OMG absolute disaster - what do i do now?

[sprite1978]

Horse reacts to pressure, QED - Dont apply pressure... Go back to the beginning, different surfaces, going "thru" wings, get people to hold things above your head as you go under. Be creative. Ask for the energy from behind, not from the front....

If Chico has gotten as bad as you are saying then no "gadgets" are going to help you, its like trying to put a sticking plaster over a gaping wound, It'll only get worse and reinforce his behaviour.

I have a suggestion. PM me if you are interested.

I completely agree with this. If you drag, he will pull away and rear. Create the energy from behind. It worked for me. This is what i did.

1. Put the bit and bridle on, with a lunge line. As if you were lunging.
2. Have a lunge whip in you spare hand, and lead the horse forward. Preferably start the walk out of sight of the box. Try not to be any further forward than the shoulder. Walk with purpose to the van, give a couple of flicks with the lunge whip behind him so he knows its there, and get him active.
3. When you get to the van...Dont pause in anticipation. Try to walk straight in
4. If he trys to back off, flick the lunge whip.
5. If he really tries to duck out, quickly let the lunge line slip through your hand and turn it into a lunging session. Driving him from behind with the whip. Do this for a couple of circles. Then as he is still active, shorten the line and march toward the van again. Repeat until he realises that the van is the place where he doesnt have to work.

It works. He is only rearing to pull away from the dragging pressure....So drive drive drive!

good luck

 

[Dry Rot]

My youngster's breeder trained my littlest one to load so well that he loads up if I leave the trailer in the field while I'm getting one of the others ready to go out He's on here so I'm sure if he sees this he'll share his wisdom, but I believe he just uses positive reinforcement - allowing the ponies to free-load in the field or round pen and then they get fed in there...

Well, I suppose that must be modest little me!

Actually, I use a method described by Allen Poge on the Horsetraining forum.

There are two elements behind the reluctance to load which have to be eliminated. First, the horse's fear of the trailer/lorry, and second the choice that it's nicer outside, so why go inside?

The first stage is to eliminate the fear. That is going to take time. Just simple reassurance like feeding inside the trailer. Easier in winter, otherwise restrict grazing so the horse is hungry. Park the trailer in an adjacent field or make a mini paddock with white tape. Allow the horse into the mini paddock every day, first to eat a small ration of hard feed near the trailer, then on the ramp, then inside. Absolutely no pressure, so don't even look! My youngsters rush through the gate and onto the trailer looking for treats!

Next stage is making inside more comfortable than out. Make a mini round pen with tape, or better still use a permanent round pen. Back the trailer up to the pen so it opens into it.

Gently work the horse in the round pen. If it goes near the ramp, stop working him and take off all pressure for, say, 30 seconds, i.e. turn your back and don't even look at him. After the 30 seconds, start working him again. Repeat. When he goes near the ramp, turn your back and ignore him. Keep doing this for, say, 30 minute sessions every day gradually eroding the distance between him and the trailer until, eventually, he steps on the ramp, then inside, and so on. This could take weeks!

Here's an 18 month old youngster at the final stages of the training.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ia34rjhBgA

It's a bit shakey as I have the camera in one hand and the lunge whip (as a guiding tool only) in the other. Basically, outside the trailer is made slightly more uncomfortable (he has to work!) than inside (where he can rest and there's food). Inside is a place of safety. Of course, in practice you'll graduate to shutting the ramp, then opening it again after, say, 10 seconds. Gradually extend that period for as long as he's comfortable. And so on.

The principle here is "erosion of the threshold". You are gradually eroding that fear and making the trailer somewhere nice to be. The horse sets the pace. If he wants to come out, let him. Overdo the pressure and the unpleasantness you are inflicting becomes associated with the trailer and the act of loading, i.e. the whole process is anything but a retreat to a place of safety and your training becomes a punishment which is counter productive.

This is broadly similar to the method I've used to deal with seriously bad loaders. One bad loader would rear (six times in one session!) and run out of the trailer backwards when she sensed the ramp was about to go up. I eventually got this mare to free load on command.

 

[Paint Me Proud]

alot of excellent suggestions but sadly alot of them i cant do due to where and how the lory is located on our yard.
Space is very tight so any method that involves working the horse near to the lorry isnt an option regrettably.

I will try a chifney this week i think becasue he is just being an obstinate little sod so i think when he realises he cant rear he will just go straight on.

