Stubborn welsh cob won't load

P

pennyturner

Well-Known Member
Joined
1 August 2006
Messages
2,594
Visit site
Poor #2 daughter had to ride Sam back 12 miles on her own today after hacking for a couple of hours already. We boxed out for a hack. He took a little encouragement to load, but not too bad. After the ride however nothing would get him back in. We tried everything. Little b***er even took aim at my head at one point - although to be fair I had just given him a good slap up the rear end with a crop.

I'd happily sell him to Tesco right now.

I know I could sort it out, but frankly I'm not sure I want to spend the rest of August walking him through a trailer.
Looks like he's hacking from the field from now on.
 
MagicMelon said:
Well you've basically said you cant be bothered putting the effort in to sort this problem so dont see what you want us to say?! Welsh Cobs also do not, in general, react well to anything forceful so no wonder you ended up with a fight on your hands.
Click to expand...

Yep.
 
Ok...any idea why he doesn't want to load? Has he had a bad experience, is the driving as smooth and gentle as possible? Is his travelling companion bolshy/opinionated? I truly believe that horses should not be forced into loading by the use of whips etc...they should want to load themselves. I have a gangly tb who will not load until he has clunked himself somehow...then walks on, it infuriates me, but I would never resort to a whip... I have also spent days...literally when you add up the hours, helping a friend to desensitise her mare to the horsebox after she had a horrendous experience being imported from Spain when the transporters resorted to beating her onto the box. She is now terrified of being confined.
Sorry, it's not what you want to hear, but you will need to spend time practising as often as you can, but also evaluate your daughters horses experience of travelling.
 
So sell and buy your daughter a wooden horse that way you can load it everytime, she may not do very well, but at lest you don't have to put any work in to it. And for once I agree with Magicmelon and Amymay.
 
I also had a Welsh cob who wasn't keen on loading, and the first thing you need to learn is not to even think about starting starting an argument 'cos you won't win and will probably only make things even more difficult for yourself.

Time and patience is the only answer.
 
Can you buy/borrow a Monty Roberts Dually halter? It works on pressure and release and I have had great sucess with my 'non-loader'.

You will need to do some ground work with it first but there is plenty of info on the net on how to use one.
 
He may be a Welsh Cob, but primarily consider that he is a horse, and a lot of horses and ponies are reluctant to load. Why? Maybe they don't like going into the enclosed space. Maybe they have had some bad journeys in the past. Maybe their owners just don't set it up right to help them. Maybe when they showed reluctance in the past people caused them pain and now they associate that with loading. Who knows? Whatever the reason, horses aren't robots, so sometimes we need to treat them with a bit of consideration and take a bit of time with them. If you can't do that, and keep your temper in the process so that you don't lay into him with a crop, maybe pay someone who is good at this sort of thing to help you.
 
A stubborn loader needs time.

I have a draught cross that will not get into the box no matter how many people try to force him in. I discovered that less is more. If I'm completely alone, I lead him up to the box with a slack lunge rope, I walk into the box and out the jockey door. I stay out of sight for a few minutes and he decides he wants the food in the box and saunters in. If he sees me at all, or anyone else, he will not go in. I walk around the outside to close it up.
If I have even one "assistant" it will take minimum 90 mins (if at all) completely alone it takes 5-10mins.
 
You can only scare a horse onto a trailer once, after that you're on a hiding to nothing as no amount of people can physically manhandle 500kg+ of reluctant horse onto a trailer or box. Work with him, not against him, and even if it does take you all summer at least you won't find yourself miles away, light fading, with a non-loader and loads of people "helping" with brooms, whips, water, lunge lines etc.
 
A friend of mine used to have to use the monty Roberts halter as stated above and it worked for her.

You could try the natural horseman ships running in lots of tight circles then up the ramp, this works with some horses.

Does your horse travel well when in? My sisters horse will only travel on the right and some people I know have removed the particions and let there two loose (no head collars) in the box otherwise the one will fall over.
 
I'm no rookie at this. My other 10 load well, and all were pretty much unhandled.

Should have had a rant warning on the original post, as that's what it was really. This one is an interesting case. He's a little bit 'special' - very submissive, and incredibly nervous of various things, from more dominant horses through to puddles.

