Trailering A Big Horse Who has Never Trailered

[Kootenay]

Hi everyone.

I'm trying to sell my big horse, and the main market is about 7 or 800 km's from me, so now I have the issue with trailering a big horse (quarterhorse), who has from my knowledge never been in a trailer. The trailer looks similar to this one: Two Horse Slant Load .

I will be removing the divider since it is about an 8 hour trip, but my question is do I tie her or not?

Thanks in advance

.

 

[txminipinto]

Tie. Always tie, especially a mature big horse. One reason is they use the halter/lead to brace against the sway of the trailer. Why are you taking the divider out? I would leave the divider in as they can also brace against that as well. It's important that they feel secure on their feet.

 

[Kootenay]

I'm a total trailer novice. Thank you for the advice, and now the question is-- Do I load her up into the front stall or the stall closest to the back? I assume the front stall, but I could be wrong?

EDIT: I'm stressed out/crying cause my not so wonderful hubby just called from work and proceeded to tell me that this horse has to be out of here by Sunday or "else". I'm about to go of the flipping deep end.

 

[~Lisa~]

Not everyone ties and there are pros and cons to both . Personally I do not want the horse trying to balance with his halter/lead that puts a lot of stress on their necks that they do not need.

If she is the only horse in the trailer I would load her in the front half

Again there is no right or wrong you have to do what you feel comfortable with. I would leave the divider in most adult horses will not lay down in a moving trailer and 8 hours is really not that long of a trip. The divider can actually help them keep their footing.

I prefer to bed pretty heavy but some do not like to use a lot of bedding. Drive slow take your turns slow and stop and start slow all of these things make it easier on the horse.

By the way for what it is worth the majority of commerical haulers do not tie the horses in the trailer.

 

[Kootenay]

Thank you for the advice Lisa. I'll put her up front untied. I just hope she loads okay, as I mentioned she's quite possibly never been in a trailer before.

I'm stressed enough about that phone call, and now wondering if I can free lease her until she is sold--(this is not a sale ad or trying to sell her from here).

 

[leigha]

TIE THIS HORSE AND LEAVE DIVIDER IN...the divider is a safty feature that you don't want to be without...I've been hauling big horses for many years.

 

[Pepipony]

If the stall is small enough that they cannot turn their heads, then I dont tie. I also put them in the stall as close to being over the axle as its more stable.

 

[Kootenay]

Is tying a horse that spooks/freaks out at new things the right thing to do? She will stand tied for grooming . She will completely lose her head if spooked , and is a little large and dangerous to be messing with.

I know this thread may turn into a trainwreck, but there is nothing I can do about that.

EDIT: The worst part is i'm the only one going to be handling her. I'm under 5 feet tall and weigh 109lbs soaking wet. I'm even more stressed out now.

That mare has turned me into a human kite more than once.

 

[HGFarm]

The main part is that YOU stay calm and dont freak if the horse pulls back or anything in the trailer. They will figure it out and be fine.

I am a firm one on TYING in the trailer. I know two people who didnt. One ended up with a dead horse, and the other ended up with a horse that had some serious road rash when it fell out the back due to the door not possibly being latched well. It took months for recovery on that one!!! Thank heavens they were only going about 10 to 15 mph when that happened or it would have been a different story there too.

I have NEVER hauled any horse loose in a trailer and never will, no matter if the horse has been hauled before or not.

All I can tell you is when you are ready to go, dont load the horse and leave it in there while you go get your purse, drink of water, etc..... have everything ready to go, load the horse, and get on the road. They have to concentrate more on their balance and what is going on rather than beating up your trailer.

The horse may surprize you too- we have had many young first timers haul like a dream!!!!

 

[Maple Hollow Farm]

I agree to definitely tie the horse up and keep the divider in. Also use the front stall since you dont know if she has ever been loaded you dont know if she has ever been unloaded either. This also is another reason to tie, when you open that divider to get the horse out it may want to start backing right away and keeping it tied will also keep it under control until you can untie the horse and help it to back out without hurting itself. If you give treats I would load the horse and give it a treat then tie it and give another treat. Shut the divider and give another treat and then go and put the but bar up so it isnt banging around and shut the door. Dont take the bar down unless the horse is untied. I agree also make sure you are ready to get in the truck and go before loading that horse will be more worried about staying on its feet than trying to fight the lead or anything. Stay calm and the horse will more likely stay calm!

I would also like to add that if you dont tie the horse and it does freak out a little when the divider is closed it is likely to try twisting around and could get stuck and hurt and you will be unable to get the divider open. keeping it tied makes it so the horse has to stand straight.

 

[Kootenay]

HG farm and Maple Hollow, thank you. I don't want to end up with a maimed or dead horse either, and I will have everything ready so we load her, tie up and go. Like you say--she may be a good girl and haul well--we'll see.

Thanks again.

:Kim

 

[Kootenay]

UPDATE: She may have to only travel 20 minutes from me to a free lease home until she sells

. Talk about a load off my mind if it all works out. Will keep you posted.

