My ANNOYINGLY CALM non loader.

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Iron Tears

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Help, my 17hh TbxWb homebred clever & calculating gelding refuses to load, lorry or trailer, we have tried all the usual tricks. He loaded beautifuly last year, no mishaps of any description, this year however he flaty says no, no fuss no panic just stands at the bottom of the ramp calm as you like. We did manage to walk him up the ramp into the lorry, well that worked once! Can't use a dually halter on him because he will pull on it until he can barely breathe, you go anywhere near him with a stick then he gets nasty, the only thing we havent tried is a lunge line round his backside only because I think he'd turn himself over. I'm at my wits end I think my last option is to have his feed, water & haylage in the lorry/trailer & sit there with a good book until he gets bored! Anyone got any experience with a horse like this or other ideas??
 
I've never had one yet that you cannot get in with one or two lunge lines, he does sound incredibly stubbornn though! It is so infuriating, at least if they leap about you can move them in the right direction.
 
Have you tried a different lorry? Another horse on first? And I would try the lunge line but do get people all lined up before you do it. I would try 2 people crossing over 2 lunge lines to push your boy up. Mine was tricky to load and that did the trick. Sometimes I still need a line to get him in but only 1 line and never an issue loading at the show ground. Worth also checking there is no physical reason why your horse is not loading too before you press on though.
 
The just planting at the bottom and saying no? Yep, 'darling' Beatrice. She stands and her and Al both grit their teeth and slightly crook their heads at each other and begin a staring competition.

Usually continual tapping on her leg on the backs of her thighs works for irritating her into moving again, but wrapping the lunge lines is essentially the only thing that gets her moving when she is at her most stubborn. The whip thing works, but you have to be nifty as she does go for you for it. Once the lungelines are there she pretty much gives in in 5 minutes.
 
Oh that he is! His mother is a brilliant loader but he won't even follow her in! Even resorted to a blindfold, not that he was bothered! What's REALLY annoying is he'll stand all 4 feet on the ramp sometimes then not move either way! I can't hack to all the shows!
 
Will try lunge lines but don't want anyone to get hurt! Like I said he's very calculating & does mean it if he has a temper tantrum, he's tried squashing me & kicking my head off (missed by inches), you can see this article thinking & you've got to be constantly ahead of him.
 
My young ginger wouldn't load, although she wasn't calm!! I watched this video of Richard Maxwell loading this subborn horse (And I'm a total sceptic) and put it into practice, one week later, with LOTs and LOTs of practiceshe would load fine. I take her everywhere on my own and she still loads well now.

http://www.horsehero.com/36636

I emailed the man himself after with positive feedback and he emailed me back at 11pm at night with some more tips.
 
My sisters youngster was like this, we did a fair amount of groundwork making him move forwards from a stick on his side, and getting him really responsive. After a lesson one day the instructor who had been working with him came to help us. The idea is to start light (so they move off the lightest tap when doing the ground work) and increase the pressure until they step forward the reward them with stopping before starting again at the light tp end if the spectrum.

I won't lie, he was ignoring her and it took a lot of whip pressure to make him move forwards, but move he eventually did, she didn't let him turn away at any point, and if he tried to go sideways, well that was the side that got tapped until he was straight again. Then it was like a switch going on, he gave in and walked straight one, within 5 mins. Since then he has loaded great first time.

Is he young? One thing I would say, ESP as he's big, if he's having a growth spurt and is bum high, he might find it harder going up the ramp,can you park the box so the ramp gradient is shallow? :)
 
My friend had a mare that was like this loaded fine then one day said no!! Trailer or lorry. Dually didnt work lunge lines did make her rear. So we parked the lorry against the wall couple of people the other side one person held the lead rope and we stood behind with a couple of buckets of water and threw the water at her 2 minutes and she was up the next time she did hesitate slightly little bit of water again. 2 years later and she still just goes up the ramp. So it seemed to cure her. We did do this in the summer though not when it was freezing.;)
She didnt fear the lorry would stand on the ramp sniffy looking around ect and travelled fine.

I dont think this would work on somthing that feared the lorry or a young horse. This was on a well travelled mare that had just become stubborn.
 
Taping him with a stick really won't work, he Will kick us no messing, & tried that as a yearling, tried most things including having him sat on my shoulders 4 of us lifting him etc. Also tried blasting him with a hose right up his arse!! we have said about stripping him & lifting him in with the handler!! We may yet get that desperate!!
 
My mare does this sometimes. Ears pricked, happy as larry but will not lift a foot off the ground!
If you are worried about the lunge lines maybe just try using one? We just clip one to the side of the trailer and bring it behind her. Its easy enough to drop if she were to go up. Now when she sees it coming behind her she (normally) walks straight on without it touching her. I know it isnt much difference than 2 but its easier to drop and less for the more lively horse to get tangled up in. Good luck as I know how frustrating it is!
 
Thanks everybody, some ideas here. Think we'll get the lorry back in the school & try a lunge line then he can't ****** off. Sometimes I could merrily give him a lead poultice!!
 
He knows that if he threatens to kick you you stop waving the stick at him, win win.

