Horse sweating profusely when travelling

Jinete12

Jinete12

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Does anyone else's horse do this? My TB travels brilliantly, you wouldn't even know he was in there, but when we get to the other end he's a dripping mess. Today we just boxed 20mins down the road to go for a hack and he was totally drenched. I travelled him without a rug and he's unclipped but has quite a fine coat. He's an ex racer and gets quite excited as soon as you get him out of the box, but loads and travels perfectly.

I've got visions of taking him to shows in the summer and unloading him looking like a total ragamuffin! Is there anything I can do? Do you think it's stress or just excitement?
 
I have exactly the same problem so will be interested in the replies to this.

Mine travelled happily for years until she was hunted, and now I can't take her anywhere without her totally sweating up so I think it's excitement in my case. Everytime she sees the trailer she thinks she's going to a meet and is very disappointed when she is dragged out the other end for xc or sj! Because she never used to do it I'm pretty sure it's not my driving nor is she stressed about travelling.
 
My horse never used to do it either. When I collected him, he travelled for 2 and a half hours in quite hot weather and strolled out the other end without a hair out of place. I've only travelled him twice since then, but both times he's been completely soaked. Weird because he doesn't mind travelling at all and pops in the box without a second thought, munches on his haynet all the way and doesn't put a foot out of place on the journey. Will be interesting to hear what people think...
 
I think it's an ex-racer thing. I got mine in April and when she arrived from the racing yard after a two and a half hour journey she was fine - but she had travelled with another horse. When I took her to a dressage a week later, we got there - like you said, didn't even know she was in there and when we got her out she was shaking and sweating - completely terrified. I had to borrow the water from the yard to sponge her down she was such a mess. However I think it's because she was terrified that she was going racing and had probably never travelled anywhere on her own. She has got better and better and now she knows that nothing bad is going to happen at the other end she is fine. I think it could be a racing thing.
 
Sweating up is usually a sign that there is not enough air flow going through the horse lorry.

only a small percentage of horses actually get stressed and sweat because of it
 
Just out of curiosity, how much water do you give your horse before travelling, and how long of a gap between drinking and travelling is there?

Horses can't pee when they're travelling, so if they've got a full bladder they can get antsy...

Just a thought.
 
Mine does it, hes a warmblood not an x-racer. He didnt used to and hasnt had an exiting experience. Hes travelled with a chaser clip and no rug. He was dripping last weekend. Plenty of airflow in the trailer so am interested in seeing these replies.

To Lobelia mine is stabled before travelling with water if wanted and on the way home hes offered water but rarely drinks any :). He also doesnt pee when he unloads or at all at the show, ever!
 
Could you give her more room when travelling - particularly for the back legs (in some trailers you can take out the back bit of the partition, or if in a Horsebox just give here an extra foot or so.)

It could be that as she gets older she finds balancing harder and is having to work hard to maintain her balance.

It really is worth a go because if that is the problem it works like magic.
 
Same as Snowysadude regarding water. Not sure about the airflow thing; he travelled with his friend today who is a very hairy, thick-coated criollo and he wasn't sweaty at all so I think the airflow is fine in the trailer.

Forgot to mention a vital bit of info - my boy doesn't sweat at all on the way home! I reckon he's just excited, but wish he wouldn't end up looking such a mess! It also worried me that he's dehydrated before we get to wherever we're going :/
 
I would say its excitement that's to blame! He's made the connection between the journey and "party time" its just excitement that's causing it. Do you travel him tacked up too?

You may find that after a few slightly more "boring" outings, such as to dressage and showing he stops sweating up like that. Also travelling them untacked can help too, but of course it's not always feasible to tack them up when you get there depending on what you're going to be doing...