He will stand at the bottom of the ramp with a glazed expression, resting a back leg and sighing - he doesnt seem scared just stubborn!

 

[burtie]

If he has steadily got worse and worse to load, he is obviously having a bad experience during the travelling, for whatever reason. Some horses find balancing in a lorry/trailer very hard. I'm not trying to suggest you are driving badly you just may have a horse that struggles to balance, but it would certainly be worth taking a close look at the driving and how he is when travelling.

Has he ever travelled with a good experienced travelling companion as this sometimes helps them gain their confidence?

 

[Echo Bravo]

Try some Sedalin or the new stuff(cann't rember it's name) before you try and load, should take the edge off a little and try the method Snowyadud says, I've used that method with a bad loader for years, also a flask of tea or coffee as it can take sometime when you first try it, before they give in and go in and much less hazzle, and after awhile they just walk straight in.

 

[TGM]

Do you travel him every time you load him or do you sometimes do loading practice and don't travel? If you travel every time you load, I wonder whether it is the travelling that he doesn't like (poor balance etc) rather than the actual loading, which would explain why he is getting worse.

 

[Rosie'smum]

My friends horse wouldnt load. We tried everything we could think of. Too start a lunge line behind him would work but then he got wise, eventually she got a monty roberts dually and he still has his stubborn moments but he will actually load now with it. He got to the point that if u ask him he refuses but he will load him self eventually. We did lots of loading him and walking straight out and slowly working up to shuting all doors giving him reward unloading and repeating the process.

 

[Paint Me Proud]

My friends horse wouldnt load. We tried everything we could think of. Too start a lunge line behind him would work but then he got wise, eventually she got a monty roberts dually and he still has his stubborn moments but he will actually load now with it. He got to the point that if u ask him he refuses but he will load him self eventually. We did lots of loading him and walking straight out and slowly working up to shuting all doors giving him reward unloading and repeating the process.

I have done all of that initially - it did 3 weeks of loading on and off, standing quietly on the lorry etc before i even closed the partition, and another few weeks before i closed the ramp and doors - i wanted him to be completely relaxed - and he was.

I have had someone in the back with him when travelling and they said he was completely chilled out and balanced well - he is defintely relaxed when travelling but does start to move around once we stop and the anticipation is there to get off - but when you lead him off he just strolls of calmly - i wish he'd be consistent, lol!

 

[Foxhunter49]

You are not going to like what I am about to say! Experience tells me from what you have described that you are the problem!

The fact that you say - We spent 45 minutes of rearing and refusing and getting more and more worried that we were going to be able to get him home.

The fact that you started to worry is enough for the horse to know and rect more and more to it.

Part of the reason that renowned natural tanners can do things that others find very difficult is because their heart rate never changes and they never have a doubt that the horse will do what they want.
He knows that if he rears that it worries you so he will do it and so the sage continues.

Personally I would also have a lunge whip and if he went up I would crack him one with the whip (not the lash) across his back legs as he rears. This is attacking his only means of security and he will feel threatened so will not be as likely to do it again.

I am all for doing things 'nicely' but when they become idiots I am not in the slightest bit afraid to have someone lead the horse to the ramp and then if he starts to rear and refuse to go (providing it is defiance and not fear) to use the lunge whip across their back legs. A couple of well timed flicks with the whip and they soon learn.

I have seen a mother and daughter try to load their 14.2 pony into a trailer for over 6 hours at a show. Plenty of people offered to help but were turned down. The pony was having fun, she was not afraid and in the end a friend and I loaded her. One good crack across the backside with a dressage whip and she went in. (There was such a cheer when she did it was funny) I had her unload with friend leading her and when after three or four times loading I had the daughter and mother take over. When pony stopped I had the mother give her one crack on the backside and in the end the pony was going in with just the daughter loading her. There was no brute force, no lashing the animal, just one good crack and she realised that the game was up.

Funny thing was I saw them a few weeks later at a show and the daughter had the pony grazing at the bottom of the ramp and I asked how the loading was going and the pony looked at me and walked straight in the trailer with the daughter following!
They had only had one time where she had been antsy and mother gave her one crack and she went in.

