Help! Horse not getting in th trailer!

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I have a two year old Arabian/Saddlebred. I have a hard time getting him to get in the trailer. It takes SOOOO long to get him in. HELP!

Any tips?

-- Bri, (Bodaciousshowhorse@myexcel.com), December 30, 2001

Answers

It's been a long time since I had a horse, but could you park the trailer in his pasture so he gets used to it? And perhaps try to start feeding him in there; give him his grain IN the trailer for awhile so he associates good things with the trailer? I'm sure there are many others who will have good tips to help you.

-- Bonnie (chilton@stateline-isp.com), December 30, 2001.

We had the same problem with the 2 horses we bought this summer. They were used to a stock trailer...and we have a 2 horse.

We fed them in the trailer for a week...yeah, its a pain, but it works. I would lead them to the back of the trailer while my husband would drizzle the feed up in the feed bunk. The 1st couple times we had to apply the butt rope around them as a coax...but after that they only had to see it, and in they'd go.

Be prepared to spend some time on this. The 1st time it took about a half hour for them to go in. The 2nd time about 15 minutes. After that it was just a couple minutes before they would hop in.

-- Lynette (fear_the_bear@webtv.net), December 30, 2001.


check out John Lyons. He has a really good tape on how to teach a horse to load. www.johnlyons.com

-- beckie (none@this.time), December 30, 2001.

Beckie had a great suggestion with the John Lyons tip, JL has lots of good advice but his book was as dry as day old toast.

I *hate* slow loaders and, if the horse isn't actively afraid of the trailer, I don't tolorate them very long. If the horse is afraid it's another story. Our Quarter Horse, My Pooh Bear (the person who named him that should be shot) who we call "Poop" decided that he didn't like my stock trailer, which does have a slightly higher step up than your average two horse trailer, he would snot around, get right up to the edge and plant his big ole Quarter Horse butt and refuse to budge. Out came Mr. Longe Whip--pop about a foot behind the large butt and Poop hops his self right on the trailer. I usually have to drag out the whip every 4th or 5th trailer loading to jog his little horsie memory.

The easiest way to load is to put the trailer in the gateway to a pasture, paddock, or even a barn so that there's no other way to go around, and walk the horse up to the trailer but don't ask him to load do this a few times (not on a stressful show morning) then walk him up and ask him to load, I walk on the trailer with them, if he still won't load go through the walking and stopping and make it harder to NOT load than TO load, ie. turn them in tight circles, longe them etc..and ask every so often to load. When they do, finally, load give the horse a treat and tell them they're wonderful. If you can, unload and put him away, I think a lot of the problem is that when you load they know they're going somewhere to work.

Stacy in NY

-- Stacy (KincoraFarm@aol.com), December 30, 2001.


We used to have this problem with several horses that were raised in the wild, you couldn't get a butt rope around them if your life depended on it! A friend of ours from Mexico taught us to whirl a rope around behind the horse, sometimes letting the rope hit the ground. We have never had a problem loader since! It doesn't seem to matter how long the horse has been out to pasture or how long since it's been worked with, the whirling rope behind them seems to work. We have NEVER had to pop them on the rear, just the whirling rope behind them works. Good luck!

-- cowgirlone (cowgirlone47@hotmail.com), December 30, 2001.


I've never popped old lard butt either, if you read my post (for comphrension) it states I popped the longe whip about a foot BEHIND his rotund hindquarters. I can make a longe whip SING.

Stacy in NY

-- Stacy (KincoraFarm@aol.com), December 30, 2001.


WOW Stacy! I had to read through the answers to see who attacked you this time, Why you were so upset! I didn't attack your answer OR your method. I agree with just about everything you said!! Lighten up!!

-- cowgirlone (cowgirlone47@hotmail.com), December 30, 2001.

*If* I read more into your answer, I'm sorry.

Stacy in NY

-- Stacy (KincoraFarm@aol.com), December 30, 2001.


Stacy, No need to be sorry! We have something in common, We both LOVE horses!! Best of luck to you!

