Travelling WWYD Question

[Fools Motto]

To get 5 TB weanling foals to the same place, but only have a 4 horse herringbone style lorry. Each partition is a full sized 'solid' one.

Or would you not risk it and get a transporter to do the job?

 

[CBFan]

Make 2 journeys

or

Take partitions out, straw bed it out and travel loose? but that means having plenty of hands on deck at both ends to load and unload.

 

[Tinsel Town]

wouldnt risk it personally, babies travelling is risker anyway IMO with balancing their weight etc, get a transporter or do 2 journeys

 

[AMW]

take the partitions out & travel loose, thats what we would do

 

[CBFan]

I have always travelled weanlings loose - can't trust them not to hang themselves any other way!

They can all turn round to face the way they want to when loose, many lie down and they all manage to balance perfectly well.

I can't see the problem with a bunch of babies, especially if they all know eachother... it is quite a sizable lorry for 5 littl'uns... if two can be travelled loose in a trailer, I'm sure 5 can cope in a 4 horse lorry.

 

[Clippy]

I'd rather travel them loose together than try to get each in an individual partition personally

 

[Llanali]

Remove all partitions etc, bed it our with straw and travel all loose. As above I have always travelled babies like this, often two in a trailer so no concerns over five in a four horse box.
Just no opening any doors, not even to check, until you get to the destination,

 

[mutley75]

Except for every one over 6 months old and not on its mother must be in a separate section. Even though we all know different these rules are designed as part of the welfare in transport regs.

 

[Lynette]

Actually Mutley it is perfectly legal to travel these unbroken foals loose in a pen providing there are no more than 4 to a pen so I would make 2 pens up and have 3 in one and 2 in the other. I think you may be confusing it with passports where foals over 6 months old need their own passport

We once took DEFRA Ministry Vets to task at Portsmouth who had already turned back 4 lorries that week by using the seperate bay ruling for International journies. We had 4 weaned Shetland foals in 1 pen and a Shetland mare and foal in another. They wanted them all split up and travelled seperately.

Luckily my husband teaches for the Animal in Transit Certificates and after an hour the Defra vets were unable to produce the proof in their regulation paperwork and it was pointed out they would actually be causing more stress to the animals concerned.

On our return to the UK a phonecall was made to the person who was responsible for writing the policy in the first instance and the DEFRA vets were sent a letter from him poinying out the error of their ways. As Cliff pointed out it was never to be implied a mare and foal should be seperated in transit or animals that have been weaned together be split up.

 

[mutley75]

Stand corrected. Maybe its different for me being commercial.

 

[mutley75]

Stand corrected, its up to you to prove they would be distressed if separated. Had to read up as normally ours are all different groups so easier to partition.