 

[Tinypony]

PaintmeProud have you dismissed Tazzle's suggestion about using positive reinforcement? There may be some element of "you" in this but I would suggest that your horse sounds as if he's genuinely scared. Just a suggestion but if you took a break from thinking of him as an obstinate sod who is messing around and just consider dealing with him as if he is a scared horse, well you never know, a change of mindset and approach may be just what you need. I would not be going in even harder with a horse that has a tendency to rear and that has already gone down on the ramp and scared himself like this. You might get it right, but there is a lot of room for horse and human to get hurt. Besides which, by really forcing the horse as hard as some are suggesting, and using a chifney, you're dealing with the symptom not the cause.
He's not doing this just to piss you off.
I'm not a clicker trainer/positive reinforcement fanatic by the way, I am more on the nh side of the fence. I just think that sometimes we tend to focus on the battle and looking at things from the human point of view, rather than taking a step back and wondering what the horse is really telling us.

 

[Ladyinred]

OP I feel your pain, I really do. I once had a two hour walk home with my daughter riding, in the middle of summer with a road race for some very noiysy little cars, a motorbike rally and roadworks. Thats before we get onto the 'normal' traffic, it was horrific.

But we then went the loading every day route and feeding in the trailer and now he is fine. He was and is scared of lorries but fine in a big trailer (which I hate, but hey!) Patience and quiet determination is the key.

 

[Alyth]

It sounds to me as though you have made up your mind that he "is a little sod" and nothing will alter your opinion. And you have a few problems as to where and what you can do and you aren't attempting to think "outside the square".

Having read the posts it seems to me that he is trying to tell you that he is scared/hates/whatever the truck and that you aren't building his confidence. As has been suggested start by teaching that walking over a tarp, under a tarp, over a bridge, over tyres, between baloons, even - shock horror - stand on a pedestal!!! You are teaching him that doing these things is safe, okay even, might even get a reward (rub, rest or carrot!!). Then these things translate into the lorry ramp. Can he walk calmly across the ramp, from right to left without panicing and rushing? Can he walk calmly across from left to right without rushing? Can you ask him to yield his hind quarters both ways? His forhand both ways?

It took me quite a long time with my horse to learn these things but now they have become second nature. Some happenings have turned me away from Parelli Natural Horsemanship but their basic ground manners and truck/float loading cannot be bettered. It may well be worth saving up for a personal truck/float loading lesson with your local Parelli Professional. I hope they are as good as the few we have here in New Zealand!!! Two of ours, Russell Higgins and Jackie Chant visit the UK each northern summer teaching so you may well be lucky enough to get one of them to help....I assure you it is well worth the money and will more than add that value to your horse!!! In addition you will learn how to teach other horses the benefit of easy loading!!!

There are a few things to remember "advance and retreat" "reward every try" "4 phases" "set it up and wait for a response and reward instantly" "make the truck/float the nice place to be and away from the truck the place where you WORK" Now by "work" I don't mean go round and round in circles, I mean he has to go sideways, backwards, yield hindquarter. Use his brain!! Circles are escape, they do them automatically, crossing his hind legs makes the brain kick in!!!

Sorry for the book!! If you want to know more look at all the various Parelli sites, not just the corporation site. There are many sites that talk about the 7 games and give more information. Good luck. Take care. Think hard!! Alyth

 

[EAST KENT]

Stop faffing about ,pay out for Maxwell or Kelly Marks to sort it out for you before someone or the horse gets hurt.Horses are moneypits!

 

[Orangehorse]

I would say Sue Palmer too, she doesn't live far away and I don't think she is all that expensive.

Check out your lorry carefully, there may be something in it that your horse doesn't like. Head height, noise, visability? Is the footing OK? Mine was a bit awkward loading in my old trailer which had a wooden floor and I bought some trailer mats which gave him a more secure footing and he was much better after that.

 

[canteron]

Haven't read all the posts so someone may have said this already BUT it sounds so like my mare, she was so bad at loading ... but it turned out it wasn't the loading that was the issue, it was the travelling.

So took the partition out, she now loads fine and travels fine in fact can now travel her in a trailer!!

I think as well as panicing about not being able to stand, she also is a bit claustraphobic.

A CCTV camera in the box also really helped me understand how she likes to travel.

Agree about getting someone professional to help with the loading BUT in the meantime, stand in the back of the lorry and get someone to drive it - you may find something out!

Good luck.

 

[mystiandsunny]

In terms of 'what do I do now' - you find out what it is that he dislikes, and fix it. Horses aren't unreasonable. They're happy to do whatever you want them to, so long as it doesn't hurt and isn't scary. He WAS loading, but obviously the experience still wasn't all that nice as he gradually got worse and worse until now he won't go on.

