Travelling problem - rubbed bum

GinaGem

GinaGem

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I'm just wondering if anyone has any suggestions as to how i can stop my mare rubbing her bum while travelling in our trailer. She puts a lot of her weight onto her bum and we don't have a bum bar since she broke it and it fell between her legs - am reluctant to use another one now. She has a tail bandage with a guard over the top but she somehow manages to move her tail to one side and rub the skin where the bum curves inwards to her bits (can't explain this very well!!) The back of her bum ie the bit the sticks backwards the furthest never gets rubbed. After travelling (even a short distance, there is a patch where all the hair has gone and the skin is very pink. I'm wondering if to either coat the ramp with something soft (it's wooden) or to try and get something that will cover her bum?! That or an alternative to a bum bar that can't break or is soft? Can't really travel her with a rug with tail flap as she would be too hot.

She travels better in a horsebox which we will hopefully be getting soon but i'm reluctant to travel her again in the meantime.
 
I had a mare that used to do that and she'd arrive to shows with "burns" on her tail poor girl. We discovered that was her way of balancing when she didn't feel she had enough room (she was a bit of a princess) and she stopped doing it when we took the partitions out and traveeled her alone in the trailer.
 
yes i think it is that she needs more room to balance, i don't think she can spread her legs wide enough, hence the need for something bigger. we are going to try her in something rear facing and see if she travels better. We tend to travel her with another horse so can't remove the partition. Maybe next time will try her alone without the partition, i think your right that that would help.
 
Yes that's the sort of thing she has over the top of a tail bandage but i think she pushes her tail to one side when balancing.

Foam is a good idea, we put foam around the chest bar to make it more comfortable so could use the same stuff.
 
Are you looking at the quarter guards below the tail guard shown? They cover the backside more and are worn under the tail.. might make a difference..
 
She is leaning either against the side of the trailer or the side of the partion depending on which side the rub is, so you could try padding those.

What I used to do with my mare was hang a haynet up behind her to lean on as it was soft and she then didn't rub herself
 
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