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[SEL]

I posted last week about my box getting hot and it came back to haunt me yesterday. Arena hire about 15 min drive from home, cloudy day so box nice and cool.

Got there ok, did some lovely work, then flatly refused to get back on the lorry. All on my own and wasn't expecting quite such a solid NO so had nothing helpful with me. I think he'd have happily climbed in the cab when I was searching for emergency apples - but he's a bit big for the passenger seat

Finally he got hungry and his haynet was in the back but it took nearly an hour

I can get some haylage and sticky molasses mix for tempting him and fans are coming, but any thoughts on how to get him back on track? Everything this month is local thankfully. I had thought a spin from yard and straight home again might be in order if I can find a cool day

 

[Cowpony]

Feed him on the lorry for a few days

 

[SEL]

Feed him on the lorry for a few days

Got to get him on it first!

Woke up early so had a bit of a play at home. Planting with forefeet on the ramp (plus side = good stretch for him) so rewarded with apple bits for the forefeet and then we waited. I could see he was getting bored and he knew it was turnout and electric fence move time so took 20 mins, he climbed up, was told he was amazing, more apple and turned out.

Will repeat.

Being a cob I think I need to work with his stomach. So will buy a dangling likit later and he can have that on the lorry.

Does anyone think moving the partition over a bit for more space would help the travelling?

 

[Ali27]

I use the Richard Maxwell pressure halter! Absolutely love it and it was the only thing that worked with my cob x mare when we got her as a 6 year old. She would plant or run off using headcollar. She was a complete nightmare but started using the pressure halter after someone helped us load her with it. She now self loads in it. Use it with my 3 year old who self loads too. I’ve used it to help people load their horse at events too and literally within 10 mins, I can load any horse with it and it’s never failed!

 

[holeymoley]

Probably a really unhelpful answer here. I have a welsh pony x cob. Had him since he was 3, now 21. These wee characters are very smart. If you go to lessons/arena hire etc etc each time they associate the box with working. I managed to get round it when he was younger by having a friend go with him, but it was a hit and a miss on him going on if he was on his own. Through various life reasons, we gave up the shows and now just box up to hack and find new places. We have the odd arena hire to lighten things up too. He will always load now as he associates it with ‘fun’ things.


Anyway probably not any good to your situation unfortunately! When he wasn’t going in the trailer, I swapped things around for him and made him load from the front ramp, stop inside and walk out. That helped too. Obviously wouldn’t travel him like that but it was the only way to get from planting at the back to actually being on it as he seen it differently.

Also I fed him a stud muffin once he gets on. It’s the only time I feed him them and he absolutely loves them. Feed isn’t maybe the right answer but it goes a long way to a cob/pony’s heart!

 

[Barlow]

I use the Richard Maxwell pressure halter! Absolutely love it and it was the only thing that worked with my cob x mare when we got her as a 6 year old. She would plant or run off using headcollar. She was a complete nightmare but started using the pressure halter after someone helped us load her with it. She now self loads in it. Use it with my 3 year old who self loads too. I’ve used it to help people load their horse at events too and literally within 10 mins, I can load any horse with it and it’s never failed!

Completely second this! I actually had Richard out to help me with my big youngster who had found out that his weight and size and speed could be used against me. He would load ok ish at home but was dreadful to load coming home, and isn’t the most confident traveller at the best of times. I wanted to get to the point where I could take him out on my own. Michael Peace had previously come out and hadn’t really been able to give me the tools we needed.
After Richard came out he went to an event but this time on my friend’s lorry - herringbone not rear facing. Coming home he was tired and couldn’t work out that he had to turn his body to stand on the box so shot off backwards down the ramp a few times because he was worried. Every time I asked him to come back and load again he did so without hesitation or question, and once he worked out where he had to stand he stood like a lamb.
We still have a lot of practising to do to build up our respective confidence, and my heart sank when he went backwards down the ramp as I really thought he was refusing to load, but I can’t tell you how it soared when he instantly took himself back up the ramp the minute I asked.

 

[SEL]

I use the Richard Maxwell pressure halter! Absolutely love it and it was the only thing that worked with my cob x mare when we got her as a 6 year old. She would plant or run off using headcollar. She was a complete nightmare but started using the pressure halter after someone helped us load her with it. She now self loads in it. Use it with my 3 year old who self loads too. I’ve used it to help people load their horse at events too and literally within 10 mins, I can load any horse with it and it’s never failed!

I'll look it up. I've got a dually somewhere although I think it'll be too big for him. I'd quite like something on the van just in case because I had started to plan if I could hack home yesterday after 45 minutes of him saying no!!

Probably a really unhelpful answer here. I have a welsh pony x cob. Had him since he was 3, now 21. These wee characters are very smart. If you go to lessons/arena hire etc etc each time they associate the box with working. I managed to get round it when he was younger by having a friend go with him, but it was a hit and a miss on him going on if he was on his own. Through various life reasons, we gave up the shows and now just box up to hack and find new places. We have the odd arena hire to lighten things up too. He will always load now as he associates it with ‘fun’ things.


Anyway probably not any good to your situation unfortunately! When he wasn’t going in the trailer, I swapped things around for him and made him load from the front ramp, stop inside and walk out. That helped too. Obviously wouldn’t travel him like that but it was the only way to get from planting at the back to actually being on it as he seen it differently.

Also I fed him a stud muffin once he gets on. It’s the only time I feed him them and he absolutely loves them. Feed isn’t maybe the right answer but it goes a long way to a cob/pony’s heart!

Actually I think you are spot on and I am wondering if I can get him out to the gallops next week. We were supposed to be doing an escorted ride but they've had to postpone because of road closures so I have a day free. He's not quite at the stage where he is confident hacking on his own in strange places and no one is ever around during the week with their own transport - but I do need to think of something that he'll find fun too.

I'm forever being asked if he's got Welsh in him and he can be very like every welshie I've ever known so needing entertainment is a necessity for a happy cob!!

 

[Ali27]

I tried a dually first but didn’t have any effect at all! She was awful to load the one day and yard owner came out to help, she put a chifney on her and that didn’t work! Then another livery handed over her pressure halter and within 5 mins she loaded and then never had an issue ever again!