REARING IN LORRY AND GETTING STUCK ON TACK LOCKER!

[Ucostra]

I have a very bad tempered and argumentative warmblood, this morning we were leaving for a show and for 5 mins stopped half way down the drive to just run in the house, he could see his two mates in the field and just went bananas striking out- which he often does when he's angry, does it in the stable when he's left alone. He then reared up and got stuck up on the tack lockers- now i don't know whether he meant to get up there or if he just struck out high and then found himself up there. He was literally tap dancing on the ceiling and pummeling the hell out of the wall. I had to get in there and try and bend his legs to get him down, it was all quite terrifying!! He was up there for quite some time too. Does anyone have any suggestions on this as I'm buggered if I'm playing that game again! He did it at a show once when his friend went out of sight. He was on his own in there today. Someone at the show said if its anger hobble him but if its panic don't as he'll kill himself!? Not mad keen on hobbles to be honest. Ideas/comments please!

 

[Montyforever]

Whoa that sounds scary :S Maybe take the tack locker out so it doesnt happen again even if its just for your piece of mind, or board it up? My mare rears when she panics & even when she just doesnt want somthing done so i know how you feel

 

[MrsMozart]

Yup ^ Take it out

Horses!

 

[scribble]

how old is warmblood and why is he bad tempered angry and agrumentative???? is there anything you can do about the root of his anger/issues. BEfore you shout i have a 17.2 warmblood who was not the easiest horse, however he always warned where the line was in terms of his behavior as he was too big and heavy to be messing about and getting in a strop. I am not big at 5ft 8 and weighing 8 1/2 stone and most of the time out on my own with him in the lorry. yes he would winney and scream when he saw friends in lorry and mess about but the tone of my voice and sometimes a warning "behave or you will get a slap" was enough. he sometimes got a slap on the shoulder just one but it was enough so he knew he had over stepped the mark. arrogant angry horses are not nice to be with and will hurt you.

 

[trick123]

Try cross tying so that he can't get his head high enough to lift his front end. We had a horse do that once it was very scary, a he had one foot through the window as well! Or maybe a companion traveller/

 

[amandaco2]

where are the tack lockers?
if they are in reach i would remove them and relocate.
cross tie can help. my YO had the breast bar in her box raised as she was worried due to a similar incident- hers got stuck over the breast bar and had to be cut out by the fire service!

 

[Ucostra]

He's 8yrs old, he's just quite a highly strung individual full stop. He's worked plenty, goes out BSJA every week and is turned out all the time at the moment. He's not good when on his own so he tends to get angry- pawing/striking out when he's tied up on the yard and nothing else is with him or in the stable and nothing else is in. Trust me I'm certainly not letting him walk all over me and he's told when its not acceptable but I just think he is the sort of horse who will always have a streak in him. I'm thinking of putting him on the Horse First calming supplement.

 

[connie1288]

Have replied in Comp Riders, but have to add the Horse First Relax Me is a brilliant calmer for my mare, (not the one that gets stuck on the lockers!!) It really has made her more ridable!!

 

[cptrayes]

I have one exactly the same and his full brother does it too with a different owner. He's not by Opan by any chance is he? Chestnut/white socks and roan bits???

We tie him down with a wither rope and breast bar, to reinforced partitions (otherwise he'd break those too). He is very, very happy travelled his way, but without the ropes he may explode unpredictably (often at the sight of other horses) and try to take out the windows of the lorry and stamp in the top of the tack locker.

My experience is that tying his head down will make him fight even more, so I wouldn't go there. But a wither rope makes all the difference. He tested it once and gave up.

I am an extremely experienced horse owner - I rehabilitate other people's failures so this is not me. It's not other people's taining either, it's genetic as his brother does it in a different home and we both got them as unbacked new imports. It's just some warmbloods, and it sounds like you've got one. Don't risk him or you - if he gets his feet into the top of that tack locker he'll sever the artery in his armpit and die - tie him down.

 

[Ucostra]

Tack lockers are built into the lorry and are in front of him, your friend had breast bar in trailer raised? How big was the horse? He sometimes goes out the trailer but I don't think he can move about enough to rear, I hope anyway!?!?! Christ, that would be even worse in a trailer!!

 

[Mistatiger]

Boy do I have sympathy and am watching replies with interest. I presume you mean he got on the tack lockers of a lorry, therefore you can't take them out? My WB did the same at a show after having sttod fine for about an hour. I came back to the lorry with another horse to learn a test and when I took it away he went nuts! Reared up, tried to punch his way out if the windows and then somehow(don't ask how) he managed to jump OVER the partition!! We could do nothing but watch and I was just thinking about where the nearest vet was to come and shoot him as I was sure he would have broken his leg. However he just had a cut which was stitched on the way home. He was xrayed and they couldn't find anything. He seemed fine for a while bit then went lame and vets found a chip which has now been removed so he should make a full recovery. Still very scary. The cross ties sound like a good idea. I now have to open all the partitions at a show and leave him loose if I don't have another horse there to keep him company. A real pain. Good Luck with yours and I hope the suggestions keep coming in.