When we got him (unbroken at 6) he wouldn't allow a person to stand near him anywhere other than directly in front, and would kick to keep you away. He's normal now, quiet to ride and safe to handle. Having managed to load him a couple of times I thought I'd cracked it - but clearly not, as he was being soooo stubborn. Even feeding crab apples to his friend in the box didn't tempt him.

Just delivered some pigs in the horsebox, so will take advantage of having the partition out to walk him through with the front ramp down a few times and feed him in it. The way to a welsh D's heart being through their stomach after all...
 
Make sure you get rid of every last trace of piggy pong. If it doesn't smell right he won't be too keen on loading. Other than I can only go along with what AmyMay and MagicMelon said. You need to have time and patience to sort out a bad loader, and if you are not skilled in the use of a Dually you could actually make him worse. It could take more than a few sessions of munchies in the trailer to get it sorted properly, you need to be aware that if you are going to try to sort the problem out you could be in for a long haul.
 
Is it the the smell of pigs? Do you use you box for moving pigs regularly, is your boy used to them. Some horses ( probably more than others ) are terrified of pigs & its generally the smell. Just throwing another comment into the mix.
 
As the others said, you do know that some horses are instinctively and understandably terrified of pigs? If that's the problem be very careful not to force the issue and flood him. Or he'll be in there once and never again.
 
I know many horses hate pigs with a passion, but all ours see our pet pigs regularly. Trailer hasn't had pigs in for over 2 years, but in any case he goes right past ours regularly, and will often nuzzle them through the fence :)
 
When we first bought him, he'd never been in a trailer. Walked straight in following an apple, and we shut the ramp safely. Then before we'd even set off he panicked, jumped the breast-bar from standing (which was set for a 16.2, and he's only a pony) and got himself stuck over the bar. He'd kicked the jockey door off its hinges, and would have tried to get through it if he wasn't cast over the bar!

Luckily on that occasion, I was able to drop the bar safely and unload him. We were only 3 miles from home so we waked him.

I think he's claustrophobic, probably just because he's such a general wuss. He's very attached to our 4yo NF stallion, who loads like a baby - so should follow him through. I'll let you know how we get on.
 
And he's had a terrifying and painful experience in the box. I wouldn't want to go in again if I were him, especially if people were slapping me with whips....
 
I hate to say it, but you've proved to the horse that he can no longer trust you...he isn't going to want to follow you into a confined space until you reverse that and put some effort in to getting him more confident around everything, including you and the trailer.

He'll only be "special" if you treat him as such.

His past should no longer have any bearing on what he does or doesn't do. If you've had him long enough to back him and be able to take him out hacking, you've had him long enough that he should have put all that behind him and be a confident, well mannered horse. If he isn't, it is probably you that needs to change (or someone handling him) as it is you that he will get his confidence and manners from.

Just maybe worth a bit less rant and a bit more thought.
 
Sidney said:
Can you buy/borrow a Monty Roberts Dually halter? It works on pressure and release and I have had great sucess with my 'non-loader'.

You will need to do some ground work with it first but there is plenty of info on the net on how to use one.
Click to expand...
I have had 100% success using the Richard Maxwell halter which works on the same principle, it's also improved all the in hand work, but you do need to spend time to jsolve the problem.
 
There are a few people getting really hot under the collar, and making the lovely assumption that I was standing behind the trailer whipping the living bejeezus out of poor terrified pony. Please tell me you all have never used a whip (judiciously) to reinforce a 'walk-on' command. At no point did I do anything which 'proved to him he can no longer trust me'.

I haven't taken him back to the trailer yet. I took him out driving yesterday instead. I figured that as he has only driven twice before, some months ago, this is still a confidence challenge for him, and will encourage some of the obedience he needs for loading, and get him used to being confined (within shafts) without confronting the 'ramp of doom' at all.

It went really well. He's very much on his toes, and holds his head so high he looks like a giraffe, but he did everything I asked of him, even with one of those monstrous green tractors behind us.
 
My Sec D went through a phase of not loading.

First thing to consider is partitions. If you have one in, try taking it out and vice versa.

Secondly, do not get into a battle. IMHO it makes them worse and you wont win. I give my mare lots of opportunities to change her mind about her decision, so that when she does get it right and load she considers it her idea :p As such if she is planted on the ramp and the usual geeing up doesnt work I make her back up and re-present her. Note I dont turn her away, I make her keep doing things I am asking her to do; backing up, moving sideways, flexing.

Thirdly, the best money I ever spent was on my Dually headcollar.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top