Why has he forgotten how to balance in his trailer?!

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Niffer

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Please help and make suggestions...

I've got a IW HB510 which I've had from new since Sept 06. My horse (16hh Sec D x thoro) travelled fine in it, but since late Nov has gradually been getting a problematic.

He keeps slipping, and if you're in the car behind his bottom disappears from view and then back up again.

He's kicked through 2 pairs of hind travel boots so I've disgarded them as I thought they might be annoying him and he's scrabbling to get them off, and used polo bandages instead which are fine but he's still slipping and scratching one leg with the opposite foot. Scraped leg is healing up nicely
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On the last 2 journeys (with company and only 20 mins long) he's really sweated up, but comes out fine and even wins his comps! This is with a travelling companion who's also his neighbour at home.

Reading through similar probs on here and other forums I'm now tempted to try taking out the partition, buying a full length breeching bar (more expense!) and trying that.

I drive really slowly (Jeremy Clarkson would hate me!), and my horse falls round corners (taken at 1mph) and I can feel him tumbling around when we pull away (again, soooo slowly!) but he's ok once we've got going and we're going in a straight line even on rough bumpy ground.

What do you think? How do I tie him up with no partition? Is this wise in a big trailer? Will he fall and turn the trailer over?

Thanks so much for your help!
 
There was a bit of hay on the floor (from his haynet) but I brushed that out as I thought it seemed more slippery on top of the rubber. If he does a poo, I muck it out and put shavings down, but that doesn't seem to make any diff though!
I spoke to the vet today and he said to try him in a friend's horsebox but the trouble with that solution is it could be extremely costly!!
 
Jigsaw travelled like that in a trailer, just seemed like he couldn't balance, he always used to be fine, then one day he started to lose balance etc. I took his travel boots off too (he ruined several sets of expensive mark todd ones!). We had the HB505 and we used to open the back part of the partition up, so the front bit was still fixed in the middle and the back bit was fixed to the left hand side of the trailer. That worked brilliantly for him, he travelled much better like that as he travelled at a slight angle. So that might be worth a try and then you don't have the worry of taking out the partition completely
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I can only speak from the experience of my old mare travelling in a forward facing box, that bedding stopped her panicking and trashing about. She panicked herself once having peed in the box, making the rubber floor slippery. After that we put shavings down and she travelled much better again, so would be worth at try.
 
Get a single span breech and breast bar and take out the partition. That seems to allow them enough room to spread out their legs which is probably what your horse is trying to do. I have watched this unbalancing and it is when the horse puts all its legs to the same side and leans on the partition or wall of trailer/ lorry to brace. Give them more room and they will usually be fine. Had this happen to me in a trailer and a lorry and extra room sorted it both times.
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I was wondering about taking the back end of the partition out and if that would be a good idea. This would mean that there's no bar for his bottom (breeching bar). Does that work ok?

Yes it is a rubber floor (the trailer is practically brand new - told husband new trailer is less than the extras he puts on a new car!! tee hee!).
 
I had this with my pony he use to travel happily in the trailer then one day he just started slipping and it progressed to that before you'd even pulled out the yard he'd throw himself onto the right wall slide down and start kicking, we solved it by taking the partition out and tying him to the left hand side so he travelled diagonally across the trailer. Only problem was that I then could only take one horse to a show at a time!
 
I would NOT put bedding down if it is rubber matted - it will only make it more slippy in my experience.

I would DEFFO remove the partition and try him in the whole trailer, I reckon you will see a total difference VERY quickly.
 
What's your experience of taking the partition out, and assuming he's then perfectly fine, putting it back in when we want to take someone else?

Would he remember his balancing ways or go back to his old 'bottom bobbing' ways?

I usually take my friend and horse to events and clinics once every 5 times and I love having company. I'm not keen to give this up although of course horse safety & happiness comes first.
 
Take the partition out. One of mine does exactly the same and once i took out the partition he was fine. I cross tie him both sides so he cant try and turn round. Only problem is i could only take one at a time. I have just bought a lorry (yesterday)!! and hopefully that will sort the problem.
 
Remember if you take the partition out you must put an full length breast bar at the front....

My friends horse travels like this in trailers that only have the half solid partitions, she cannot balance going around corners. Don't know if that may be the case here, the IW trailers are like this....
 
Yes I've got the half solid partitions. The bottoms are rubber and it's in two parts which you move around for loading and unloading.

Corners do seem to be the main problem. My horse was obviously designed by the Romans to only go on straight Roman roads!
 
My fiends mare just can't seem to balance with partitions with that bottom rubber bit, she scrabbles arouns the corners...

Don't know what to suggest. Maybe find one to borrow with a solid partition and see if your horse travels better with that? Or try with no partition, althogh I have to add when I did that with my horse once he hated it and refused to go back in, but you always get exceptions to everything!
 
Mine used to do that. Tried travelling her with a radio on and moved her into the left hand side of the trailer. Travels perfectly now.
 
Remember that you'll need to have a full length bar at the back too, a friend travelled his without and the horse ended up with a completely grazed rear from the loading ramp rubbing against the horse.
 
An identical thing happened with my horse. Fine travelling in his trailer for years, and then all of a sudden not at all fine - falling all over the place and ripping travel boots.