Places to start:
1) Take a GOOD, HARD look at your driving, as this is the usual reason for horses getting worse to load. Get a friend to stand in the back without holding on, and drive slowly around the yard - what do they say to your reversing, driving, turning? Then swap and see for yourself how hard it is to keep your balance. You should be able to drive to a venue and back, without spilling a drop of water from a nearly full glass - nor it falling off the side where you've put it. Can you do that? If not, travelling is hardly a nice experience for your poor horse!

2) Is the ramp slippery at all? How do other horses feel about loading?

3) Do you slam the partition shut behind him once he's on (so scary noise as 'reward' for going on)?

4) What's it like in there - too hot, too dark, sun in his eyes.....? Go in there with it shut and really think about it.

5) Give him an MOT - get someone to trot him up for you, lunge him and check for soundness on hard and soft ground. Another reason for not wanting to travel when the driving is ok, is joint pain.

6) What is the activity like at the other end? If he always enjoys what he goes to do, he should want to go on the box. If it's hard work that he isn't fit enough for, maybe not.

Etc.

Once you have some idea what it might be (and start with the driving), feed him on the ramp, then higher, then higher every day until he goes in for his tea and eats it in there without any fuss. Then you can start shutting the paritition with him in there to eat it, then the partition and the ramp, then very short drives (with whatever he doesn't like, fixed).

 

[AengusOg]

It's all very well wishing for consistency from the horse, but the handler must be consistent too, or the horse will have no confidence.

Using a chifney may well work, but it is not really addressing the problem. It will essentially force the horse to load through fear of the consequences if he doesn't, and that can be a dangerous approach to horsemanship. I hope you understand what a chifney can do to a horse's mouth if it is used heavily or used as a means of restraint. Its not just as simple as whacking it in his mouth and loading him; he may still decide to rear, and what will you do then?

I agree with the principle of driving horses onto trailers and lorries. I have used pressure halters to persuade bad loaders to follow me into a trailer, and with great success, but I hesitate to attempt to teach people to do that now. Many horses can be forced to rear by misuse of pressure and untimely release of it. Some horses will use rearing and throwing themselves about as evasions to avoid loading, and the typical reaction from the handler seems to be to try to hold the horse down. This increases the pressure on the horse's head and will cause him to fight. Once the handler starts using pressure as a means of force, the ball is burst and the game over, as the horse will increase its resistance to being held against its will.

However, when trying to persuade a horse to follow into the box, the timely release of pressure, and the absence of attempted restraint by the handler will allow the horse to try all the evasions he has learned in the past. If he tries to rear, let him and let the rope slip through the hand rather than attempt to stop him. If he has nothing to resist, he will not fight. Once he realises he will not be yanked and pulled and forced into submission, that his evasions are fruitless, and the handler, without getting frustrated, will just keep asking him to load, his mind will be changed to compliance and forward movement rather than resistance and flight.

So many horses are put off loading through bad or ineffective handling by well-meaning but clueless people. It doesn't take a horse long to work out how to avoid going onto a trailer/box. Once he has it sussed, it takes a lot of thought and technique to persuade him otherwise.

 

[BigRed]

Get a name from the kelly Marks website, the girl I guse charges £50/hour - I don't think that's a fortune. The Dually headcollar they like to use costs £45, they will teach you how to use it, it is very clever and I am sure they will have your horse going in the lorry quickly. They don't put pressure on the poll, so he shouldn't be encouraged to rear.

HOWEVER, I'd want to know why he is getting worse at loading - some of small lorries are very claustrophobic for horses.

 

[RobinHood]

Have you checked the tyre pressures on the lorry? Some horses are very sensitive to incorrect tyre pressure as it affects the motion of the lorry and it feels more unstable.

The other thing to consider is the smoothness of your gear changes and braking. The speed you drive at is obviously important but it's the smoothness when stopping at lights, approaching a junction, pulling away from a roundabout etc. that's crucial.

Do you have enough payload to take 2 horses? Perhaps he would load behind another horse and feel more confident about travelling with a companion.

 

[Luci07]

Keep the posts coming guys - its all interesting!

We have used my trailer to help with dodgy loaders from time to time - the lower ramp coupled with the ability to open the front ramp seems to make a big difference. The partitions are also opened to give the horse more space getting in. We have put the horses through my trailer a couple of times and then gone back to the lorry and that also seems to have worked. I have the Bateson Deaville and one of the reasons I bought it was that it had a "window" at the front of the trailer, offering more light (as well as the sky light) and meant I can see my horse in my rear view mirror to see he is travelling OK.