Our mare used to do this, then she damaged her tendon, so all her outings stopped very suddenly as a result :( She sweated up with excitement the first time we took her to the vets, funnily enough she's not done it since, although I did wonder if she might the first trip I took her on after bringing her back from Stud ;)... No doubt it may well start again depending on how active her social life becomes again... She is a very chilled out (normally) New Forest Pony, so not exactly what you might expect from her really. I must admit we had been racing her and taking her hunting (so travelling tacked up) and that's what started all this off with her...
 
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My TB is always fine, its my Dales pony that is sweating after travelling, but he always has done from young, he is 12years old now so I do not think he will change :)
 
Lobelia_Overhill said:
Just out of curiosity, how much water do you give your horse before travelling, and how long of a gap between drinking and travelling is there?

Horses can't pee when they're travelling, so if they've got a full bladder they can get antsy...

Just a thought.
Click to expand...

Are you sure they can't? The SecA mare we had ALWAYS peed, often before we moved but if not she'd pee en route. The NF gelding we have peed today on a longish journey (over an hour), and has done once before (also a longish journey). OH blamed my driving the first time (he often doesn't poo in transit either), but OH was driving today
 
canteron said:
Could you give her more room when travelling - particularly for the back legs (in some trailers you can take out the back bit of the partition, or if in a Horsebox just give here an extra foot or so.)

It could be that as she gets older she finds balancing harder and is having to work hard to maintain her balance.

It really is worth a go because if that is the problem it works like magic.
Click to expand...

I agree with this! My big boy used to travel in a trailer with the back part of the partition tied back as following his suspensory injury he found it hard to keep his balance. I recently got a lorry and when I took him to a show 10 minutes away he arrived in a sweaty mess. As he was not able to adjust his balance in the same way I would say that this is what caused his sweating as he found it too hard work.

Fortunately he has retired from competing and so I don't need to travel him often.
 
MY TB Ex racer does exactly the same but even if I hack him to a show or group lesson as soon as he gets there he switches into a twot dancing around the place and gets mega sweaty in 2 mins. I am working on it tho as he just seems to get over excited at seeing new horses. Not sure about the peeing when travelling thing tho as my old mare used to ALWAYS do a wee in the box on the way to a show ??
 
Snowysadude said:
To Lobelia mine is stabled before travelling with water if wanted and on the way home hes offered water but rarely drinks any :). He also doesnt pee when he unloads or at all at the show, ever!
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The competition horses at the yard I'm on aren't given any water for at least an hour before they're loaded to go to a show, and the same when they're due to come home - might not be to everyone's liking but the horses all travel fine, load easily and don't seem to be in any distress before, during or after. AFAIK they've never had a problem with horses sweating up in the transport ... which is why I asked about the watering situation :)

Dubsie said:
Are you sure they can't? The SecA mare we had ALWAYS peed, often before we moved but if not she'd pee en route. The NF gelding we have peed today on a longish journey (over an hour), and has done once before (also a longish journey). OH blamed my driving the first time (he often doesn't poo in transit either), but OH was driving today
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Yeah, but a Sec A or NF are a bit smaller than a 16hh+ showjumper ;)
 
its just excitement- ours all do the same. they sprint up the ramp and practically tie themselves up!

all we do is keep all the windows open, dont rug and arrive in plenty of time to sponge off and rug up to dry.
 
When i collected mine he travelled fine, when i finally got a new box (he was too big for my 3.5 so got a 7.5) he travelled really badly. Was a big dripping mess, wouldnt load and would thump about when he did even before the box moved. It wasnt the way it was driven as he was fine when collected and it was the same driver.
When i collected him i used my friends box and i was looking at it and reaslies that i needed to change the partitions. So i took off the solid head boards in mine and i havnt had a problem since. I was going to get grills fitted to them but as i normally only travel him im not to fussed. I also put his haynet in the next gap rather than the one he is in, he finds it easier and gives him more room rather than being bunched up in that space.
 
