as affordable.

If I ever need to order another Engel pad, I'm definitely doing a drawing of my saddle and asking for a custom-made for Eurolight pad, I'm sure that they'd comply.