My new one is currently a little too eager and I have to be very quick to keep up with him loading atm but he is a horse led totally by his stomach!

 

[Vetwrap]

Can't recommend a natural horsemanship recommended associate enough. My horse was pretty much a non loader but after one visit he was following me up the ramp with no lead rope/lunge line.

Echo this. My old horse broken the lorry ramp twice by rearing up and landing on it. If you go down the route of the chifney, then you may find that this doesn't work either and you've just made him more resentful about loading.

I have had to completely re-learn loading and general groundwork - and it was Intelligent Horsemanship Recommended Associates that made it just seem like common sense. I was lucky enough to have the chance to do a course and it was a great learning curve.

Please look into this as an option before you go down the chifney route. A chifney might stop him going up, but it won't get him walking up the ramp willingly - IMHO.

 

[blakesmum]

try sue palmer - http://www.holistichorsehelp.com/

Sue sorted out loan cob's loading issues in a morning. I can now take him anywhere and load and unload him. I didn't have to pay as it was through Horse magazine, but had I known that it would work so well I'd have paid to have someone like her out far sooner.

 

[catembi]

What's he like with a travelling companion? Could you borrow a pony?

My ex-racer Trev is totally fine with my old pony on board (I have a 7.5 ton DAF) & a raving lunatic without her. After a year of dragging poor old Jenny about to shows, lessons etc I tried without her, & he managed 3 solo journeys, getting increasingly upset, & then had an almighty tantrum at the very idea of loading. I dragged Jenny out of the field & loaded her, & he was 100% fine.

I know it's a lazy & imperfect solution, but if Trev + Jen gives me a chilled horse every time & Trev minus Jen results in total anarchy, I'm going to take the line of least resistance.

You might have weight issues with a 3.5 ton, but perhaps you could squeeze in a pony? I will hire Jenny to you if you want...she is 38 & costing me a fortune in Prascend (for Cushings) so she might as well earn her keep...!!

 

[CHH]

I agree with honey pony on this one.

have you had him checked out physically at all?

I once had a horse who was pretty much the same, finally one day had the same advice only to discover the horror show of his feet and joints - he had seen a vet and farrier (who happened to be a remedial) none of us detected a problem but the travelling was just too much pressure for him, and so he became difficult. Xrays and all sorts followed and I decided to retire him.

Just a suggestion.

Also, be honest about your driving - is he having a smooth ride?
Some of those 3.5t vehicles are noisy sweat boxes that do not provide a good ride, regardless of the fancy paint job (please don't be offended)
Just trying to help.

I once had a 6.5hr session at a park so Iknow how you feel.

Is he being worked too hard when he goes somewhere?

Just thoughts.

Patience and forgetting your plans until you are at the bottom will pay huge dividends in the long run.

 

[Natch]

imo if you have tried pressure halters etc and they cause him to rear ..... then putting more on wont help and although a chifney might stop him rearing (if it causes him sufficient pain) it wont actually address the problem ( imo)

maybe a change of tactic might help ..... if he is so sccared now and physical pressure causes even more problems then maybe positive reinforcement is the way to change his perception and provide motivation for him to go in.

To really work though you cant mix it with what you have been doing or it just wont work, he will get confused.

if you want more info just ask

ours queue up to go in

Voice of reason.

Your horse is clearly showing he is unhappy about loading. The last experience will only have compounded this. Try making it a pleasant experience for him - no pressure whatsoever. This needs to be done when you have all the time in the world and aren't going anywhere.

Can you park the trailer in a secure field? Leave all ramps open, and tasty tit bits (carrots?) on and near all around the trailer. Feed his bucket feed on the ramp - and gradually day by day inch it higher up until he has to stand one foot on it to reach it. Slooowly progress until he takes himself in to eat the feed.

Repeat from stage 1 with someone leading him on. If you want to use treats, make it clear that treat gets given for a try, ignore mugging requests and don't reward him not going anywhere or exiting. Allow him to exit if he wants without pressure - I think it will be important to your horse that he feels he has a choice about going in, and can get out if he wants to. If he does get out, just re-present as if nothing happened. Try to get him to be curious about it.

We can give you plenty of suggestions and advice on here to try with him Just don't confuse him, and be consistent with one approach each time.