Required a visit from the McTimoney practictioner, who noted that he wasn't straight through the sacroilliac, and some work on this area seemed to sort him out.... but it was a good excuse to buy a horsebox anyway!!
 
Mine did this. When I bougth him, he travelled fine for maybe a year, then he started falling in the trailer. He'd scrabble about for a few seconds then be fine again. But over the next few months it got worse and worse, until eventually as soon as we put him into the trailer he would instantly collapse and start falling all over the place, he wouldnt stop until I took him out! It was horrifying!

We solved the problem 100% by simply moving the back section of the parition over so he could stand slightly at an angle / spread his hind legs right out. He never fell again! If we wanted to take 2 horses, we simply travelled them without a partition (but we had a long breast bar fitted) and he was still very happy. Only when we did the parition up as usual did he fall - and it wasnt just my trailer, he did it in Sinclairs / Batesons and Ifor Williams's!

Since you have the partition in 2 sections - just either take out the back section completely or move it across and tie. Definately worth a shot, I know a few others who's horses did this and we told them to do this, it solved it!
 
Hi,my mare had the same prob and after a few questions answered on here,i bought a full width breastbar(yes,another 50 quid) but left the rear partion in place(once shes in)(ive got a bateson,with split partition).-Tried removing the whole thing and she turned around in trailer,even tho i had double tied her. Cudnt risk this,incase she tried to jump out,so back in went the partition BUT with the rear half only in place(extra security at v=back end),so her front end is slightly herringbone style and she travelled loads better,no stumbling around every lil bend or corner.Hope this makes sense?,shud do,if uv got the swivel,split partition style partition?? :mine allowed me to remove the front partion only(hence needing the full lengh breastbar!grin:
 
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I drive really slowly (Jeremy Clarkson would hate me!), and my horse falls round corners (taken at 1mph) and I can feel him tumbling around when we pull away (again, soooo slowly!) but he's ok once we've got going and we're going in a straight line even on rough bumpy ground.


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DISCLAIMER. THE ADVICE & ANECDOTES BELOW ARE NOT MEANT TO IMPLY THAT TURNING INTO THE STIG WHILST TOWING WOULD BE EITHER SAFE OR SENSIBLE. IT IS MERELY MEANT TO ILLUSTRATE THAT 'NORMAL' DRIVING AT 'NORMAL' TOWING SPEEDS CAN SOMETIMES BE THE ANSWER.


This could well be part of the problem!!! While you're busy creeping around the corners why should he bother trying to balance?
My old mare used to be exactly the same when travelling in a trailer, but as we knew her previous owners didn't have a lorry we persevered. We found that she was far better when I drove (more experienced & hence more confident than OH at that time). My OH is now a livestock haulier & when a pony we were transporting for a friend started similar behavior to the point where the owners didn't want to drive it anymore we found that not pandering to it by slowing down improved things greatly. Years ago a friend had a mare who was the most dreadful traveller. It didn't matter how slowly she drove the bangs & crashes still resounded from the trailer. One day she decided that as driving everywhere slowly wasn't working she may as well just drive normally. The mare didn't move on journey & her travelling became far better.
 
Thank you for all the suggestions and help. It's the first time I've used the forum and I'm v impressed!!

I'm going to have a bit of a experiment tomorrow (weather permitting!) and see if we can sort it out as we've got a few comps coming up.

Again, many thanks!
 
i had this problem first in a trailer with my old pony and we just swapped sides in the trailer and she no longer had any problems
then when got our lorry, another one of my ponys started doing the same, and we found she would only travel on the back of the lorry as she just fell anywhere else.
 
I know of 2 other instances of this, both with IW trailers coincidentally. One was solved by leaving the back partition hooked back on the left so he had lots of room to spread his back legs, in the other case if you left the top door above the front ramp open, she travelled very happily, but of course that is not good practice, due to the possibility of things coming in the trailer and damaging eyes for instance. However, it works for her... as soon as it's shut, she's in trouble again.
 
ditto taking the partition out

also get trailer vision-wireless cctv for your trailer. You can just google the name.
 
Well today, we had a little try out of the ideas posted here.

My v kind friend lent me her trailer (and drove us) because she's already taken out the partition and has a full width brest bar.

We went on a 15 min little trip and my horse was a bit shaky at first but planted his bottom into the near side corner and stood almost diagonally as much as the cross ties would allow. He didn't have a breech bar and I'm not convinced we would need one. And best of all he had his back legs apart rather than one scraping the other!
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Once or twice he looked like he was going to sit down like a dog waiting to cross the road, but luckily didn't. Scarey to see though!

After about 5 mins he settled quite well and his ears came forward. When we went all the way round a roundabout he really lent on the near-side wall of the trailer but everything was fine.

Could it be that his bottom's too big for partitions? He naturally went to the left as well which is interesting as lots of you had said try travelling him on the left.

Anyway, I now have to buy a brest bar and my local IW is out of stock this week but is hoping to get some in this week! I do hope so as I've got a comp I've had to qualify for at the weekend. Normally I can find what I want on ebay but even that's let me down
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Question: If I travel him w/o partitions on our own, would I then be able to put him on the left with the partition in if I wanted to give another horse a lift? Would he have learnt how to stand or would he go back to his old ways? Anyone got any experience of this?

Thanks again - you're all marvellous!
 
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