Horse accident on M1 near Sheffield yesterday

Oh my word, this brought a tear to my eye reading it. How tragic and heartbreaking for you.

Unfortunately no matter what anyone says, it will not make you feel any better at the moment, but I'm sending cyber hugs your way and thinking of you.

Xxx

RIP my lovely, make sure you get stuck into that lush grass up there and go play with the other horses you come across. Xxx
 
Whilst not wishing to sound callous, I wonder if the top doors on the trailer, assuming that it had them fitted, were closed, and if there were no doors, was there a top bar?

Alec.
 
Oh Lord, I've just caught up with this, and didn't want to cut and run. I am so, so sorry for you. What an awful tragic thing to happen. Nothing I can say can really be of consolation to you, but just know, I am thinking of you.(( hugs))) RIP little Misty, xxx
 
Hi Alec, yes there were top doors but they were open due to it been a long journey. This mare has travelled numerous time on her own and with others and never had any issues whatsoever. Also the ramp is 4ft high from the trailer floor and the gap between the top of the ramp and the roof
of the trailer was less than 2ft. Understand what you are saying but nothing would have stopped our mare getting out of the trailer. She was also 14.2hh so she was also determined...
 
Dont know if the last post had posted but just thanks again to everyone who is concerned and consoling us as many other people are more interested in posting pictures and gobbing off on Facebook, so to the people who understand thanks for all your kind thoughts. It is helping us through x
 
HavocsRevenge said:
....... Understand what you are saying but .........
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I'm genuinely sorry to hear of of your dreadful accident, and I'm sure that you will join me now, in pointing out to other trailer users to always travel horses with the top doors shut.

As you've pointed out, being experienced travellers, is no guarantee that a horse cannot leave the trailer, and with the top doors shut, that would be an impossibility.

I'm sorry to hi-jack this thread, but it is for the common good to advise everyone that a horse which is capable of breaking loose and exiting a trailer could well be considered an unsafe load, and leave the driver open to prosecution. Should other road users be killed or injured, during such an accident, then prosecution would almost certainly follow, and perhaps justifiably.

Again, my commiserations, and I truly hope that others can learn from your tragedy.

Alec.
 
Understand what you are saying Alec our livestock trailer has a bar to go above the backboard and roof even though the gap is much less than that of our horse trailer.
 
Alec Swan said:
I'm genuinely sorry to hear of of your dreadful accident, and I'm sure that you will join me now, in pointing out to other trailer users to always travel horses with the top doors shut.

As you've pointed out, being experienced travellers, is no guarantee that a horse cannot leave the trailer, and with the top doors shut, that would be an impossibility.

I'm sorry to hi-jack this thread, but it is for the common good to advise everyone that a horse which is capable of breaking loose and exiting a trailer could well be considered an unsafe load, and leave the driver open to prosecution. Should other road users be killed or injured, during such an accident, then prosecution would almost certainly follow, and perhaps justifiably.

Again, my commiserations, and I truly hope that others can learn from your tragedy.

Alec.
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But I still think manufacturers should make a wire top door as a way to still allow fresh air in, and some horses hate being shut in, this way the nervous traveler, or ones who get free cannot get out with a wire inner door. AS bite guards are used the same could be used in this purpose.
personally I like this trailer rear ramp a sliding window gives light -and air and security
 
Leviathan that is a good trailer and may pursue into getting one of them. But no I do not no longer advise travelling with the back doors open at any cost. It will be much safer to have the little ones at the front open and carry a canister of water and stop every half hour or so (depending on weather, cold weather slightly longer) and give them a drink and fresh air while being monitored. Our journeys may take twice as long but at least you will know that they will make it safe and sound (in most cases). This was one in a million freak accident as this is the first time anybody has heard of this but it doesn't mean itt can't happen again. So for all those reading who travel with the back doors open and please lengthen your journey for the sake of your horses life. I do not wish what happened to us upon anybody and if by posting this and it raises awareness and only stops 1 accident. I will take a sigh of relief knowing that sharing our experience has saved a horse cos like I said I would be devastated to hear something like this has happened to someone else knowing I could of just warned them to shut their top doors. . .
 
My worst nightmare. How truly awful and tragic.

I've had a young 13.2hh manage to fully turn round in a trailer before (with a centre partition - no idea how he did it, must have reared up vertical and spun round). Luckily he didnt jump out, I found him just looking out over the back door. The problem I think with most UK designed trailers is that it is the norm to keep the back top doors open so I think they design them accordingly. My Bateson Ascot has no ventilation other than a slit in the front window which isn't nearly enough for a hot day.
 
I am so sorry - what a horrible thing to happen.
I used to leave a door open in trailers a the back, but I never will again.
 
I'm so sorry to hear of this, as it is a horrible accident.

In addition to other comments about shutting top doors, CCTV is a good investment for travelling livestock, as it enables you to see what is going on.

However as you didn't hear anything chances are you wouldn't have noticed immediately on CCTV either, as I use it like a mirror check and usually to check it I need a indicator like a noise.
 
