Taking Horses Abroad - Experiences?

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LillySparrow

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Hia. Looking at taking my mare with us to U.S. when we move there later this year. Have names of a few companies who fly horses over and am aware it is expensive but have not done much homework beyond this, yet. Anyone relocated their horse to another country and any views on the travelling part and the changes to routine once you reach your destination? Also any recommendations for companies appreciated! Thanks!
 
Sorry, no experience but firstly, best of luck with the move - how exciting!!

On a more constructive note - perhaps some of the top SJ/Eventing/Dressage yards could be worth contacting with a polite email asking for help. They would be able to give some good advice and perhaps some contacts too??
 
We went to the US (Georgia) a few years back and I thought about taking my horse over but couldn't justify the cost (of around 7k) when we were only going for 18 months so I loaned mine out and our daughter took hers to boarding school. I am so glad that I made that decision as I wouldn't have been happy with stables where we lived, the care and standards were not comparable to UK and my mare wouldn't have coped with the summer heat and humidity. Where are you going? Make sure you do your research on local stables well in advance!
 
ours did the opposite - two of them came from overseas to the uk.
the biggest worry was how they would cope with the change in the climate. they settled into a new routine pretty quickly with minimal upset.

the one thing I would say about the travelling is to invest in a decent padded headcollar. one of mine had several rubs on his face when he arrived.
 
Ali27: we are going to Chicago. So an urban environment but two local yards which we already went to see. Both look ok but would be happier with somewhere further out / more rural, as these, understadably, have only minimal turnout. Climate is very cold and snowy winters (but stables all are heated!! How posh!) and hot summers. I don't think the humidity is too bad compared to some states. We are going permanently, so although have considered a loan i am not sure how well this will work out as would be very difficult to check on her condition / care.

Blood magik 0 thanks for headcollar tip. Also wondering if a leather headcollar might be suitable?
 
a horse from my yard went to canada a couple of years ago and tbh i would not recommend it for all horses. he did not cope well with being on quarantine for months before he went.- the transporters kept changing the dates of travel as they wouldnt go without a full load on the plane so dates changed all the time . . he was rearing up at the vet when he was trying to take bloods and had to be sedated on the plane after travelling from south wales to belgium on a lorry then on to canada .after landing he had to stay 2 weeks in quarantine because they couldnt get bloods from him to clear customs
he really was a changed horse and has taken 2 years in canada to settle back down. hes a 14.2hh traditional cob that WAS very chilled and quiet
i think it was ment to cost around £10k and it was more than double that after everything.
 
We had our two girls bought and shipped from the UK to france.

We managed the much of the move ourselves.

We foresaw a lot of stress for the animals, but at the end of the day the girls were fine, we stressed out though.

The Girls have settled in and are fine.
 
Horse travel all the time now, recommend you speak with Shelley ashman international, they have always arranged my international travel!

Good luck!
 
I flew my horses out to California a couple of years ago. For the US there is no pre-quarantine in the UK, just vet checks. Then geldings are in quarantine at the airport for 24-48 hrs, mares and stallions do this but also have to do breeding quarantine for 3-4 weeks too. For Chicago I'm guessing you'll fly into NY and do quarantine there, then you'll have to trailer up to wherever you will board them.

My horses coped fine with the journey, I visited them once they were out of airport quarantine - they were a little flat but I gave them a turnout and a chance to stretch their legs and they were fine after that. They have aclimated to the hot weather here fantastically and don't seem to mind the heat at all. It was a steep learning curve for me though, everything is different here - hay, hard feed, routines, names for stuff.

I used Pedens to ship mine and I can't recommend them highly enough. They made it so easy for me. The flight dates changed a couple of times, but it wasn't a problem for us.

Feel free to pm or email me for more info.

Oh, and there is an article in Dressage today this month about travelling with horses.
 
My guys only went to France but the south west so it gets mega hot in the summer. I used parkers and they where fab. One was such a nervous traveller I literally worried myself sick but she got off there lorry like she was a seasoned pro. The only thing that they struggled with at first was the flies but after the first year they got used to them :)
 
I work for international racehorse transport, and horses that I look after that are travelling to Australia cope really well with the quarantine and the travelling
 
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