-- cowgirlone (cowgirlone47@hotmail.com), December 30, 2001.

Have you thought about 2 pairs of roller skates? The horse might like it and its cheaper than a trailer :>) Seriously, I used a ramp into the trailer and blindfolded my quaterhorse that was trailer shy when I loaded him. Once blindfolded, i could lead him right in and he would stick his head out the open window once loaded. Guess he was clausterphobic.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), December 30, 2001.


The key word here is ARAB. My Arab would rather die than go in a trailer. I got a higher-roofed trailer (I was told to get a stock trailer for Arabs--they can see out and like it better), worked with him for several YEARS, got head bumpers, leg wraps, and FINALLY got him in (after several panic attacks on his part where he threw himself and cut open his head on two separate occasions). He now loads fairly well - many many hours loading in/loading out. He may not exactly know what you want! Or what's in it for him. I think some horses just won't ever be comfortable being loaded. Be patient with him and make it positive. Take 8 hours to do it if need be. He'll accept it better every time.

-- Gailann Schrader (gtschrader@aol.com), December 31, 2001.

I know this will sound silly to some, but did any of you ever concider that the horse might have a good reason to not want in that trailer. My horse used to hate to load. Then we put in those black stall mats. It seems those great hard wood floors and hooves make for a sliding event. Once he found out he didn't slip around on the new mats, we haven't had a loading problem since. He loves to go. Just hated the trailer floor.

-- April Allison (ahedgie_2000@yahoo.com), December 31, 2001.

Also, if you have time, park the trailer in the pasture with the horse. Let him get completely used to it. Then start putting his hay in, so he has to go in to eat. This is a slow process, but works if you have the time.

-- Shannon at Grateful Acres Animal Sanctuary (gratacres@aol.com), December 31, 2001.

Horses do not like to step up on to anything, a ramp to step on makes loading easier.

-- mitch hearn (moopups@citlink.net), January 01, 2002.

I saw this one in a documentary on the Horse Whisperer. He says that you give off signals to the horse, unconsciously, fearing he won't go into the trailer, you focus on the trailer door as the goal. When you load the horse do not focus on the trailer door, rather focus your mind and thoughts to getting the horse through to the front of the towing truck. Again, don't focus on the trailer, focus on the front of the towing vehicle. Worth a shot, I think.

-- Sandie in Maine (peqbear@maine.rr.com), January 01, 2002.


Bri, I have had "hard loaders" at times all my life, mostly with Arabians too, the best "encouragement" has been a trailer with a ramp and three or four stout people to link arms immediately behind the horse and literally push him/her on. This works really well unless the horse has no respect for humans and kicks.

-- Annie Miller in SE OH (annie@1st.net), January 01, 2002.

Wow. This really brings back memories of my first horse which was a large Arab mare which I had acquired by swapping for a 386sx computer (a long time ago).

When the arab mare died giving birth, I had a full understanding of why arab horses have such bad reputations. Besides loading very hard, she also put in me in the hospital, and demolished a nice harness which was attached to a sleigh.

My friend has 4 arabs for sale, nice looking horses for about $150 each. It took reading your note to remind me why I should not buy one.

Get a quarter horse or else make sure your health inurance is paid up if you keep the arab horse.

Gary

-- Gary from MN (hpysheep@midwestinfo.com), January 02, 2002.


Oh, Gary--there you go bashing Arabs. They really are wonderful horses though some are misunderstood You just happened to run into one that hadn't been properly trained. I've run into horses of all breeds that haven't been properly started, and just needed some extra work. A horse is really only as good as it's training.

I have a Morab (Morgan/Arab) barrel horse (semiretired) and he *is* quirky, but the hardest worker I've run across in years.

Where does your friend with the Arabs live? (don't tell my husband I asked, it'll just be our little secret, OK?)

Stacy in NY--->I'm always getting picked on because I like "ragheads"

-- Stacy (KincoraFarm@aol.com), January 02, 2002.


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