I have always liked polypads as they are suposed to be good for the horses back. In the 10 years of owning horses I have used them (amongst others) and still swear by them. There are 2 thicknesses available and they are either saddle shaped or square. They come in a variety of colours and are either all one colour or they have a different coloured binding. A polypad was the first type of numnah I bought for my thoroughbred mare. What I like about the polypad is they just go under the saddle, there are no straps to attach and no girth loop. Just stick it under, push it into the saddle gullet, make sure it is straight and do up the girth. Simplicity itself, time saving, no hassle. Taking it off is just as good, take it off, wash it, don`t wash it, do what you like. The numnahs with girth attachements mean you have to take them off if you want to wash the numnah. Even if it is not being washed I always like to put it on the top of the saddle to allow it to air. Not so easy with girth attachements. The polypad has never slipped when I have used it when placed correctly under the saddle, even on long rides and jumping.
So why when I am so pleased with polypads have I bought other numnahs in the past? Well I can never resist spending money on my horses (I am really having to refrain from doing so now). I bought a nice velvet numnah for may TB mare for shows with her name on. This was for best. I found the girths straps tedious and I also found that the velvet rubbed off where the girth was. I found the same with a different velvet numnah and vowed never to buy velvet again, for best or not. My second velvet numnah was for my other horse and was pale blue, far from practical being pale. Another thing with girth straps as I have found with other numnahs, you are limited as some restrict the amount that you can push the numnah into the gullet making it uncomfortable for the horse, or it is too far forward for the style of saddle, or too far back. I have only found this with some numnahs though but i still prefer not to mess around with girth straps. I have bought numnahs in different colours to suit my horses, or because they are on offer, a bargain that I cannot do without. It is handy to have afew though in rain or if one is in the wash.
I have tried all sorts of things for comfort. I bought a 5 year old ex race horse with a very sensitive back. This was just due to his breeding he didn`t have a back problem, he was just very fine skinned as a lot of thoroughbreds are. Of course they don`t like standing still to be mounted, they are used to leg up and away. This made it more difficult to ascertain whether his back was a problem. After a while he did learn to stand perfectly by the mounting block but would sometimes hunch his back or buck up the drive. He was not the type of horse to buck and it was always with a thinner numnah. As he did not like thinner numnahs I spent loads of money trying to rectify the problem. I tried a gel pad between the saddle and the thinner numnah. This was fine and he seemed very comfortable but a lot of hassle to put on. Not only did I have the girth straps to contend with but trying to keep this gel pad in place when putting it on was almost impossible. Gel pads weigh a tonne!! (slight exageration there). That was too such like hard work. I have tried a pure sheepskin numnah. Whilst this was good and they absorb sweat really well, I didn`t really find it thick enough, and it had girth straps. I then tried one of the pure sheepskin half numnahs. This was great under one of my saddles but when my ID/TB gelding outgrew the saddle and I bought a new one it caused pressure points so that had to go though it had been fantastic under the other saddle. I have tried prolite half pads. Prolite is excellent, absorbs concussion really well and sweat. However, does not dry very quickly at all, it was often still wet the next day. Then I tried a numnah with prolite in certain places in areas vulnerable to pressure. The numnah (again with girth straps) wasn`t really a good fit with the saddle, you were dictated as to where you had to put it. I think that is about it. In the end I went back to the polypad which seems to do the trick.
I use polypads on both my horses, one TB and one ID/TB and also an other TB ex race horse who is 23. The polypads work really well for all of them. I have used them on long day rides, galloping, jumping, schooling, hacking. When I wash them I just put them in the machine but I don`t use washing powder in case of irritation. When you take them out of the machine you need to shake them afew times when they are wet. They come out a bit lumpy. Shaking them disperses the lumps and they become flat again. For some reason this does not work if you do it when they are dry. They also dry really quickly. My saddler warned me not to use a thick polypad though as it wil alter the fit of the saddle. I have a thick one for one horse and a thinner one for the other as I consider the thicknesses to be better for each horse and saddle. That is why poly pad offer different thicknesses to suit the horse and the saddle.
I would certainly recommend polypads. I will be replacing mine as I noticed the other day that they are both starting to get rub marks by the girth but they are years old. There is still plenty of wear left. I will definately buy new ones. Mine are still fine for hacking but not smart enough for shows. They have been excellent value, they are both 10 years old. They are around £20. I will not buy another type of numnah as polypads have been the best in my opinion for all round durability, fit and value for money. Poly pad also sell other products. They sell roller pads which are a smaller version of the polypad. I had one but it used to slip a bit so I tend to use the full sized polypad. They also sell travel boots and exercise sheets, neither of which I have tried but may be tempted in future when I am looking for replacements.
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£20 approx.
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