I had one like this, was perfect until she just decided it wasn't really for her. She was agressive and would really go for you, reared up and leapt off ramp aiming for my mum, stamped on your feet, kicked out at you. We found that she wouldn't load if there was anyone for her to go for around the trailer.

Yourself and one helper, wagon parked up one side by wall, lunge line clipped on opposite side. You lead horse, helper holds lunge line. Helper walks behind and around and up ramp on opposite side of horse. Horse then goes for helper who is in trailer... Whoops horse just walked into the trailer.

The only way I could get her in was constant annoying tapping with stick, constant representing to ramp, then she was annoyed enough to actually bother picking up her feet.
 
Uh unfortunately if I wave a stick we do battle, my temper is almost as bad as his!! If you all want a giggle, I smacked twitty features with the lead rope, behind me, the git kicked forwards & caught me with his fetlock on the backside
 
A lunge rein behind the horse will always work if done properly. Just use one, clip one end to the trailer and have someone holding the other end who won't let go, no matter what.....keep the pressure up so that the horse has to go forwards. Sounds exactly what would work for your horse, much better and much more effective than anything else. Do not hit the horse or have anyone helping who is anything other than calm....
 
My mare went through the whole I don't want to load thing and I pretty much tried all of the above, I would look at the fitting of the dually head collar you have as it really makes a difference when fitted right, just to see if anything changes

You can get fitting advice from Monty Roberts web site or search you tube
 
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We bought a horse that until it came to bringing him home we didn't know loaded. We have spent the last 18 months working with him, trying everything, then he booted and I mean booted my daughter. Got an expert in, monty Roberts trained and I am a big fan of Jason Webb so tried all of this. I gave them £110 pounds and now the horse loads himself. Get an expert in who has a good reputation and save iyourself a lot of heartache. forget lunge lines etc u are not asking ur horse to do the impossible BUT u might be asking the wrong way. Good luck.
 
morrismob said:
We bought a horse that until it came to bringing him home we didn't know loaded. We have spent the last 18 months working with him, trying everything, then he booted and I mean booted my daughter. Got an expert in, monty Roberts trained and I am a big fan of Jason Webb so tried all of this. I gave them £110 pounds and now the horse loads himself. Get an expert in who has a good reputation and save iyourself a lot of heartache. forget lunge lines etc u are not asking ur horse to do the impossible BUT u might be asking the wrong way. Good luck.
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Can't believe you tried and failed for 18 months, 10 mins with the right person holding a lunge rein would have solved your problem. The horse just has to realise that the only way to go is forward, you don't need an expert just a bit of commonsense.
 
Ah sorry but we tried it all don't judge !! 18 months might sound like a long time and believe me it felt it but lunge lines did nothing and we tried everything got a brilliant guy in and we haven't looked back !!
 
morrismob said:
Ah sorry but we tried it all don't judge !! 18 months might sound like a long time and believe me it felt it but lunge lines did nothing and we tried everything got a brilliant guy in and we haven't looked back !!
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So if you tried everything, what did the "brilliant guy" do that was so different ?
 
bonny said:
Can't believe you tried and failed for 18 months, 10 mins with the right person holding a lunge rein would have solved your problem. The horse just has to realise that the only way to go is forward, you don't need an expert just a bit of commonsense.
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I'm personally a little more cautious when advocating this method as I've had a horse go up and over backwards onto concrete, doing serious wither damage, because there was nowhere to go other than in the trailer because of the lunge line.

Forwards isn't the only way unfortunately.
 
Exactly what ours did !! We could load our chap in 20 mins if we did it his way but we compete more than 1 horse so needed to rethink. The chap that helped us was great. The horse reacted to that. Now I have a calm happy to load horse. Wish I had done it sooner.
 
Can't quote so "Bonny" he gave the horse confidence to load without stress and he gave my daughter the confidence to load her horse without stress There really wasn't any 'magical ' trick just he put everything back in place. Horse was happy to follow direction from his owner. But the owner had to know how to trust him too. Simples.
 
morrismob said:
Can't quote so "Bonny" he gave the horse confidence to load without stress and he gave my daughter the confidence to load her horse without stress There really wasn't any 'magical ' trick just he put everything back in place. Horse was happy to follow direction from his owner. But the owner had to know how to trust him too. Simples.
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Doesn't make alot of sense to me but if you were happy to take 18 months and spend money on an expert and it worked then heyho !
 
That's ok Bonny you keep going with your lunge lines and I really hope u don't meet my horse. I am happy with where we are. One happy to load horse and one happy daughter and no lunge line in sight. Now just need the weather to play fair and we are off and enjoying it all :)
 
Have you tried making the ramp level (finding somwhere to do this is the issue though) so he doesn't have to walk up it just on to it?! I've met a couple that prefer this until they get used to it!
 
I have found in the past that a really stubborn loader will just lean on lunge lines however when a long length of narrow baler twine which they can feel on a steady tension is used it helps make that decision to move forward come a bit quicker.. In this particular case it only had to be used a couple of times and since the horse has never been a problem, I suppose it is a bit like the action of a pressure halter except more preferable IMHO as the tension is applied around the backside rather than the poll/head!
 
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