Please travel with boots on...

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sassyequine

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This is a plea to anyone who ever travels their horse or pony without leg protection. I have just returned from a horrid and distressing day.

We were travelling our two mares a short distance for a hack. They both had their brushing boots on ready, under their Woof Wear travel boots - thank goodness.

We were going 20mph along a straight quiet road when one of them was spooked, from what we can tell she panicked and fell over getting wedged and scrabbling around. We heard the comotion and stopped, having to unload the other mare, close the road with a passer bys car and eventually freed the stuck horse.

Her injurys will recover and she is mainly shaken with cuts and bruises. Her back boots were shredded and had holes in, her brushing boots were also torn. If she had not been wearing her travel boots I am sure we would not have been taking her home and this would be a very different post.
So accidents can happen even to careful drivers on quite roads. No matter how short the distance please please please boot up your horses.
 
Glad you only have to buy new boots, totally agree.We have just bought a tiny pony from Wales and I think they thought me mad when I appeared with bandages.He had never worn any in his life but better safe than sorry
 
sorry to hear about your accident, but so glad your mare is ok
i always as a rule put boot/ bandages on my horses for travel, even if its a mile down the road. i also keep them on for unloading - know so many ppl that take them off still in the lorry???!!
 
I know I skinned the side of a horse's fetlock once unloading. What if, as with my horse, it just doesn't like/understand the travel boots, and spends ages just stamping and kicking to try and get them off, in the end they could be doing more damage than if they skinned themselves?
 
Yep, totally agree with this. Glad to hear your horse was ok and you're clever enough to use boots! And if people use boots, make sure its the LONG ones - what IS the point in those silly "short" boots which don't even cover the knee?!
 
I too agree. years ago a friend of mines mare went through the bottom of her box. Although she was quite badly injured the vets said her bandages saved her legs. I would and have never travelled my horse without bandages/boots on and never will!
 
Sorry to hear your troubles, my boy did something similar a while ago- he shredded his travel boots and half of his back legs trying to get the sodding things off- I HATE travel boots, they are badly designed. As my mother has always said- eventually we will trade in conveiniece of quick&easy fasten boots for the good old bandages, which have never failed me in such a way and I use religiously.
 
I always use boots and would never travel without them. A couple of years back some people on my yard were trying to load a difficult horse. The horse spooked and fell off the ramp catching her leg and slicing the skin. She had to have stitches and was out of work for a while.
That was only off the trailer ramp, if it had been a lorry then it would have been worse.

Glad to hear your horse is OK.
 
I never travel anywhere without bandages on!
Including, knee, hock and OR boots (personally prefer them to travel boots as they will definatly fit the horses legs).
I am so sorry to hear of this happening but I am relieved that you only have to replace the boots.
 
Thank goodness you are all ok. As I don't have transport I rarely box George up, but I have a set of travel boots and would always use them - thankfully the gorgeous one is quite happy in them.
 
i hate "travel-boots" with a vengence...and NONE of mine EVER travel in boots....

but if i was inclined to do so, would fit gamgee and bandages as they seem to stay put better than the boots..
 
Our pony went to a PC rally with the girl who rides her yesterday. Not sure exactly what happened (I was out all day) but had a phone call to say she had nicked the inside of her hind leg whilst unloading as she had apparently rushed out backwards and fallen off the ramp (she is used to a front ramp). They had bathed it and it is only a small scratch, just on the inside of her hock, but if she hadn't been wearing her travel boots, not just for the journey but to unload too, might have been a different story.
 
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