Can a bad loader ever become a reliable one?

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Shoei

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Morning,

So having recently passed my trailer test and purchased a trailer I thought that's it, there no stopping us now! However Chester has other ideas.

He has done very little traveling really since I purchased him 2 years ago... and other than when he was imported I think very little before.

He always has had to have a look when loading but only for a couple of minutes.

Until...

A fortnight ago I was taking him out for the 1st time to a clinic, we had practiced loading a number of occasions and always the same pattern, llok for a couple of minutes then go in. Happy once in. This time in took me and my partner 40 min to load him there and perhaps 15 on the way back (but there was lots going on)

With this in mind, I put aside 1.5 hours to load him yesterday before my lesson. He loaded after 5 min. I thought great, we'll do it a couple more times. 1 hour and 50 min later he finally went on after I'd had to cancel my lesson!

I tried everything, nice Mum, angry Mum, Mum with food.

He is showing no sign of being scared, he walks up the ramp and then plants at the top. He rests his foot and doesn't get stressed. Just plants. I know I could get a rope around him but I need to be able to travel him on my own and I'd rather not force him in. If I do try and force him he pulls back and fights me (resulting in shredded fingers as I stupidly didn't have my gloves on).

To make matters worse, he then loaded 6 times with only a quick look.

This weekend we are having boot camp of constant trailer training, but will he ever be a trustworthy loader? I'm hoping it is because its all a bit new!
 
Yes you can change a bad loader in to a reliable loader. First thing is to try and work out why they are bad. I would start with the trailer and check the floor, tyres and suspension. Do they have enough room? If they are cramped then it's off putting. Some horses need more width so they can balance diagonally.
How is the driver? Do you take it steady around corners and brake gently?
If these are OK then look at your groundwork, I found Richard Maxwell videos on YouTube very helpful.
Good luck
 
as above. If there is nothing that's frightening him when he does load like bad cornering then you need to look at groundwork. Angry mum mode wont help, and if it works once it hinders you next time. Your quite right that a rope around the bum is never ever the way to go, could result in a wreck! Also wear your gloves and use a longer line than a normal lead line (you may be doing this anyway of course). When he throws himself back don't get dragged down the ramp, pay out your line. If he moves you around he is in charge of you.
 
Yes. It can be done. But you need to abandon 'angry mum' I'm afraid! :)

Patience, patience and even more patience are absolutely key! We bought a mare that we couldn't even get near a trailer to begin with. Last year we spent to the 2 week Easter holiday working on the problems and at the end of the 2 weeks we took her to a cross country clinic and she loaded perfectly there and back.

The thing that worked for us was practicing everything in the field first. We did loads of groundwork and then set up a 'pretend' trailer in the field using jump wings etc. You can practice walking on to and and standing on a sheet of wood, you can practice 'loading' in to an area and putting up a jump pole behind the horse and getting them to stand for longer and longer. The key is to never get angry (or at least don't show it! ;) ) but just keep quietly asking for what you want and praising lavishly when you get it.

When we moved on to actually loading, we started by leading her in (tempted by bucket of sloppy Fast Fibre...her favourite) and straight off again. Then we asked her to stand for a couple of seconds and gradually increased the time until she would stand happily to eat a bucket of FF and then lead her off. The key here is that YOU decide when he goes on and when he comes off. So you can surprise him by leading him up to the ramp and then backing him up and repeating several times.

Don't be disheartened when it goes wrong and set very small, very realistic targets for each day i.e 'today I will I will practice 'pretend loading' in the field and then I will ask him to walk quietly up to the ramp without pulling back and stand quietly for a few seconds.'.

When it comes to putting up the bars you need to be just as sensitive i.e lift it in to place, put it back down and lead horse off. It's all about very small increments as sometimes it isn't obvious exactly what the horse is worrying about initially.

A year on and our mare loads first time every time. She's never going to love it but she trusts us not to allow anything bad to happen to her now.
 
re the planting, can you get him to put one foot on them back him off. Then forward to both front feet on, then back off etc?
If he doesnt put any foot on the ramp at all ive found rubber mats on the ground and up the ram v helpful as its not such a stark contrast between ground and ramp for them.
 
might not be the way for you but we used a be nice halter on a horse which was a "bad loader" he to was not scared just "didnt feel like it" on some days!

but we always had a normal head collar in the box/trailer waiting as you can not tie them up and travel in the be nice!

with in 5 trips he had learnt of ****** i will just go and now he travels fine

but my boy is very different

he can not be rushed, if you rush him on he starts to panic how veer if i take him to trailer or box, let him stand (often doesn't even look in the box!) for about 5 mins max
then ask for him to load he will goon know bother, how ever coming out he always walks very "sheep-ish" almost checking we haven't dropped him off in a monster filled field!
 
