Trailering and scrambling pony

[hollyclarkpeterpan]

Hey my pony peterpan is a 11yr Welsh x and past owners told us he was good to load travel ect
unfortuntely we found out he wasnt when I tried to go to xc the trailer was stationary and he Physically couldnt stand up and was holding himself up with the bar today we tried standing him in a horse lorry and again same thing he physically couldn’t stand this one was more closed in ect but he physically struggles to stand and just kind of flops if a bar wasn’t there I think he would just fall he just cannot stand his hooves just kind of loose balance and go sideways he doesn’t stress he just keeps trying to eat the hay but we can’t even move the trailer or lorry just stationary he starts to loose balance we tried moving it and he just thrashes side to side whislt only being held by the metal bar he loads onto the trailer well it’s just so odd any ideas or anyone with the same issue he just cannot stand any help would be appreciated xx

 

[paddi22]

did you try him in a Horsebox with the partition out? a lot of times if they can stand diagonal they balance better. it's fixed any scramblers I got in.

do you know how the old owners travelled him?

 

[Red-1]

I have known a few go like this, and often found they have some arthritis starting, which hurts during transit. They get so worried that they start to scramble before the ramp is even up.

Travelling with no partition can help, as they can position themselves so the hurtey bit isn't under pressure. As can changing transport so they stand the other way.

I have also known such as hock injections help.

 

[paddi22]

yep red 1 has a great point, it is often the first sign of hock arthritis for some

 

[hollyclarkpeterpan]

I have known a few go like this, and often found they have some arthritis starting, which hurts during transit. They get so worried that they start to scramble before the ramp is even up.

Travelling with no partition can help, as they can position themselves so the hurtey bit isn't under pressure. As can changing transport so they stand the other way.

I have also known such as hock injections help.

He only starts to scramble properly when the doors are done up before doors are done up he’s a little bit egar to go in but never thrashed around or nearly fallen unless doors are done up we’ve tried him with another horse in there as he like horse company that didn’t work ect which is why I think it isn’t that and more like anxiety or something ?? I don’t really know but isn’t quite scary to watch sometimes I’m 15 and have hated watching him go through it so far as I worry he will injure himself he just kind of thrashes and nearly falls and we can’t work it out he’s my first pony and I was told he was great but he turned out that he had vices which we’ve over come and we went to view him he was green and not schooled properly which again we’ve overcome and then it turned out he scrambles i wouldn’t ever sell him he’s my best friend and a great pony with best personality and we’ve come so far from loosing confidence to gaining it again and finally ready to do stuff and it turned out he scrambles just another thing we will try and over come just glad to have him uninjured he’s lucky he’s going to have a forever with us and we will try our best to get him trailering ect but that thank you for the reply I will look into that if there’s any advice on boots or anything that could help let me know xx

 

[hollyclarkpeterpan]

did you try him in a Horsebox with the partition out? a lot of times if they can stand diagonal they balance better. it's fixed any scramblers I got in.

do you know how the old owners travelled him?

We’ve been told to do that and we will definitely give it a try we know people who are going to help us and people who will let us use their trailer to help find best way to travel him so just got to figure out a date to try him out doing different things the old owners traveled him in a horse box lorry told us he was fine but when he was travelling down the road we could hear him thrashing around but didn’t think anything of it as it’s my first pony and I’m 15 and doesn’t come of the trailer stressed or anything he just had no balance ect it’s hard to watch him when he scrambles as i worry he will injure himself while doing so if we take the partition away is there a chance he could fall over as he relies heavily on the partition to the point that when you get him out the trailer he is still relies heavily on the partition and struggles to take balance from his feet at all the only way to describe what he does is any bit of movement he just almost drops can’t hold himself and thrashes side to side with any movement and and the trailer and lorry just kind of rock side to side and he just doesn’t hold his body at all have you seen a horse ever fall without the partition if so how would we be able to keep him from getting uninjured the best we can or get him up or try help him regain his balance he starts to fall with out a partition ?? Xx

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

Do you put boots or bandages on him? If so take then off. Many don't like them and would rather know where their legs are by feel rather than have wrapped up.

 

[hollyclarkpeterpan]

Do you put boots or bandages on him? If so take then off. Many don't like them and would rather know where their legs are by feel rather than have wrapped up.

He had boots on we thought that could be the issue we took them off samething happened xx

 

[paddi22]

We’ve been told to do that and we will definitely give it a try we know people who are going to help us and people who will let us use their trailer to help find best way to travel him so just got to figure out a date to try him out doing different things the old owners traveled him in a horse box lorry told us he was fine but when he was travelling down the road we could hear him thrashing around but didn’t think anything of it as it’s my first pony and I’m 15 and doesn’t come of the trailer stressed or anything he just had no balance ect it’s hard to watch him when he scrambles as i worry he will injure himself while doing so if we take the partition away is there a chance he could fall over as he relies heavily on the partition to the point that when you get him out the trailer he is still relies heavily on the partition and struggles to take balance from his feet at all the only way to describe what he does is any bit of movement he just almost drops can’t hold himself and thrashes side to side with any movement and and the trailer and lorry just kind of rock side to side and he just doesn’t hold his body at all have you seen a horse ever fall without the partition if so how would we be able to keep him from getting uninjured the best we can or get him up or try help him regain his balance he starts to fall with out a partition ?? Xx

