My horse doesn't like travel boots: Options please?

[Tobiano]

Hi

My saintly boy has recently taken a dislike to his Mark Todd travel boots (padded shaped with velcro). I think I may have started it off by doing them up too loosely (terrified of causing gangrene!!) so they slipped.

So the question is, any thoughts on what I can do instead please? he travels short journeys (10 mins) with no boots and is an excellent traveller, so wondering if no boots is an option? If so should I put on overreach boots in case he treads on his own heels?

TBH I don't really want to faff about with bandages (and its a good 35 years since I last put on a leg bandage!) so are there any other options you can suggest please?

Thank you….

 

[Sprig]

No boots is definitely an option. That is what I do. If you prefer to have something on him then try brushing boots and over reach boots.

 

[AmyMay]

How about good, old fashioned, bandages?

 

[Red-1]

At home Jay wears travel boots all round as he is....... Jay....... and he is my boy.

HOWEVER.... at work we travel horses every day long or short distance, through cities and towns as well as on the motorway, and we stopped booting up a few years ago now. I was dead set against it, and in fact was a rebel and kept booting up...... BUT........ I would actually say that we now have LESS injuries without boots than with.

Maybe the horses know where their legs are better? I don't know, but the proof is in the pudding, and we can cram 6 horses in together, and they seem better without. At work even I now travel without.

But, Jay still wears them, as he is my boy at home!

 

[STRIKER]

Agree amymay with gamgee underneath then they wont become too tight

 

[Honey08]

Mine didn't like the Mark Todd ones, yet travels fine in the Woof ones. The MT ones slipped more.

Otherwise bandages or nothing with over reach boots all round.

 

[Mince Pie]

Either bandages and gamgee, brushing and over reach boots or travel without. Most racehorses travel with no boots so I don't see it being an issue.

 

[STRIKER]

Polypad wraps.

Our racehorses travel with bandages and a pad underneath, their feet are taped with duct tape to stop shoes being stood on and coming off in the box.

 

[irishdraft]

I dont use any type of boots for travelling my horses, long or short distances

 

[Tiddlypom]

Bandages all the way. I can put a set on, and later whip them off, in about the same time as it takes to faff around with travel boots. I add knee boots and over reach boots if I feel the horse needs them.

I've not met a horse yet that doesn't prefer bandages to boots.

 

[STRIKER]

When i was young 40 years ago we used to travel full horse boxes to shows, sometime 400kms and they were never bamdaged, also i think it keeps the legs cool that way.

 

[Tobiano]

wow thanks for all the replies! Really helpful. (though I still have to make my mind up!). Think I may try without to start with, at least on shorter journeys and when he is on his own. TBH with my bandaging skills that will probably be far safer.

 

[9tails]

Lots of horses don't like travel boots, mine can barely stand up in them. I use overreach boots only.

 

[Hoof_Prints]

I travel with our without boots, never had any problem without. Usually they are fully padded up to travel to the show/hunt/ride etc, and afterwards they are chucked in covered in mud and without anything on as I'm tired and CBA to wash them afterwards My friend has a horse that will not load wearing travel boots, apparently because she feels trapped in them. shes totally fine going in wearing hock boots, over reach and brushing boots so that's an option.

 

[Honey08]

Polypad wraps.

Our racehorses travel with bandages and a pad underneath, their feet are taped with duct tape to stop shoes being stood on and coming off in the box.

Ooh, the duct tape idea is interesting.

 

[Tobiano]

With my level of manual dexterity if I tried putting on duct tape I would probably end up taped to the horse! Thats why travel boots were so appealing - even a klutz like me can put them on (until I couldn't!)

If I was going to try bandaging, any ideas on how to practice away from the horse? Table leg?

 

[zigzag]

Always travel without actually find it safer

 

[MileAMinute]

My boy doesn't like travel boots, he will kick out with his back legs while travelling, so we travel without. To be fair we only do local events, if we had to travel a fair way I'd probably put bandages on as a precaution.

 

[holeymoley]

I don't use them either. I use over reach boots and brushing boots however if going far it would be bandages as probably would be to a show anyway.

 

[rara007]

No boots or stable boots.

 

[Tiddlypom]

If I was going to try bandaging, any ideas on how to practice away from the horse? Table leg?

Can you bribe a willing human volunteer?

Make sure that you get bandages that are long enough. I've got a couple of old sets of 5m length glentonas, and they are perfect, but 4m is ok. Most seem to be shorter than this, and it isn't possible to overlap them sufficiently.

 

[ladyt25]

If travelling alone then I maybe wouldn't bother but, if with others then maybe some brushing boots and overreach boots?
Personally I'm too idle for bandages and just put travel boots on. When some friend's horses were in a trailer accident (trailer flipped over) the boots they had on got ripped but both horses escaped with minor injuries. Not sure whether the story would have been the same without the boots/some leg protection ?! There's pros and cons with them really

 

[AshTay]

My boy doesn't like travel boots, he will kick out with his back legs while travelling, so we travel without. To be fair we only do local events, if we had to travel a fair way I'd probably put bandages on as a precaution.

My boy is like this - kick kick with them on but not without. Have only done short distances so far but willl try over reach boots for longer journeys. Don’t trust my own bandaging skills although I did get good at them when my old boy was on box rest.

 

[Sukistokes2]

I use brushing boots.

 

[Tobiano]

thanks for additional replies. The point about having an accident is a good one and the reason I have always used boots on anything but the shortest journeys…. aargh! I do drive carefully but there is always the unexpected….

 

[spookypony]

No boots. He's been in the box for up to 9 hours in one day. He traves nekkid! But he also has no shoes on.

 

[rara007]

But equally how many horses have slipped on dropped boots/unwrapped bandages? In the event of a trailer/lorry crash sadly your luck is really in the hands of the gods!

 

[ladyt25]

Have to say mine have never slipped on boots if they have ever come off. I don't put them on all the time but do if going longer distance, travelling mire than one horse or I just want white socks to stay white when I reach my destination! :-D

 

[Kat]

Mine wears over reach boots all round, and westropp knee brushing boots in front with brushing boots behind.

She hates travel boots and is far too fidgety for bandages!

 

[FfionWinnie]

Don't bother with anything on any of mine.