travelling your horse.

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tallywhacker

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Ive posted a few times about my horse who is a bad loader and traveller. Took him out saturday, hacked him to venue as was close did 2 tests then put him on trailer to come home. (Well when i say put i mean took an hour to get the monkey on) he travelled really badly and by the time id got home he was in such a state it looked like i was running a hose on his back for the sweat that was pouring off. He travels cross tied with no partitions.
All checks done and trailer floor, tyre pressure etc.
Just wondering if peoples horses travel better with or without partitions, facing forward or back. I might hire an equitrek to see what hes like in one however ive heard they are not made as well as ifors and you get ramp problems? And obviously would need the L Model and would need to check my car (kia sorento) is man enough to tow it.
 
My mare travels badly in a trailer, also a pain to load.
I hired a 3.5ton lorry to try her in and she's a different traveller altogether. She loads better and travels as quiet as a lamb (camera to watch her).

I ended up selling the trailer and hire a box when necessary. It's slightly annoying insomuch as I had the towing car and trailer but it is so less stressful for both me and her.
 
My horse definitely prefers to travel in a lorry. Happy to load, will stand there no problem. Put her in a trailer and she stops halfway in and reverses, and sits there and snorts at me. However once she's in she's fine - as long as she has hay! She doesn't fret as much as your poor fella.

Would definitely try a 3.5t or equitrek and see how you go :)
 
Thats also an option. And i have been looking into getting a 3.5 movano conversion done. He is a big boy but if i have nothing in the way of a living area and drive on my own i should be within the weight limit. I know really i should be looking at bigger lorries but i dont know how id manage driving a mahoosive big lorry. As long as it has the same internal stall size as a 510 i should be ok. The guy i spoke to said his mavano conversion is just 6 cms lower than a 510 but is longer from bum to chest. Also i would want a solid bulk head as i dong trust him not to climb into living area. Also the one i looked at was really bright inside which i think he would prefer. Then i need a loan or a lottery win 😂
 
If i knew how to post videos i would show you. It breaks my heart. He hates it! Hes such a dude. And when we get to parties he loves it! Its just getting him there. Theres a novice and nervous ode in stroud on the 20th september and i really want to go but with it being such a long way from home it would take a while to hack! And i find it must be so draining for him when i travel to a comp hes still stressy when i arrive but feel it takes so much out of him. I told my mum saturday that i was never travelling him again! Its not dangerous as such he just gets so stressy!
 
I would consider hiring a small 3.5t have a go in a self drive one there surprisingly easy to drive as am a bit of a wimp with a large vehicle but loved driving the lorry when I picked up my lad as it was a 5hr drive I didn't fancy it in the trailer figured he be more comfortable in a box. the modern ones are so easy to drive but granted not cheap to buy so if not going out too often id look at hiring. Certainly worth ago just to see if hes less stressed and loads/travels better in one.
If hes no better then have you considered trying a trainer to work with him on his loading nerves?
 
My 3.5 tonne box has more space (length wise and head height) than most 7.5 tonne lorries I have owned and seen. Make sure you check the measurements really carefully as lots of them are not so generous, especially if they have a long living area, which really cuts into the horse space. .

My horse is a chunky 17hh and quite long, and he has loads of space. We have 7'10 head height, and the length is about 8 foot from bum to chest, plus an extra 4 foot for his head over the bar. Personally I think this setup is a lot nicer than having the head against a full height wall as they move their necks more freely to balance. I have a payload of slightly over 1.1 tonnes, so have plenty of free weight for equipment, me, water etc.
 
My horse was an absolute pain to load and travelled terribly. I re-educated her to self load and be really comfortable with being on a trailer. Now she travels beautifully so in her case it was teaching her acceptance of the trailer rather than forcing her on. I haven't tried her in a rear facing box or trailer since though, nor will she ever travel on the left. I do travel her with partitions because she likes to lean on corners.
 
Abacus what make is your box? I was not going to have any living to save on weight.
9tails how did u do that? Just been trying now. Seems worse than ever. Gave in after getting one foot on ramp. Will try again tomorrow. Im not sure whether its fear or hes taking the mick. I can c his heart beating but hes pawing at the ramp dragging me around then he stops and eats..feel so deflated right now :(
 
Mine is an Equimark but a very old one and I bought it second hand - they are now very expensive, although I am sure the build quality and dimensions is still very good.

I have been half-considering an upgrade recently, and some of the manufacturers I liked have been Equihunter, Bloomfields and Boss. I have noticed as well that the Ascot have very good head height but have no idea about the build quality. It is so hard to find good ones second hand.
 