I've had a few that were similar, they would literally be sideways against the wall halfway under the partition scrambling, and all their balance would be on the wall. when the partition is out they can spread their legs more and that allows them to balance better. if you think of yourself on a packed train, if your feet are close together and you are facing straight ahead and the train is wobbling it's hard to balance. you would naturally space your legs out and turn diagionally a bit so can balance better. hopefully it works with your lad. I panic less about them falling with the partition out than when it is in. you will also know quickly if it working and can stop if you feel him scrambling.

also something to consider. is the driver used to driving horse boxes? some people accelerate and do corners too fast and jolt braking, and that can really upset some horses too. just something to consider.

 

[hollyclarkpeterpan]

I've had a few that were similar, they would literally be sideways against the wall halfway under the partition scrambling, and all their balance would be on the wall. when the partition is out they can spread their legs more and that allows them to balance better. if you think of yourself on a packed train, if your feet are close together and you are facing straight ahead and the train is wobbling it's hard to balance. you would naturally space your legs out and turn diagionally a bit so can balance better. hopefully it works with your lad. I panic less about them falling with the partition out than when it is in. you will also know quickly if it working and can stop if you feel him scrambling.

also something to consider. is the driver used to driving horse boxes? some people accelerate and do corners too fast and jolt braking, and that can really upset some horses too. just something to consider.

We haven’t got as far as driving down a road only like half a meter then he falls but thank you for the advice I will try that and see how that goes xx

 

[paddi22]

thinking back now, we also tried a different approach with one we got in that was very bad. we ended up putting a good bed of shavings in the box and just taking front and back ramp down and leading on, feeding, and then leading straight off. horse learned to associate the box with dinner instead of stress after a week or so. and the bed of shavings seem to make it feel less 'horseboxey' for it. eventually we would feed on box and start engine, then worked to putting up ramps, then rolling forward and then driving after a bit.

 

[brighteyes]

Take the partition out and use full width bars.

 

[mini_b]

yep red 1 has a great point, it is often the first sign of hock arthritis for some

Not hugely experienced with hock changes but one of the first things I noticed was he wasn’t travelling as he normally did. Still jumping, never refused, but became funny to load. He again never refused but took bloody ages and was almost as if it hurt to tip his weight back to lift front legs onto ramp. Then I think he was reluctant to load because he knew it was hard standing to travel.

Only recently had injections and he’s a different horse again.

Had it not been changes in hocks which I suspected, he’s rather large and is perhaps is difficult to balance squished to one side, I would have taken partition out so he could stand diagonally.

He did once do a full journey having untied himself and had his head hanging out of the back doors and it was quite honestly the smoothest journey he’d ever done. They do say travelling backwards is much easier for them and he took this into his own hands. I’m still baffled to this day at how he had turned around!

 

[hollyclarkpeterpan]

Not hugely experienced with hock changes but one of the first things I noticed was he wasn’t travelling as he normally did. Still jumping, never refused, but became funny to load. He again never refused but took bloody ages and was almost as if it hurt to tip his weight back to lift front legs onto ramp. Then I think he was reluctant to load because he knew it was hard standing to travel.

Only recently had injections and he’s a different horse again.

Had it not been changes in hocks which I suspected, he’s rather large and is perhaps is difficult to balance squished to one side, I would have taken partition out so he could stand diagonally.

He did once do a full journey having untied himself and had his head hanging out of the back doors and it was quite honestly the smoothest journey he’d ever done. They do say travelling backwards is much easier for them and he took this into his own hands. I’m still baffled to this day at how he had turned around!

its kind of weird with my 13.2 he walks up good as gold not funny with his feet walks in good as gold and you do up the door great and then only once the door is done up slightest bit of movement wind movement ect ( both trailer and lorry faced backwards ) and he dramatically scrambles we are on a livery yard and somebody had a horse that also scrambled So they came to try and see and they were shocked and said he really scrambles bad the box is stationary you need to phone past owners they denied it and it also wasn’t in the info when we brought him but im attached to him and absolutely love him and he’s staying with us forever we are going to try stuff/arrangements out then if they don’t work we will try rehabilitate him to trailers thank you for your advice i will look into any hock issue signs of his xx

 

[hollyclarkpeterpan]

thinking back now, we also tried a different approach with one we got in that was very bad. we ended up putting a good bed of shavings in the box and just taking front and back ramp down and leading on, feeding, and then leading straight off. horse learned to associate the box with dinner instead of stress after a week or so. and the bed of shavings seem to make it feel less 'horseboxey' for it. eventually we would feed on box and start engine, then worked to putting up ramps, then rolling forward and then driving after a bit.

We will try opening it up and other trailer arrangements if that doesn’t work then we will try rehabilitating them thank you for your advice and help xx