Yes, mine doesn't hesitate now and self loads. It took a long time of patience and persuasion, I'm holding a Parelli stick in the video but haven't needed to use it for a long time. Anger never works, although your horse may be resting his leg he's still not happy about loading and is anxious. He's zoned out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgSjQxryNGg
 
Yes absolutely it can be done! :D when I first bought my Anglo he was so freaked out at the thought of loading, he really went so crazy that the farmer and his son in the end litteraly picked him up and carried him in the trailer! once home he didn't see a traiker/box for a few years and we did try it took lots of treats, patience and lunge lines behind his bum to get him on but after a few times like that he now litterally will drag me up the ramp to get on and go out to new places, he LOVES it! same with my filly too she loves going out now
 
I think so, but may take time and the right work. I haven't had what I would call serial bad loaders, although I did spend 7 hours in an Essex car park once so that qualifies as pretty bad. The trick for me has been a dually halter and experienced help in learning how to use it and how to react to whatever the horse is doing.

Can't say I've def cracked it but the 7 hour loader was good once I'd spent time sorting that out, and remained so for several years (until he was sold). The gelding I have now just started to show some signs of being tricky (similar to you, planting) so I've tried to nip it in the bud quickly and got some help a couple of weeks ago. Fingers crossed that will do the trick but too early to say just yet, although I took him out last week and he loaded there and back v easily.
 
I second/third the dually halter. Alf has travelled extensively, so shouldn't really be bad to load, but he is an opinonated so and so, and soemtimes, he just won't play. I was taught how to use the dually correctly, and he cottoned on very fast that it was far easier to load, than to rear, jump on me, run backwards, plant - all the charming tricks he throws at me when he just doesn't feel like loading!
 
I find its just practice (and lots of food rewards - I still give my perfectly good loaders a mint every single time they load nicely, just to keep them sweet). I had one really really stubborn one (a big opinionated 3yo Welsh Cob!) and 2 things worked, he would plant at the top too sometimes so I've used an old water bottle (with the squirty top) and just squirted the tops of the backs of his hind legs the second he'd start to put the breaks on, it was enough to just surprise him enough to keep his back legs moving up the ramp and in! If he was having a really grumpy day, one of those controller thin string headcollars was very good (if they pull on it, it tightens, if they dont then it goes slack so instant release) - this worked very well when he got headstrong and would tank off the ramp when he got really bored!
 
One of mine was so bad I once left him overnight at friends and hacked home next day, after some guidance for me, change of vehicle for him (went from 3.5 tonne transit, very high and wobbly to trailer) he went on to load well and we even hunted including early mornings with 6am starts and no time to spare, he never went in first time but would load within 2 minutes. Have had similar with another horse bad to good, again doesn't walk straight on but loads in under 2 minutes.
 
Controller halter sorted two of mine, I used the Richard maxwell one but there's loads of different types around. Schooled the horse in it so they understood the "rules" and they both went in pretty instantly. Nothing to do with patience, rewarding with food etc personally I feel a horse should load reliably, just like it should tie up, pick up his feet, keep out of your space when being led and all the other things that constitute "good manners".
 
Unfortunately.. It will always be in the back of your mind that he is a bad loader.

Mine was and although he has been fine for a long time now I always allow myself more time, and make sure I take feed with me.

Patience is the key. The last time I tried angry mum, it took me 5 hours to get him home from a show. I no longer care for the people who watch thinking I'm stupid and a pushover, I once let a 'helpful' bystander assist (apparent professional transporter) I had to go and retrieve pony from the other side of the lorry park :D
 
Thanks everyone. You have made me feel better!!!!

I do have a dually but it has been gathering dust and unused for a long time. Spent yesterday evening schooling him it in and he was very good.

Tomorrow we are going to go to our neighbors yard in the trailer so no pressure, she's not bothered when I get there!!!

Trailer is all okay and he traveled well it in once he was in last time. Even eating is net which hes not normally interested in when traveling.

It's good to know I don't have to give up on him.