I'd try a horsebox, and travel backwards if possible. But you can also do a lot to help him feel happier in the trailer. Have it open and walk him towards it but past it and around the trailer regularly, a few times a day. When he's doing this without showing signs of stress start putting his feed bucket with a small amount of feed on the ramp, gradually moving it up every time until he's voluntarily putting his feet on the ramp to eat, then move it into the trailer. Keep the exit open so he doesn't feel trapped. When he's happy to walk into the trailer start tying him up with a haynet, just for a few seconds at first, increasing the time each session. When he's happy to walk onto the trailer and be left tied up for half an hour start lifting the ramps, again, just for a few seconds at first, gradually increasing the time until he's happy munching a haynet in there while you do some yard duties or whatever. When he's happy with this - and I mean he should be so used to the trailer he's bored of it - run the engine for a short time, turn off and unload. When he's 100% happy with this you can start moving, start with literally a few feet for his first 'journey' and increase when he's comfortable. I don't know the layout of your yard but if it's possible to load him and take him for a trip to turn him out in the field - do it! Then do very short trips, maybe just up the road to a favourite hack.

I know this all sounds tedious, but that's the point, you want the trailer to become something he's really familiar with, not something novel or exciting/stressful. The more often you can fit in these sessions the better, pick a month you won't need to travel in and spend time working on this a a few times a day and you should see progress quickly and he'll be loading like a dream within the month :)
 
tallywhacker said:
Abacus what make is your box? I was not going to have any living to save on weight.
9tails how did u do that? Just been trying now. Seems worse than ever. Gave in after getting one foot on ramp. Will try again tomorrow. Im not sure whether its fear or hes taking the mick. I can c his heart beating but hes pawing at the ramp dragging me around then he stops and eats..feel so deflated right now :(
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I've not yet seen a stubborn horse when loading but I've seen many scared ones; what horse would PREFER to be yanked, pulled, shouted at, broom up arse, water flicked at them, lunge lines hauling on their butt, lunge whips whacking them, chiffney/dually/be nice headcollars, when all they need to do is walk calmly in the trailer.

Mine was trained using Parelli methods. As soon as she so much as flicked an ear in the direction of the trailer I became neutral. I was never in the trailer but stood to one side and left it open for her to investigate. She was on a 12ft rope so I wasn't trying to haul her in, I tickled her rump to get her in the right position and let her decide what was better. She chose the trailer, one step at a time and being allowed to reverse when she felt claustrophobic. Then she was asked to go back in. It wasn't immediate and the first few outings took a while to get her on at each end but every time it got better and now I can barely get the ramp to the ground before she's stepping on it to get in.
 
Its just so frustrating. :( i spend all my money on him and give him so much time and at times i think whats the point.I know that sounds terrible...
 
If he's dragging you around you're not giving him enough rope. I don't think you really know what pressure and release is, it's not pulling until the horse comes forward, it's pressuring the horse to go forward. Big difference, a taut rope is never in my repertoire.

This may give you some inspiration https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy0lZlx8hZA
 
tallywhacker said:
Ive posted a few times about my horse who is a bad loader and traveller. Took him out saturday, hacked him to venue as was close did 2 tests then put him on trailer to come home. (Well when i say put i mean took an hour to get the monkey on) he travelled really badly and by the time id got home he was in such a state it looked like i was running a hose on his back for the sweat that was pouring off. He travels cross tied with no partitions.
All checks done and trailer floor, tyre pressure etc.
Just wondering if peoples horses travel better with or without partitions, facing forward or back. I might hire an equitrek to see what hes like in one however ive heard they are not made as well as ifors and you get ramp problems? And obviously would need the L Model and would need to check my car (kia sorento) is man enough to tow it.
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i had all this with my horse, so much so that I took him to the Monty Roberts demo at my local riding club. For 7.5 years he'd pratically trotted into the trailer and then one day it all went pear shaped. His reluctance to load was started when I showed him a pet pig at a showground and he was terrified and started shaking. Loading him to come home was a nightmare, although loading him to go was the normal effortless seconds it normally took, and the journey was uneventful. It took 3/4 hour that day to load, the following week it took me two hours!

After the Monty Roberts demo I got hold of a dually and started using this, when he stood with all four feet on the ramp but refusing to move foward I would make him reverse back and he would walk backwards. He soon got bored and the alternaive (the only alternative was to walk forwards onto the trailer.) If he wouldn't go on he went backwards again. Eventually he learnt! To help him I put a small radio in the trailer with him, on a radio chat station, I put a piece of thick rubber between the top door of the front unload and the frame of the trailer to allow more ventilation, I lowered the height of my hay net slightly. After a while he started loading quicker and quicker each time, and now he walks in four out of every five times straight away, the one time he doesn't it takes less than ten seconds!

He still loves his jumping and dressage and its so nice to be able to rely on him again and not spend all night before the event tossing and turning and worrying about not being able to go because he wouldn't load.

