Horse Box purchase following trailer accident - Peper Harow?

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jessie7

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My horse had a nasty accident on the trailer over Christmas. I have a Bockmann (2022) and the horse freaked out managed to get up on the carbon fibre tack thing and (I think) somehow scrambled over the top of the partition and ended up on the floor.
It could have been a freak one-off but I’m too scared to put him in a trailer again.
He (was) an excellent loaded but had never taken him anywhere before (he’s 4). My event horse travels beautifully in the trailer but he’s a very good traveller anyway.

I’m therefore looking at the option of buying a horsebox. I don’t have a massive budget (£25k) and need it to take 2 biggish horses.
I have my HGV but don’t want anything massive as don’t need the living.

What sort of layout would people recommend?
I’ve seen the Peper Harow forward facing, in budget. The breast bar makes me nervous, although Peper Harow assure me it wouldn’t be a problem.

I don’t want a 3.5tonne as the payload isn’t big enough. And lots of them look quite claustrophobic.

Was wondering if anyone has any advice or experience with bad travellers in Peper Harow Horseboxes or what setup works best!

I’m 99.9% of the time on my own so need to have something where I can leave the horse on at shows etc and it won’t get itself in to trouble 😬
 
I don't have any experience of that particular horsebox company/brand. But I highly recommend a travel safe harness to travel anything that your worried about doing something silly while travelling. My youngster decided to try and climb on the tack locker and over the partition and got stuck. Luckily he was small and not a panicker and we managed to lift him off the partition with out to much upset. Since he's always travelled in a harness.

www.equitravelsafe.co.uk

Equi Travel Safe- For Safer Equine Travel

Equi Travel Safe- Helping prevent horses from rearing or jumping onto the breast bar or lockers in horse boxes and trailers.
www.equitravelsafe.co.uk www.equitravelsafe.co.uk
 
My stallion once got his two front hooves in the v part of an anti weave grill but I shoved him back in, very agile fella
 
jessie7 said:
My horse had a nasty accident on the trailer over Christmas. I have a Bockmann (2022) and the horse freaked out managed to get up on the carbon fibre tack thing and (I think) somehow scrambled over the top of the partition and ended up on the floor.
It could have been a freak one-off but I’m too scared to put him in a trailer again.
He (was) an excellent loaded but had never taken him anywhere before (he’s 4). My event horse travels beautifully in the trailer but he’s a very good traveller anyway.

I’m therefore looking at the option of buying a horsebox. I don’t have a massive budget (£25k) and need it to take 2 biggish horses.
I have my HGV but don’t want anything massive as don’t need the living.

What sort of layout would people recommend?
I’ve seen the Peper Harow forward facing, in budget. The breast bar makes me nervous, although Peper Harow assure me it wouldn’t be a problem.

I don’t want a 3.5tonne as the payload isn’t big enough. And lots of them look quite claustrophobic.

Was wondering if anyone has any advice or experience with bad travellers in Peper Harow Horseboxes or what setup works best!

I’m 99.9% of the time on my own so need to have something where I can leave the horse on at shows etc and it won’t get itself in to trouble 😬
Click to expand...
If you’ve any breast bars at all, these need to be collapsible, from outside the vehicle.
I think you’d be a lot safer and a lot more confident with ‘stallion stalls’, particularly if on your own and having to leave him at events, to sign in, etc.
Fully agree that 3.5s are extremely claustrophobic, and already been too many fatalities with horses trying to escape and getting stuck in them. Hampshire Fire & Rescue have done a lot of work educating other fire services on rescuing horses from this sort of situation, training days etc, and been scathing about most of the ‘conversions’ - avoid!
Don’t know anything about the safe travel harness, but might not be straightforward hitching that chest tie in all vehicles?
 
Pepper Harrow were on my short list when l was first looking to update my box some years ago, someone mentioned them along with East Riding horse boxes and another firm way down south. I have followed both companies over the years and they seem ok. My mechanic says a decent box needs to be used regularly and. 7,5 tons is better than a 3.5 in terms of reliability and price. Internal tack lockers aren’t generally regarded as very safe. The Equi - guard was recommended by Kevin Parker in his smaller boxes. I considered using one when l had a horse who wouldn’t travel alone but as he was fine with company we always took a friend who was happy travelling …..and eating hay all day.
 
What about a 5/6T herringbone or side partition as in a 7.5T? No breast bar then to try to climb over. We had the best 5T herringbone lorry years ago - small living for tack, lots of payload, horses very happy in it.
 