Shoei
 
Mine took months - years - to get to the point that he's reliable when it's just me and him, which it invariably is. I did pressure release, I have always given a food reward once onboard. At first he was genuinely afraid (he was imported in a meat transport from South America - hold of a cargo ship and cattle trucks across Europe). After a while he used to zone out, and just stick on the ramp, trying to look anywhere but into the box. Breakthroughs were made by parking in a corner with very little room at the bottom of the ramp, and by the early discovery that he's very leery of his back end. I think he's been beaten or cattle prodded in that area. He tenses any time his tail is touched.
So my real breakthrough came when I shamelessly used the back end to get him on. I started with a lunging roller, threaded a lungeline from his halter, through one of the rings, round his rear, and back to me at the front end. At first he just kept shooting away round me in circles, but as he became slightly calmer about it all, he'd stand still (he's properly rope broke by the way). Then I could tighten up the lungeline a tad, and he'd move off it.
So I'd stand on the ramp, point him in, give a little tug and in he'd go. Any stepping back and I'd hold the lungeline tight, instantly easing off if he came forward.
Now I don't need the roller, but I still have a lungeline. We go through the motions, and I can get him on very reliably and quickly, every time (so far!).

It's not for everyone, and you need gloves and hat, a horse that doesn't kick (he never, ever has in 6 years), respects a back end rope (my other horse doesn't), and isn't actually afraid to go in. You won't win a tug of war. But it works for me, with this horse.
 
I bought in several mares as brood mares that were bad loaders. One would plant when she got within 25 yards of the trailer, another would rear (six times after a show before being dragged and lifted in!) rather than load. All were taught to self load on command. Quiet consistency.
 
Yes!

My mare was hideous to load when I got her. She wasn't too bad on the way out but then took 3 hours on the way back.

She was Young and the only travelling she'd done was Germany to the UK then from where I bought her to mine (5 hours) so I can't blame her for not wanting to go in!

I decided to enlist professional help as I compete a lot and frankly can' be doing with a bad loader. I thought I could probably resolve it but it would take me much longer.

1 session with him (he was an intelligent horsemanship kind of person and gave me lots of help with an old problem pony I had), which took 15-20 minutes and now she literally loads herself - she sees the ramp and trots up it!

It wasn't a one time fix, we did get him out s few months later as we had another 3 hour fight but since that second session she's bounded right in every time for 2 years.
 
Mine had a bad trip in a lorry (bad tempered driver, driving too fast and something fell under his feet, before I bought him) he then became difficult to load without the aid of a broom (wasn't used in anger, just a gentle push from behind) but obviously no use if your on your own! Then he discovered horsehage! Put a net of that in and he all but trotted up the ramp never had a problem either for a trailer or lorry after that eureka moment. Plus once sorted would load happily without the hage.
 
Just to update. I tried the dually after schooling him in it Thursday and before loading on sat, loaded within 10 minutes in a very calm manner there and back, despite being on an unfamiliar yard! Just got to keep practicing and hopefully he will continue to improve
 
My horse when I bought him was a bad loader, old owners loaded in a chiffney etc then on the way back from hunting one day he was whipped etc to get him on (this was all before I bought him) he's the kind of horse who freaks out if you so much as raise your voice at him so I'm sure this wouldn't help the problem. He's better loading in a big Lorry smaller two horse lorries he will go on but will have a good look first. Trailers are a no go. Since I bought a dually halter I haven't ever had a problem and I don't even let the thought of he's not going to go on enter my head, he feeds off of people a lot.
 
both my youngsters were taught to load using Ben Harts methods (shaping plans), both now load themselves. I would also say, if he loads in five minutes, don't then try and make him do it again that session-however tempting.a decent bed down can help, especially if the floor and ramp are black.

my older pony will load as soon as he sees a lunge rope-I dont have to do anything with it, he just has to know I have it.
 
One of mine was only used to travelling in a huge, luxury Horsebox with other horses.
He took a real dislike to travelling on his own, facing forwards & would take a couple of hours to convince to step on board.

Luckily for me he's the horse equivalent of a Labrador & can usually be convinced to do something for food so a bit of bribery & a pressure halter helped to get him on. He always gets a small feed on the lorry + a treat + net of Haylage + a molassed lick (usually strict contraband on my yard)
I also spent lots of time taking him on short journeys to do fun things.
Basically I made my Horsebox into a nice place for him to be. Things have improved no end, but I always leave plenty of time 'just in case'.

Last week I week I was stood at the bottom of the ramp faffing with my gloves, I let go of his reins for a second & he took full opportunity & trotted up the ramp & loaded himself 😊
 
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