:Kim

 

[basshorse]

This is one of the reasons I love my minis. Trailering is not such a big issue anymore! Looks like people have given you lots of great advice. I had a horse that struggled with riding in the front of a two horse slant. He would "scramble" whenever we went around a corner, even very slowly. However, in the back, stall he rode just fine. I would practice before the time to load arrives. The calmer and more prepared you are, the better it will go....20 minutes or 8 hours...it seems to be the loading that causes people the most stress. We always tied because we were concerned with them getting their heads under the dividers and a quick stop causing an injury. Practice, practice, practice...

One note, years ago we stopped at a gas station and my dad saw some people walk behind our trailer. He didn't think anything of it, until later. We actually think they opened the back door latch.

Miraculously, the door stayed closed until we headed up our driveway...then we had a near disaster when the horses back legs slid out and the butt strap was still on. We saw the door fly open and I was able to go back and push her up in the trailer before it rolled back over her legs as my dad was having trouble stopping the trailer on the steep gravel driveway. Awful! Anyway, anytime we stop anywhere we check our load...walk all the way around and check EVERYTHING! TWICE!

You seem to be very conscientious, keep doing your homework and you and your mare will be fine. My mare (historically a troubled loader) after 4 years of not being loaded, walked right in like it was no big deal. This had not always been the case. Of course, I had an entire day to load her...and I wasn't stressed or hurried. If you don't have a trailer to practice with, there are some other excercises you can to do prepare your horse for loading and the ride. PM me , if needed.

 

[nbark]

I personally never tie a horse in a trailer unless it is a standard two horse. If they have the room, they will stand in a position that gives them a better balance. Have you ever stood on a bus facing forward when it starts and stops? That is what a horse goes through when loaded and tied in a standard two horse. If he is allowed to, he will stand sideways, which is why they made slant loads, so that he can get his balance and sway with the stop and start of the trailer, not the jerking forward or back of a standard two horse. If he is good on crossties, then he should have no problem in your slant load, with the divider up and tied. If he does not crosstie, then I would take the partition down and let him ride free.

 

[Reijel's Mom]

Maybe something great will work out with your free lease - I hope so for both of your sakes! As to your question, I would almost guess you are going to get 50/50 answers on tying/not tying. I have a livestock trailer with 2 sections. I've only ever hauled with 1 horse in it or 2 horses (both minis and full size), I keep them in their separate sections and I don't tie, I like them to have their balance how they want to and I'm not driving freaking out about what if the rope gets tangled somehow. . .

I definitely second the notion of taking off as soon as you have her securely loaded! They are so much calmer when the trailer is in motion.

 

[SilverDollar]

Remember:

When loading the horse, ALWAYS close the divider first, then tie the horse.

When unloading the horse, do the reverse. Untie the horse first, then open the divider. NEVER open the divider (or remove the butt bar) before untying the horse.

Write this down if you must. I won't tell you any horror stories; you don't need any bad pictures in your mind.

I used to be super tense and nervous about loading my horses but with lots of practice, patience, and groundwork with my big horse that I trailer most often, he just walks right in when I point in the trailer. If you can, practice.

I agree that you should always do a safety check of all latches and doors (hitch and lights, too) before moving. (And for what it's worth, I always tie my horses and use the dividers/butt bars.) You will get lots of different opinions on preferences (straight vs. slant; bumper pull vs. gooseneck; etc.).

Here's a link to some excellent articles on trailering horses safely. Horse Trailering Safety

I hope the feed lease works out for you.

Good luck!

 

[wildoak]

I much prefer to tie a big horse, but we have a mare who will not tie in the trailer anymore. Long story but she got into a bad trailer wreck when a trainer was loading her. I wasn't there and can only take her word for what happened, but she freaked out, hung a leg over the divider, etc. She now panics if you try to tie her, but she loads okay and once we are on the road she hauls pretty well. End of story is that now she only hauls loose in the trailer with no dividers - it can be done.

You do not want all the weight at the back of the trailer, so if you don't tie it's best to keep your horse in the front assuming she can't/won't panic and get hung up on the divider. I see plenty of stock trailers going down the road with horses not tied. Good luck - hope it goes well and you don't have to haul her far. Some trailer lessons with a trainer would be your best solution but sounds like you don't have time for that.

Jan

 

[krissy3]

I think you will be just fine either way, just remember to take it slow. I had a horse get tangled in a hay net, fortunatly he was a calm little fellow, and just stayed put like he was caught in a web. I think tieing or untieing is up to the horse, I have done both, and I believe its up to the personality of the horse. I like the idea of checking door latches when you stop , better yet, fill up on gas before you go. good luck

 

[mydaddysjag]

It's really a toss up, but you DONT want to haul with no divider and not tied. If your not sure how she hauls she may come barreling out as soon as you open the back door, before you are ready for her. If you put her in the front, you will have the divider to keep her in, likewise with being tied.

If you have ANY worries about her being tied on the ground safely, do not tie in a trailer.

 

[Charlene]

i've always had easy-to-trailer biggies and when hauling only one horse, i left him/her untied. nine times out of ten, they will ride BACKWARDS, given the chance. if you have dividers, make sure they do NOT reach all the way to the floor. a horse needs to be able to spread his legs to balance properly, especially through turns. and, drive SLOW SLOW SLOW SLOW!