Me swapping my trailer for a lorry never even came into the equation. I couldn't afford it so it wasn't an option.
 
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You've had some really great advice about training to load and travel in a trailer, but I would also be one to suggest trying a lorry.
My big boy would pretty much load himself into a 7.5 or 3.5 T lorry, travelled better forward or herringbone than facing backwards, but was generally no problem. Try loading him onto a trailer though? Forget it. Can only assume he must have had a bad experience in the past. I didn't have my own transport so we didn't go many places and always hired or borrowed lorries, so I never needed to deal with the trailer issue really.
Even a 7.5T lorry is much easier to drive than you probably think. If you can reverse a trailer, you can do anything!
 
tallywhacker said:
Abacus what make is your box? I was not going to have any living to save on weight.
9tails how did u do that? Just been trying now. Seems worse than ever. Gave in after getting one foot on ramp. Will try again tomorrow. Im not sure whether its fear or hes taking the mick. I can c his heart beating but hes pawing at the ramp dragging me around then he stops and eats..feel so deflated right now :(
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He doesn't respect you and you need to make him respect you before you start trying to load him.

No horse that drags you around and paws out of temper, is trained.

You should work on him being responsive on a pressure halter, and you must do this stage correctly so I would read and watch some Richard Maxwell stuff. Once you have him so that he will respond to the lightest touch and you can move him forwards backwards and sideways, move onto more challenging things such as walking over/standing on a tarp.

He also needs to stand quietly tied up on the yard by himself without a haynet/distraction. If he can't do that he cannot be calm in a stressful situation.

Once that is totally established and bomb proof you move on to an entire day free to start the process of training him to load properly.

You load him at least 50 times. Sometimes walking through, sometimes stopping inside.

You do that every day for a week (or more depending on his behaviour). Religiously.

Once he is totally calm and will stand in the box while you shut the bars etc you start leaving him with a haynet for as long as it takes for him to relax and eat his hay. Preferably for an hour at least.

You do that every day for a week or as long as it takes to achieve complete calm.

Then you load every day multiple times, leave standing a good half hour, take for a trip, leave for another half hour then unload and reload multiple times.

Trying to load at a show was a recipe for disaster.

This work will take hours initially. He will need to be constantly reminded of his training, but you will ultimately have a horse who loads and stands quietly and doesn't get stressed.

Repetition, good experiences and time are the key to success.
 
I use a linge line and try to copy the technique michael used. I think its purley his size he runs off and i cant hold him. I will watch that video and see how they do it. I think i might hire a lorry before i think about getting one. Just in case he says no to that too.
I thought about a monty roberts demo however i dont know how i would get him there! So i got an ih associate but he couldnt load him either x
 
I know he has no respect for me none whatsoever however i have tried to work with him on the ground but never shows improvement hes a ****** to lead, is nappy to ride is a fidget when tied up too! Im starting to think i need to find a new hobby
 
I don't know if you saw my thread in here Project Spaghetti legs, well that horse was a complete pig in every way 8 weeks ago. I can't hold her. I've made her believe I am stronger and in through repetition and consistency. Any person and any horse can do it. A small pony will get away from you if it really wants too. It's just easier for him.

Start from the beginning and make him do it.
 
No but i will look, he only seems confident around his heard. He has no confidence in me and i know that. But ive had him 2 and a half years. Bought as an untouched 4 year old hes improved in someways obviously i backed him etc but thered massive gaps and im starting to feel like i just cant correct it.
 
You can and you can do it pretty quickly in my opinion.

I explained some of what I do to get perfect behaviour (all of my horses behave impeccably to handle and load etc, my 6yr old daughter can lead and load, walk them off at shows all of them barring Spaghetti horse but she's only been here 8 weeks and was very badly behaved), and they are a wide variety of types and breeds and temperaments). You have to be completely consistent and on top of every single foot out of place with a horse like him, but it's so worth it. The horses are happy and confident too.
 
I agree with the leading exercises comment. It sounds like a worthwhile investment would be seeing a suitably qualified equine behaviourist (APBC recognised- Association of Pet Behavioural Councillors) as most loading problems are leading issues. There is more and more information coming out about equitation science (equine behaviour advice that has scientific papers backing it up) and it can make a huge difference but more importantly it does so with the horses welfare at the core. I also used Confidence EQ (and equine pheromone that reassures them) with my mare but alongside appropriate training.
 
I was looking into the confidence eq. It was recommended to me by my instructor. Ive emailed richard maxwell also and been out and bought a new trailer. Which is white inside much brighter and more inviting IMO however he doesnt think so. Have left partitions in as its bigger . And have started to do lots of groundwork. So ill just have to see how it goes x
 
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