Do horses get better at travelling the more they do it?

J

JenTaz

Well-Known Member
Joined
7 July 2009
Messages
1,466
Location
Edinburgh
Visit site
Just looking for a bit of advice, my horse is 17.1 and I have a wessex olympian trailer which is designed to take a horse up to 17.2, taz seems to really struggle with his balance when going round corners and roundabouts and bends in the roads, if we are on the bypass or motorway he is fine, I had him out today at an endurance ride, journey was about 20 minutes in the trailer there and back, he was okay on the way out little bit loss of balance at the usual turns and curvy bits in the road, but on the way home, he managed to break the partition insert padding, which i found out today is only a thin bit of ply wood and a couple of cms of foam then the leather over the top which probably didnt help that it isnt as strong as I thought.

Has anyone ever foud that their horse gets better with travelling the more they do it, Im hoping once I pass my test and my trailer test that I will be able to get him out in the trailer more often but at the moment im having to rely on other people and think that he wont get any better and I might have to get a lorry as he travels no bother side ways in a 7.5t

Any help would be great, sorry for rambling, have left over rocky road cake from the endurance ride that you are more than welcome to :)
 
thanks, in my opinion he always seems to have a good ride in the trailer, today was the first time he had another horse in with him, im hoping more regular traveling might get him more balanced
 
My mare just couldnt ever seem to her her balance in a trailer, no matter how carefully it was towed. She stands like a rock in my backwards facing lorry though. Not sure if trying a different mode of transport is an option for you.....but might be worth a go if it is. Good luck
 
I have a Bateson Deauville so takes 2 x 17, my 17.1 has got much better now i have just a breast bar n no partision, he can spread his back legs and balance him self much better in the middle of the trailer, he loads better travels better, and also yes travels better wehn we are consistant he is only rising 5yo, so try to take him out at least a couple of times a month.
 
I do have the option of getting a 3.5t lorry rather than the trailer only problem is would be more expensive to run than a car and a trailer while at uni in september,

Charlie77 do you cross tie your boy in the trailer so he cant really walk around the trailer, i did wonder if traveling him like this would be better but worried more incase he got battered about a bit more, suppose its alway worth a try if i can get the yard owner to tow him about the yard like that to see how he is, taz is 7 has never travelled very far in a trailer before, just want to get out competiting now that i have someone to tow me till i pass my tests
 
In my experience the more you travel a horse the better they get at it. My boy loads better when I take him out more often and when I first started travelling him he would lose balance around corners/roundabouts etc but now he is so good!

I travel him on the drivers side most of the time but on the rare occasion he travels with a bigger horse I find he doesnt travel so well on the left of the trailer. So as much as I can I let him be on the right.
 
Thanks everyone, taz always travels on the drivers side because he is huge will try travelling him without the partition, just worried he will have more space to lose his balance and injure himself even more
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top