Travelling - Help

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drumcomie

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Hi I was just wondering if anybody could help or has had similar problems. My sister has a 16.2hh gelding who usually travels perfectly - he walks in no problem and has always been fine when on the road. Recently when he has been in he has been struggling to keep balance and falling all over the place and when we arrive at a show he is in an awful state covered in cuts and dripping in sweat. We can't seem to understand what could be wrong and hate seeing him so distressed when travelling. Any suggestions would be appreciated as my sister is keen to get him out and about again. Thanks!
 
This is what my pony is doing ATM ..I have a lady out ,helping me this week ..so far we are two days in and going well ..so there is hope ;)
 
Back checked? Does he prefer being wedged in or in an open space?
My pony always just never bothered to try to stand up. He had one particularly awful journey about Feb or March this year and has been perfect since! He's 14 and very well travelled.
 
Thanks, he usually doesn't mind standing in with another horse so I don't know what's prompted him to do this. We're considering trying a single bar partition but we have two horses. Lambkins what is the woman helping you to do as we'd be quite interested in trying whatever you are doing out.
 
Now this is going to sound like I'm crazy (and I know how crazy it is ;) ) first I did all the checks vet ,backlady etc before reloading him..I bought him as a 2year old and he is now 6 ..he was lightly travelled as a 2-3 year old to the odd show WITHOUT problems ...ok as a 4year old (it will be two years ago this weekend) I was talked into by a friend to take my pony on a sponsored ride ..and was offered a space on a hired trailer (I own my own transport but other half was away with our car that weekend) so on the morning of the ride , my friend asked me to load mine first as hers can be nervous.so I said yes , as He was halfway on my friend trotted her pony on next to him ..well he turned his head quickly to see what was going on .as he turn his front leg slipped and he lost balance and fell on me ..he scared the life out of both of us . We were bruised but no major injurys luckily ..roll on two weeks ..I was booked in for a dressage ..loaded up on the morning (in my trailer) loaded fine just walked on as normal..locked him in ..all fine ..pulled off ..and well hell broke loose ..he was throwing himself right and his leg were going left ..he was throwing himself on the floor ..kicking ..sweating ..we stopped ASAP and I ran into him and unloaded ASAP ..I can not tell you how bad he was ..but the minute he was off he was back to normal :/ ...so I loaded him every day for a month ..started with walk on and off ..then on feeding him and off again ..then on shutting him in feeding then off again ..till we were moving him a few foot ..and getting him off ..till we were back on the road again ..he was perfect for 18months ..then he was off competing due to liver problem (start aug last year) so did go in the trailer from July ish till December ..December he had to go to Newmarket (hospital ) he loaded fine ..half way there he started banging and the trailer was bouncing ..we stopped and looked throw the jockey door ...he was doing the learning again ..and kicking the hell out the front of my trailer ..and covered in white foam..we called the hospital and they were 20 mins away so we had to carry on our jorney (vet was waiting as we arrived he was shocked at the state of my pony ) ..he was there 4 days ..I asked my friend to collect him in her lorry (trailer went to be repaired) vet sedated him to travel home ..I sat the the back with him ..stroking him and singing jingle bells all the way home ...I did not load him again till last Thursday (to be honest I was so frightened I was I no rush to travel him again ) I walk him on ..shut him in fed him got him off ..he was fine with that ..Friday last week I loaded him and moved him forward 10 foot .. Well he went crazy ..I got him off and I was crying my eyes out (as u do) as I was walking him back to the stables ..the YO 's friend was there (just arrived as pony went crazy) she asked if she could talk to him ..through the tears I said yes ..this pony is breaking my heart.. She put her hand on him (but didn't say anything ) after 5mins ..(I'm still crying) she said 'he was fine in the trailer ..but he said the other horse scared him ..he got his confidence back for a while but he had lost it again ' NOW this lady does not know me or my pony and there is no way she could have known that !!! (I now how crazy that sounds but I promise that is what happened) she asked me to load him back up ..(ramp down) ..she just stood in the trailer with her hand on him ..she then asked me to shut the ramps (she is still in with him ) after 10mins she asked to be let out ..she went the the back of the trailer and rocked it ..he kicked out ..so she went back in with him ..she climbed out 2 mins later and rocked it again ..he didn't move ..she asked me to start the car ..and drive a couple of foot forward (she was not in the trailer ) then she asked me to reverse 20foot ..he didn't move ..we did this for half hour ..and he didn't kick once ..got him off gave him a pat ..didn't load him at the weekend as the yard is too busy ..Monday lady came back ..she touched him and told me a few more things about him (and made me cry again ;) ) we loaded him and moved him back and fowards ..with breaks where she went in the see him ..then we took him down the road (I'm in panic mode) he was fine on the bumpy drive and fine in the road ..had a little stamp coming off the roundabout (we when round it and as I turn off he must of lost balance ) but he was fine ..got back to the stables and for him off ..no sweat ..no panic . Happy pony .. Tuesday and yesterday the lady was not about so with the help of a stable mate I loaded him and drove him on short jorneys ..and he was perfect travelled like a dream ..I will travel him everyday for the next few weeks ..SO that is my story ..I like to base things on facts ..and the fact is ..he was better with this lady than without ..she knew things about us ..I don't care if she is crazy ..i don't care if I am crazy ..but it's working and we are in a much better place thanks to her ;)
 
Drumcomie check the floor and the mats. They can know before you if there's a problem with what they're stood on. Then it's trial and error - try him on the left, the right, with no partitions. Not fun. There's nothing more petrifying than a bad traveller
 
Thanks Lambkins, we'll give that a go and I'm glad it's working out so well for you. Spottyappy we're currently travelling him in an iforwilliams trailer and that's what we've used since we got him last year so he's facing forward.
 
One of my mares started to throw herself around the trailer. She would load perfectly and un load as if nothing had happened, but as soon as you started the engine she too started throwing herself against the partition,these episodes never affected her competitions, she was perfect (she competed in Endurance)

She had already travelled 1000's of miles without a problem. After thinking long and hard and speaking to loads of people we did the following.

1. Had her back checked
2. Moved her to the left hand side of the trailer.
3. Took off all boots and bandages.
4. Did not tie her up
5. Started her on Magnesium and gave her an instant magic calmer an hour before travelling her.
6. We gave her extra space at the back so that she could spread her hind legs more.
7. We put some shavings down,horses do not like feeling as if they are going to slip on a wet or dropping covered floor.

Horses loss magnesium through using the muscles more to keep themselves stable in a lorry or trailer and the more they fret the more they loss through sweating.

This has worked for us and she has continued to travel many more miles.

We checked the trailer out. We had already had a new floor fitted. We had rubber matting on the lower side walls so she could not hear the sound of metal.
 
Just want to add ...I also have a deep shavings bed down in my trailer (gives them better footing) I use a quick release lope in the trailer (so I can quickly release him if need be) and I drive him slower than slow ATM ..I mean I drive very slow normally ..but at the mo I'm really really slow ..and even slower turning :D ..but yesterday I managed to tow my boy 4miles to the woods ..got him off hacked him ..and towed him back ..and he was as cool
As a cucumber ..no stamping ,throwing himself ..no sweating ...no stress ..thank god ..I had a massive grin for the rest of the day !! ...loading and travelling everyday is hard ,time consuming , stressful , and a lot of other things too .. But when you see it come back together again it's time well spent !!
 
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