I think you are right, maybe a smaller herringbone setup.
The 7.5t ones all seem to come with more human living than horse space and I don’t need living, just somewhere to bung my tack.
If I end up having to get a big one I will just deal with it. Would rather that and get him used to travelling quietly (hopefully) and then have the option to downgrade to something smaller in the future.

As for the tack lockers in the horse area, I definitely don’t want anything he can climb on! I also think they take up quite a lot of space (that I need).

I’ve had so many young (and tricky) horses but never had one freak out travelling. Normally as soon as you start moving they relax but this one did the opposite.
 
I sold my Peper Harrow box 18 months ago, really wish I hadn’t, they are brilliantly made strong boxes. Anything I suspected that might be a problem traveller i would definitely get an Equi Travel safe system fitted, they are currently in the last stages of one designed for trailers.
 
It took a while but I found a 7.5t that takes 3 herringbone without living, just a tack area in the main box. It's compact and feels robust and the horses travel between the axels.

If you search hunt/polo /dealer boxes you find some.
 
terrierliz said:
I sold my Peper Harrow box 18 months ago, really wish I hadn’t, they are brilliantly made strong boxes. Anything I suspected that might be a problem traveller i would definitely get an Equi Travel safe system fitted, they are currently in the last stages of one designed for trailers.
Click to expand...
Ooohh was yours a trophy Twin front facing? I love the look of them but it’s the chest bar bit that concerns me. It may not be an issue as there’s a big difference between a trailer and the space in a truck.
Thank you, I’ve been reading about the equi travel system and something I will definitely invest in!
 
jessie7 said:
Ooohh was yours a trophy Twin front facing? I love the look of them but it’s the chest bar bit that concerns me. It may not be an issue as there’s a big difference between a trailer and the space in a truck.
Thank you, I’ve been reading about the equi travel system and something I will definitely invest in!
Click to expand...
Yes it was, the high partition is good, I never had a bad traveller in it
 
My horse did exactly the same thing in my new equitrek, on the tack locker and over the breast bar, was horrific but luckily it happened in the vets car park so he was out in seconds and cleaned up and cared for (thank god!)
I haven’t put him in a trailer since incase it happens again.
I now have a 7.5t, no tack lockers, high partitions.
He travel herringbone and that works for us.
I was booked in to see a lorry with PH, I found one closer to home that I’d known for years so was happy to buy privately.
PH are a very reputable company, I bought my first trailer from them over 35yrs ago!!!
 
I’d agree with others that herringbone or stallion partition setups sound like your best bet. Wouldn’t personally risk a breast bar with something known to try & climb over things.
 
I've got a Peper Harow trophy twin, which I've just taken back to them to sell for me as I'm not using it. It's a 6.5t, so has masses of payload for 2 horses and has been incredibly reliable. I particularly wanted full height partitions, which these models have. The breast bar is collapsible from the outside, but I think I would worry if I had a horse known to go over. The tack locker comes into the area in front of the breast bar on the driver's side, which is of course where you'd put a horse travelling on its own, or the bigger horse in a pair.

Having said all that, I've never had a problem in about 6 years of travelling lots of different horses.
 
My horse also went over breast bar in a trailer. I then went on to have 2 7.5t trucks herringbone with no tack lockers in horse area.
I wanted to downsize and did lots of research.
18 months ago I had a Peper Harrow TT built on a 7.2. Mine all travel beautifully in it. The breast bar is much higher than a trailer and much deeper. I have never had any concern. One is 17hh and t'other over 16hh.
The payload is phenomenal compared to the 7.5 and it's so much more compact. I couldn't be happier.
I have discovered there is a PH "club" and so many owners are on their 2nd or 3rd PH so there are some brilliant lorries 2nd hand with Adam.
 
Nicnac said:
My horse also went over breast bar in a trailer. I then went on to have 2 7.5t trucks herringbone with no tack lockers in horse area.
I wanted to downsize and did lots of research.
18 months ago I had a Peper Harrow TT built on a 7.2. Mine all travel beautifully in it. The breast bar is much higher than a trailer and much deeper. I have never had any concern. One is 17hh and t'other over 16hh.
The payload is phenomenal compared to the 7.5 and it's so much more compact. I couldn't be happier.
I have discovered there is a PH "club" and so many owners are on their 2nd or 3rd PH so there are some brilliant lorries 2nd hand with Adam.
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for your reply. That’s really good to know x
 
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