 

[dalesslave]

Billy once decided he didnt want to load.some horse are more than able to put two and two together better than some people think! A six mile hack to a show up hill and down dale followed by a mornings showing and jumping and he actually dragged me up the ramp,
could you arrange a sort of pretend trip whereby as soon as he decides to throw a wobbler you tack him up jump on and give him a mornings stiff hard work going somewhere and back a couple of days in a row unless he loads sensibly and then unloads and gets the morning off, especially if you are sure theres no pain issues etc
(word of warning billy now tries to load on any trailer/wagon that happens to be open just incase he misses his lift again!)

 

[Dry Rot]

I don't think anyone has mentioned scent yet. (No, not that kind!).

It could be that your trailer/lorry has the smell of fear about it. Either from previous bad loading/travelling experiences or just a smell the horse does not like. Humans are not very strong in the olfactory department and we tend to forget how important the sense of smell is to animals in communicating.

Give the trailer/lorry a good wash out -- walls, roof, everything -- and let it dry out with all doors and windows open on a warm sunny breezy day.

At least it won't cost anything to do it and it might just help.

Other than that, I've nothing to add to the excellent advice already posted.

 

[Dancing Queen]

I cured a horse who wouldnt load for anyone or anything - long story but broken bones were involved.

It took time but i built up our relationship again, because he was still upset and stressed by what had happened. I didnt ride him, i groomed him, in hadn work a lot, just walking and talking and singing to him, so he regained trust.

then i would lower the ramp of the lorry and walk him up to it (about a metre away) stop, fuss him and then turn him away from the lorry. only did this once then fed him in stable.

next day inched closer to the ramp all the while talking to him.

we got to the stage wher i could sit on the ramp and he would place 1 hoof on the ramp gingerly.
we progressed to feeding him on the ramp (first with 1 hoof, then the 2 front ones) until we had him completely on ramp.

then I got him feeding in the box, then moved the partition across, when he finished his feed i made sure he had a haynet in, i stayed with him, talking and brushing him off whilst he ate his hay (very relaxed)
then i took him out when i was ready.

we did this for a couple of weeks and we decided to take him to the end of the lane and back again. however i stayed with him. He did get a little panicky to start with but i talked to him and he relaxed.

he came of nicely and reloaded perfectly. so what we did to ensure that he didnt stress when i wasnt with him is we placed a radio in the box and played the radio to him whilst travelling - completelt different horse!

it will take time but they will respond to kind sympathetic treatment.

if you start now you may get him right by october. little small achieveable steps.

 

[tazzle]

Voice of reason.

Your horse is clearly showing he is unhappy about loading. The last experience will only have compounded this. Try making it a pleasant experience for him - no pressure whatsoever. This needs to be done when you have all the time in the world and aren't going anywhere.

Can you park the trailer in a secure field? Leave all ramps open, and tasty tit bits (carrots?) on and near all around the trailer. Feed his bucket feed on the ramp - and gradually day by day inch it higher up until he has to stand one foot on it to reach it. Slooowly progress until he takes himself in to eat the feed.

Repeat from stage 1 with someone leading him on. If you want to use treats, make it clear that treat gets given for a try, ignore mugging requests and don't reward him not going anywhere or exiting. Allow him to exit if he wants without pressure - I think it will be important to your horse that he feels he has a choice about going in, and can get out if he wants to. If he does get out, just re-present as if nothing happened. Try to get him to be curious about it.

We can give you plenty of suggestions and advice on here to try with him Just don't confuse him, and be consistent with one approach each time.

thank you for your compliment * blushes






you said it is difficult chicos mum to get the trailer in the field but can you set some other things up in the field that might simulate a trailer

how will he go over wood for example ?



we have things like


see saw

simple to make if you can source some wood...... just make sure if you use it as a see saw and not flat on the ground that the long bits of supporting wood are thick enough ( I added stronger struts after the pics0 taken)

a reinforced pallate can be found in most yards

and can take bigger pones

set up a tunnel

all these things will get him used to doing activities that you can reward him for that are similar to a loading task .....


maybe if you take more time now it will reap dividends in years to come.

I do so hope you can work this out so you can both travel happily

 

[Serenity087]

Park lorry in field and feed him on the ramp. Leave ramp open (put boots on him if you worry about him falling off, trust me though, they won't!) all day (and night, if he's out 24 hours). Chuck hay in the back, and every day put the feed buckets higher up the ramp.

A couple of weeks and I garuntee you'll have a horse that loads. Worked for mine, she was the most stubborn git EVER to load!