How does your horse travel in a trailer??

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SueAllen

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My Ned gets on and off his double trailer without a murmur. So I was gobsmacked today to ride in there with him and see what a struggle it is for him. Even round a gentle bend or very slowly round a corner he throws the top of his body against the side of the trailer or the centre partition and his feet go out at the opposite angle. Slowing, he sits hard back against the back of the trailer (I know that he must do that as his tail is always such a mess when we get anywhere) My hubby was driving and wasn't particularly fast and certainly was smooth. As it was wet today his feet were slipping on the fixed rubber matting. It looked awfully stressful but it doesn't seem to bother him. Is that normal?
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I think you'll be surprised to find a lot of horses will travel like that - their centre of gravity is obviously a lot higher. One of mine travels in a trailer with all four legs at each point of the trailer and seems to sway whereas the other travels similarly to how you have mentioned - again this will differ in a box because they are herringbone. The main thing is that your driver is smooth - using gears as much as possible rather than sudden breaking which you see far too commonly. If your cuddy isn't sweating, stressing or seeming upset then I would deem that this is just how he travels and is happy with it. Only word of caution is you'd be in bother if you were caught traveling in a trailer!
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My gelding couldn't travel at all in the trailer we had, ended up buying a lorry which he travels in really well, if you can get him on the bl**dy thing!!! Once he's on he's fine. My mare loads and travels well in a trailer or lorry
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we have removed the partition from our trailer and one of ours will travel diagonally with her hind legs spread wide and the other will stand in the middle of the trailer with her legs wide. they travel so so much better without the partition
 
Mine is the same. Both times I've had to travel in the trailer (after having to stop after the horses were fighting) it was horrible how much he was all over the place. My mum is a really careful driver, but Chex was still throwing himself againt the partitiion and scraping his feet up the side of the trailer. Put me off travelling him that often!
 
Thanks. Loz1 - I really have had to draw just that conclusion. It is obviously his way of doing it as he is happy to get on etc. I didn't realise I would get into bother for it but then I don't make a habit of it - specially as I am almost always the one driving!
 
I have a huge trailer which has 2 looseboxes within it, one at the front and one at the rear. I travel my horses loose unless I am carrying 4 or 5 of them and then they have to be tied.

When they travel loose, every single one will park their butts on the front of the trailer, the end nearest my truck. They don't appear to move much although sometimes I do see them popping their noses through the side slats.

My daughter and husband have been in the back of the trailer when we went round the fields picking up bales of hay which missed the hay wagon, and they said that it was really easy to balance in there.
 
I think horses do have to work harder in a trailer, but if they get use to it its fine. My friend travels her two 17hh stallions in a trailer with no probs at all, they go all over the country as happy as larry!!
One of my 4 year olds who has always traveled well in a lorry, was so stiff after coming off his first trailer ride that I called the vet out to him as I thought he had seriously injured him self, blood tests went on to prove that he had an abnormally high level of lactic acid in his system probably caused by over tensing his back muscles on the journey. He fully recovered obviously and has travelled 100% in the lorry again!!
 
Our TB ex racer just walks in and out - even after I crashed the trailer into a ditch with him inside it. Mind you he is so laid back he falls asleep when my daughter tacks him up.

Our Welsh pony can be a pain to get in - she sometimes plants her feet and wont move. But show her a lunge line and she walks straight in and other times she walks straight in. We take her somewhere almost every week (competing or lessons) and she always seems calm and unbothered when we get there.
 
Trailer of Lorry it makes no difference to my lad, he'll travel in either. You mention the state of your horse's tail after a journey, that's what tail guards are there to prevent.

From your post it appears that you were more stressed & worried than your horse. If the travelling in the trailer caused him any stress or he was unhappy with it he more than likely wouldn't walk into the trailer to begin with. There doesn't seem to be a problem.
 
My boy loads equally as well in either a trailer or a lorry, however I discovered that he much prefers to have the top door open on the trailer so he can poke his nose out. It is quite funny pulling up at the Severn bridge tolls and seeing the look on the face of the toll attendant!!! I have always put a strong fly face mask on him for this to stop bugs and stuff getting on his face and in his eyes. He loves it and travells like a dream.
 
Ours all travel in a trailer or lorry fine makes no difference to them!

Only slight hiccup is trying to unload Holly off the lorry, she will wait for me to walk to the bottom of the ramp and then almost sits at the top and leaps from the top to the ground about 5ft from the bottom of the ramp.... can't just walk down it normally - strange pony!
 
D started doing this after panicking in the trailer one journey, it was really stressfull travelling him in the trailer with a partition. He got so upset that we ended up getting a lorry. He is far happier when going sideways.
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mine doesnt do trailers! Loads into it fine but leans on the partition when turning left and gets himself into such a state, we found this out the first time we travelled him in a trailer, he came out the other end as a nervous sweat-bag. Took us 4 months to get him travelling properly in a horsebox as he refused to load - he now once again loads himself into thank god.
 
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