Erickson Miniature Horses
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Do any of you use shipping boots/bell boots/polo wraps when hauling your horses in a trailer?
Leg Protection in Trailers
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FurstPlaceMiniatures
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Yes. Now I always do.
I had a filly get caught up in a BAD way in a trailer. She got herself cast backwards in a straight load.
Her ONLY injury was to her back pastern. Don't ask me how that happened. It didn't need stitches but boy was she sore for awhile.
I use polo wraps and bell boots, or just plain sport boots. I find mine try to take off shipping boots which is probably more dangerous than no boots at all.
I had a filly get caught up in a BAD way in a trailer. She got herself cast backwards in a straight load.
Her ONLY injury was to her back pastern. Don't ask me how that happened. It didn't need stitches but boy was she sore for awhile.
I use polo wraps and bell boots, or just plain sport boots. I find mine try to take off shipping boots which is probably more dangerous than no boots at all.
paintponylvr
Well-Known Member
I have gone back and forth.
I have had issues with both shipping boots and wraps on long hauls during the summer (too hot) and on hauls during the winter when they can get wet and then freeze. I don't own a climate controlled or fully enclosed trailer (which I also feel get too hot/cold - at least the ones we've borrowed and had our horses/ponies hauled in). We never have and I doubt at this stage in our lives that we ever will.
I've used shipping boots that I purchased and that I've made. I've used a combo of polo wraps with nothing under & bell boots, and we've used quilts w/ polo wraps (for the smaller ponies and minis - had to make quilts as the ones you purchase are way too large for them). When I was a teenager, we ended up picking up a mare that was going crazy in the trailer. I had wraps but had forgotten quilts. We stopped and picked up a bag of Pampers baby diapers and used those for under quilts - worked great except that they did get hot. They'd work better for sweating an injured leg, I think.
This is a 13 hh 1/2 shetland. The trailer behind her isn't ours - it belongs to a transporter hauling Stdbd race horses. (made a nice background, tho, LOL) We are heading towards our first local show with her in April 2003.
Then again, I've had injuries to a sale pony when he must have lost his balance, stepped forward and sliced his front pastern just above the heel - it wasn't too bloody but as we unloaded him for his "trial", he was lame. Lost that sale, he came home with us for another year. That turned out all good, later, for us. And the folks purchased the other pony that was on our trailer - which turned out to be a better match for them...
I also felt it depended on the pony. These last few years with the shetlands - I haven't done it at all. Yes, they can step on themselves and/or each other - but no more, IMHO, then they do when they are fighting, chasing one another around in our pastures. Our ponies haven't been stalled in years - our new place doesn't have stalls per say. I can/will pen them up before an event - I've seen them roll in shavings and shove their hooves/legs thru the panels we've used and a couple of weanlings & yearlings have rolled under the panel pens when we've done those - scraping their legs in the process but they wouldn't have been wearing boots/wraps anyway.
I have used polo and splint boots for protection on the smaller ponies when working (very few pics) and am looking at getting some polos for our grand daughters in "their colors" - so that it encourages them to learn about things that they can/should be used for AND how to put them on... That IS what I did with their mom & 2 aunts - worked well.
This is also a 1/2 shetland. The purple polos are "mini" sized - either from Horse dot com or from Valley Vet. I still have them! The black bell boots are B sized Mini - don't remember where I got them, but ordered from a catalog. The teal/blue splint boots are smalls (horse size) - cut down to fit the shorter cannons of some of our larger ponies. Rascal is about 12.2 hh here and matured at 13.1 hh.
I've tried using the fly boots from Kensington. I both love and hate them. They DO protect against most of the fly bits - but they irritated the ponies that I used them on enough that they stomped and pawed more, even while in/on pasture - creating hoof damage. I sold the boots and got most of my money back. We were all happy then.
I have had issues with both shipping boots and wraps on long hauls during the summer (too hot) and on hauls during the winter when they can get wet and then freeze. I don't own a climate controlled or fully enclosed trailer (which I also feel get too hot/cold - at least the ones we've borrowed and had our horses/ponies hauled in). We never have and I doubt at this stage in our lives that we ever will.
I've used shipping boots that I purchased and that I've made. I've used a combo of polo wraps with nothing under & bell boots, and we've used quilts w/ polo wraps (for the smaller ponies and minis - had to make quilts as the ones you purchase are way too large for them). When I was a teenager, we ended up picking up a mare that was going crazy in the trailer. I had wraps but had forgotten quilts. We stopped and picked up a bag of Pampers baby diapers and used those for under quilts - worked great except that they did get hot. They'd work better for sweating an injured leg, I think.
This is a 13 hh 1/2 shetland. The trailer behind her isn't ours - it belongs to a transporter hauling Stdbd race horses. (made a nice background, tho, LOL) We are heading towards our first local show with her in April 2003.
Then again, I've had injuries to a sale pony when he must have lost his balance, stepped forward and sliced his front pastern just above the heel - it wasn't too bloody but as we unloaded him for his "trial", he was lame. Lost that sale, he came home with us for another year. That turned out all good, later, for us. And the folks purchased the other pony that was on our trailer - which turned out to be a better match for them...
I also felt it depended on the pony. These last few years with the shetlands - I haven't done it at all. Yes, they can step on themselves and/or each other - but no more, IMHO, then they do when they are fighting, chasing one another around in our pastures. Our ponies haven't been stalled in years - our new place doesn't have stalls per say. I can/will pen them up before an event - I've seen them roll in shavings and shove their hooves/legs thru the panels we've used and a couple of weanlings & yearlings have rolled under the panel pens when we've done those - scraping their legs in the process but they wouldn't have been wearing boots/wraps anyway.
I have used polo and splint boots for protection on the smaller ponies when working (very few pics) and am looking at getting some polos for our grand daughters in "their colors" - so that it encourages them to learn about things that they can/should be used for AND how to put them on... That IS what I did with their mom & 2 aunts - worked well.
This is also a 1/2 shetland. The purple polos are "mini" sized - either from Horse dot com or from Valley Vet. I still have them! The black bell boots are B sized Mini - don't remember where I got them, but ordered from a catalog. The teal/blue splint boots are smalls (horse size) - cut down to fit the shorter cannons of some of our larger ponies. Rascal is about 12.2 hh here and matured at 13.1 hh.
I've tried using the fly boots from Kensington. I both love and hate them. They DO protect against most of the fly bits - but they irritated the ponies that I used them on enough that they stomped and pawed more, even while in/on pasture - creating hoof damage. I sold the boots and got most of my money back. We were all happy then.
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Ryan Johnson
Well-Known Member
I use both back and front floating boots , I have one that pours at the floor if he doesnt have bell boots on , so he wears them aswell.
If the floating boots dont fit correctly they then become more of a risk than actually having them on at all.
If the floating boots dont fit correctly they then become more of a risk than actually having them on at all.
Lots of good points made above......... If the horse isn't used to having their legs wrapped - the boots (no matter what type)
can cause additional stress on them and they may try to get them off which can cause problems. And yes, the boots will
make the horse warmer in a summer transport......However, if you've made your horse used to them, then it doesn't hurt.
(We used to be mini horse and donkey transporters for about 10 years.)
can cause additional stress on them and they may try to get them off which can cause problems. And yes, the boots will
make the horse warmer in a summer transport......However, if you've made your horse used to them, then it doesn't hurt.
(We used to be mini horse and donkey transporters for about 10 years.)
paintponylvr
Well-Known Member
MiniV - I think your hubby hauled a mare for me from Washington state to here (North Carolina) for me... She arrived in great condition! And no - no shipping boots (she'd never had tolerated them!!).
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