{"id":38064,"date":"2026-02-16T17:39:13","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T16:39:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/girth-extender-or-new-girth-what-to-choose\/"},"modified":"2026-09-03T19:24:34","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T17:24:34","slug":"girth-extender-or-new-girth-what-to-choose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/girth-extender-or-new-girth-what-to-choose\/","title":{"rendered":"Girth Extender or a New Girth? When Saving Money Makes Sense and When It Harms the Horse"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sooner or later, the same dilemma appears in every rider&#8217;s tack room. The horse has gained &#8220;winter form&#8221;, the youngster has grown in the chest, or you simply bought your dream girth that turned out to be a few centimetres too short. Then the question arises: save the day with a <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/girth-extension\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/girth-extension\/\">girth extender<\/a><\/strong> for a few dozen zlotys, or invest in a new girth?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The answer is:&nbsp;<strong>it depends on the maths and the anatomy.<\/strong>&nbsp;Let us see where clever saving ends&nbsp;and risk to the horse&#8217;s health begins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. When is a <a href=\"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/girth-extension\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/girth-extension\/\">girth extender<\/a> a bullseye?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A girth extender is not a &#8220;makeshift&#8221; \u2013 it is a fully-fledged accessory,&nbsp;as long as you use it sensibly.&nbsp;It is the ideal solution in three specific cases:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Seasonal weight fluctuations:<\/strong> If you know that your horse will get back in shape after the pasture in a month or two, an extender will let you safely get through that period.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Young horses in training:<\/strong> When the horse&#8217;s chest is still developing, an extender gives you a safety margin before you invest in the target girth size.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>No &#8220;last hole&#8221;:<\/strong> If you are literally 3-5 cm short of fastening the saddle, an extender is the healthiest way out. Forcing the girth tight &#8220;with your knee&#8221; is the shortest path to making the horse dislike being saddled.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. The safety limit: how many centimetres is too much?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It is assumed&nbsp;that a girth extender is safe and functional&nbsp;if it adds&nbsp;<strong>from 5 to a maximum of 10 cm<\/strong>.&nbsp;Why is this so important?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A girth is designed so that its widest part protects the sternum, while the anatomical cut-outs avoid the elbows. If you use too long an extender (e.g. 20 cm), the whole girth shifts unnaturally downwards. As a result, the buckles, instead of lying high on the billets, end up just behind the horse&#8217;s elbow, which will almost certainly end in painful chafing and &#8220;pinching&#8221; of the skin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. When is it time to accept buying a new girth?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are situations&nbsp;in which an extender simply will not do the job.&nbsp;It is worth investing in a new,&nbsp;longer girth&nbsp;when:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>You are short by more than 10-12 cm:<\/strong> This is no longer a minor adjustment, it is simply the wrong size. Saddle stability with such a big difference will be severely compromised.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The buckles end up asymmetrical:<\/strong> If you use an extender on only one side and feel the saddle &#8220;running&#8221; to the side while riding, it is a sign that the pressure is not distributed evenly on the chest.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Your extender is of a different material than the girth:<\/strong> Mixing, for example, a stiff web with soft leather can create pressure points the horse will not accept.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">4. Economy vs. the horse&#8217;s health<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The cost of a new <a href=\"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/economics-of-quality-leather-girth-outlasts-neoprene\/\">leather girth<\/a> is an investment for years.&nbsp;An extender is a great &#8220;fuse&#8221;&nbsp;worth having in your tack box for a rainy day.&nbsp;However, if you see&nbsp;that your horse feels discomfort,&nbsp;tenses up when being girthed or its stride becomes shorter \u2013 do not fight the centimetres.&nbsp;Sometimes the cheapest solution is to buy the right size,&nbsp;which will save you the cost of treating sores or physiotherapist visits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The symmetry rule!<\/strong>&nbsp;If possible, try to fasten the extender so that the buckles on both sides of the saddle are at a similar height. Uneven fastening is the most common cause of the saddle &#8220;wandering&#8221; during training.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udc49 <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/girth-extension\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/girth-extension\/\">[SEE THE BALOTADE GIRTH EXTENDER]<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When a girth extender is a smart saving and when it harms the horse.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":37225,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1732],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-girths"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/balotade.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Przedluzka-do-popregu-Balotade-czarna.jpg?fit=1440%2C1080&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38064","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38064"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38064\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73738,"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38064\/revisions\/73738"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37225"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38064"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38064"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/balotade.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38064"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}