What a horrific accident, so sorry for you all, and what kind of wierdo wants to take photos and post them online! Something wrong with their emotional intelligence development IMO.

I'm going to look into getting a back door grill made for our trailer. We usually have two big horses in our 510, unlikely that they could turn round but you never know. I find it really hot and that they suffer very quickly if I shut the doors. Our local metalworker has made grills for the stables to measure very cheaply - I'm sure that one for the trailer wouldn't be that costly. Something along the lines of the dividing grill that you can buy for the front of the trailer.

Thirty years ago we had a pony jump over the front lower door while we were parked. Its amazing what they can jump through when they feel the need.

RIP pony.x
 
Honey08 said:
What a horrific accident, so sorry for you all, and what kind of wierdo wants to take photos and post them online! Something wrong with their emotional intelligence development IMO.

I'm going to look into getting a back door grill made for our trailer. We usually have two big horses in our 510, unlikely that they could turn round but you never know. I find it really hot and that they suffer very quickly if I shut the doors. Our local metalworker has made grills for the stables to measure very cheaply - I'm sure that one for the trailer wouldn't be that costly. Something along the lines of the dividing grill that you can buy for the front of the trailer.

Thirty years ago we had a pony jump over the front lower door while we were parked. Its amazing what they can jump through when they feel the need.

RIP pony.x
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Glad my suggestion hasn't gone to waste :)

I saw several trailers on the way to hickstead all open cept one who had closed one side

I have also had grill type bite guards made for my horse box so your guys should easily to this
 
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Really sad to read this - some hugs going out to you. Calling the foal the same name will be lovely and that police woman was really kind to take some mane.

I lost a horse in a road accident 35 years ago - luckily before cameras were everywhere, but remember hearing other 6th formers gossiping, joking and speculating about the horse the next day at school. I soon put them right and they were most abashed realising what they had done to me.

Sadly the fb'ers concerned wont ever feel that same guilt.

If a grill is manufactured after this I would be interested.
 
Honey08 said:
.......

I'm going to look into getting a back door grill made for our trailer. We usually have two big horses in our 510, unlikely that they could turn round but you never know.

.......
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Cheaper, simpler and just as effective as a grill, would be to fit a "Drop Bolt" each side and above the top of the ramp, and then fit a bar across. All livestock trailers have them. Google Ifor Williams Livestock trailers, and you'll see how they work. They're cheap, simple and very effective.

For a horse to escape from the back, whilst your moving, and assuming that it was loaded conventionally, then first it has to turn round. If you travel two horses together, with a partition, it would be near impossible, I'd have thought for a horse to turn around through 180 degrees.

Regarding the overheating aspect of travelling horses, I've yet to see a lorry with an open back, and OK so some will have windows, but many wont. Most trailers have white roofs, and white reflects heat, and I've travelled many horses, sealed in so to speak, in horrible heat, and providing that we keep moving, and we aren't stationary for hours, they never seem to get particularly hot. Dark coloured roofs will absorb heat, and can be torture!

Alec.
 
You're right Alec, it should be near on impossible for a big horse to turn round while there is a partition and/or another horse, but alsorts of things can happen if they panic... I'm also thinking of trying my mare with a single breast bar and no partition to see if she travels better, so there would be a much higher risk then. I will look into that back bar though, OH could easily fit dropbolts. I know what you mean, I've seen them on cattle trailers.

My two get so hot as my mare sweats a lot (stress) when travelling, and with the doors shut it would turn into a sauna. Its very rare that I shut the back. I guess that a lorry could have more height and therefore more air? Our Ifor has the vent on the top (which I always open). The roof is white (when tree slime washed off!).
 
In my lorry i leave jockey door open and my windows open so cool air and continuous fresh air passes through all the time .


if i had a trailer i would prefer a mesh grill like above.
 
so sorry for the loss of your horse :(

it is possible for a horse to turn around in a trailer with a partition fitted and another horse next to it
i was unlucky enough to have just loaded a 14"2 into the right side of an ifor williams 505 trailer , my friend put the ramp up causing the 15"1 in the left side to panic , snap the lead rope it was tied to and end up facing out the back , luckily my friend heard the clattering and was quick enough to unpin and drop the ramp back down as the horse was going to jump over the ramp

the 14"2 that i had hold of also managed to turn round although she was smaller , the bigger one kind of twisted and reared , then slipped and fell and ended up facing the op way when she got back to her feet , the partition was damaged and so was the side of the box
luckily the horses although frightened were ok apart from a few scratches

it is incredible how quickly things can go wrong and although these were quite small compared to a bigger horse it would still be possible for one to turn round
 
I have only just seen this. I cannot imagine your shock and distress on realising she was missing from the trailer. My heart goes out to you on your tragic loss. A glimmer of light for you must be the fact that no-one who has read your posts will ever travel with the top doors of a trailer open again - indirectly your pony may have saved other lives. Take care. XX
 
I would just like to say how sorry I feel for you having read of thius dreadfull accident. May I offer my full sympathies to you all. Unfortunately horses are unpredictable.
 
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