Hi
My 16.2 TB used to do this too - when we first got him he'd only ever travelled in a lorry, not an ex-racer but bred to race and not up to standard. On the way home - 2 and a half hour journey he didn't sweat a while, but after that he used to be dripping, even after 10 minutes. It took a while - about 2 or 3 months going out in the trailer at least 3 times a week to different places, but he did stop sweating. He was perfectly still, didn't move, just got v. sweaty, and only on the way out, never on the way home. I think it suddenly clicked with him that it wasn't that exciting and since then he's been fine.
Your horse might just need to get used to travelling - everyone drives differently! - hopefully it will get better, you might have to be patient though!
Good luck!
 
Pidgeon said:
They can and do wee when travelling as my 17hh ISH has done on a couple of occassions.
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ditto with my 16 hander - its lovely looking in your mirror and seeing the trail of wee gushing out by the rear of the ramp as your driving down the motorway - infact im sure my boy holds it in specially until he gets on the box !!
 
My horse is a new forest - very thick build but he doesn't have a thick coat really. He was born on the forest and brought as a 6 month old, then didn't travel for 5 years. I brought him home and it was the first time in the trailer since a foal - loaded perfectly, walked on the ramp perfectly, just dripping in sweat! Took him to a show at the weekend, travel 15mins and he was sweaty like hell - after I'd spent all morning grooming him perfectly! I'm hoping its just nerves of something new and he will get used to it! He loads perfectly, will walk on, reverse off, walk back up, stands quietly with the front bar down, etc. Just hope he gets used to it - otherwise we'll be going to the show early and grooming there haha x
 
My cob sweat profusly too. The first time we went hunting I had tacked him up, as we were travelling I notice on the onboard camera that his saddle had slipped right the way round just revealing his girth strap! We had to stop to take it off. When we finally arrived he looked like he had been swimming he was so sweaty.

Whenever we have to travel now he still sweats like mad I'm sure it's excitement
 
Lobelia_Overhill said:
Just out of curiosity, how much water do you give your horse before travelling, and how long of a gap between drinking and travelling is there?

Horses can't pee when they're travelling, so if they've got a full bladder they can get antsy...

Just a thought.
Click to expand...

Wish someone would tell my horse that as he is more than happy to pee in the truck
 
My section d does this. We don't travel often and never have done so probably due to stress, but even after a 10 minute journey to a new yard the sweat was literally running down his legs. I don't have my own transport and have only used a trailer - I wonder if he would be better in a lorry but don't have access to one.
 
Jinete12 said:
Does anyone else's horse do this? My TB travels brilliantly, you wouldn't even know he was in there, but when we get to the other end he's a dripping mess. Today we just boxed 20mins down the road to go for a hack and he was totally drenched. I travelled him without a rug and he's unclipped but has quite a fine coat. He's an ex racer and gets quite excited as soon as you get him out of the box, but loads and travels perfectly.

I've got visions of taking him to shows in the summer and unloading him looking like a total ragamuffin! Is there anything I can do? Do you think it's stress or just excitement?
Click to expand...

Reggie does this. The sweatiest he will be at any point is after he's off the lorry- this includes going XC at midday on the hottest day of the year. He was still less sweaty than when he'd arrived! The other ex-racer isn't like that at all, needs stuffing up the ramp with a bucket of food to tempt her and she stands and sulks!

He's not stressy, in that he sees the lorry and pretty much loads himself. He stands with his ears pricked on it, and during the day will stay on the lorry as he's more chilled in there... He doesn't do it in company- if he's with a chum, he's bone dry. When he's at the show, he likes to have a look round but he's not in his stress head mode- he's just nosey.

All we've done is stop travelling him in rugs, and make sure we get there with loads of time so he has a bath when he gets off the lorry rather than the night/ morning before. Mum's a careful driver, so that's no issue. The only other thing is when we're still he rocks the lorry and makes a fuss. We ignore him now, only he is eventually 'rewarded' because we do move off. At which point he settles and stands like a rock... Odd horse.
 
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