 

[Louby]

Very scary. Ive heard this is a common problem with horses going through the top of the tack locker and getting stuck so yours sound substantial. When I had my horsebox built the builder said they dont put tack lockers in anymore unless the buyer really really insists on one for the reason of horses climbing on them. His were very tall but Ive seen then so low a horse would easily get on top. Ive also seen some really flimsy ones. Maybe cross tying him may help.

 

[mainpower]

cptrayes.... can you let us know about wither tieing? Not something I've heard of before!

 

[Ucostra]

He is chestnut with white socks but he's by Harcos-which is by Narcos II. He's very talented, just fiesty which most of the talented ones are. Yes I think if restricted too much he would explode. He tends to be very over dramatic about most things. I agree its just some warmbloods, I'm experienced and I'm based with a BSJA accredited coach who sees everything I do, this is the nature of the animal. So you have a breast bar between partitions then a wither rope- I'll have to google that! Thanks very much for your help, I will take it on board!!

 

[Ucostra]

Yes after reading all these interesting replies I'm thinking I might stick to putting him in the trailer! Stories of going through the roof and through the tack locker are giving me grey hairs, just not worth it!! Yes tack lockers are built in so cannot be removed, these wither ropes sound interesting tho. Its only when he manages to whip himself up into a frenzy, as I say this is only the second time he's done it. Last time was at Markfield last December and several people ran to my aid and got him legs down.

 

[Ucostra]

Really? I'm always very dubious about these calming things, over the years I've tried loads with other horses but nothing really did anything noticeable but this Horse First stuff seems to be getting rave reviews so will give it a go.

 

[spacefaer]

My mother's dressage horse stands on tack lockers regularly given half a chance. He's very calm about it, jumps up, puts both feet in the feed buckets and just stands there. After a bit, he jumps down again. It's absolutely terrifying!

At one show, he had a bit of a panic attack - they think there was a hornet in with him and he managed to put both front feet through the window (and leave them there) - he's quite athletic! He also bangs his head on the roof and smashes the lining of it.

The only solution we've found is to travel him in a lorry without tack lockers. I've tried cross tying him, but he just bends his head down and brings his legs up. He can stand with one foot on the locker and the other on the floor without any strain. Lockers are about 3'9 high.

Hope you sort your boy - I travelled mine a journey of what snhould've been 40-45 mins - took me over 1 hr 30 cos he kept doing it and I was by myself - never been so scared in my life.

 

[only_me]

hobbles - im afraid if you want to travel your horse safely then hobbles are only the answer

I use a leather strap between my pair of hobbles, so if horse gets into a major panic/stop the leather is strong enough to hold, but if he gets caught it will snap

 

[amandaco2]

my friend had her breast bar raised in her horsebox it is solid on one side and open on the other.she also had a calming mirrow fitted on the back door.

 

[cptrayes]

Ahh, now I thought the same - restrict his space and he will panic even more - he climbs stable doors too! But it didn't work out that way, quite the reverse. He is calm as calm with the rope.

You need to make sure that he cannot bend, break or move your partitions. Bolt them to the roof and floor if necessary (and it was!)

Then put a breast bar on, (we use a strap and we also use a lower one to stop him bending his frotn legs to get them over the breast strap).

Then attach a rope at no more than elbow height on one side, put it right over the top of the withers and attach it at the same height on the other side, with very little slack in the rope.

Works a treat!!!!

Honestly, the lorry looks like a torture chamber with all its shackles, but he travels like a lamb.

Mirrors didn't work, he smashed them with his feet. Hobbles didn't work, he broke them. Tying his head down didn't work, he pulled four two inch screws attaching the rings loose. He's a VERY strong fellow.

NOTHING worked for this horse but a wither rope, and that works like an absolute dream.

 

[cptrayes]

Talented but feisty and chestnut with four white socks. Mine to a tee!!!

 

[PoppyAnderson]

Bit of info on hobbling, should you decide to go down that route.

http://www.horseproblems.com.au/leg_restraints_training.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvzbjJzr9z8&feature=player_embedded#t=23

 

[cptrayes]

I really advise you against hobbling. I did it and he fought it. To try keep him safe I even tied one of his legs to the partition. He fought and fought, to the point where he hurt himself. Only the wither rope works with mine and I can't see the point of hobbling, with the limitation of him being able to balance while he is travelling, if a rope across the top works even better and is much easier to put on.

 

[cptrayes]

PS on hobbles if your horse is as talented as mine he'll get both his feet up there with hobbles on anyway! I had mine tied with 6 inches of rope to the top of the tack locker at one point and he STILL got his feet up round his ears!