3 of 8

Write now Article Tools

Successful Trailer Loading

Usually, the last thing on the list before heading to the equestrian event is to load the horses, and then off you go, right? My old veteran gelding, Nicky, was usually loaded last, much to his consternation, as he was always quite anxious and excited to go. Didn't matter where or for how long, just GO! If for some reason Nicky didn't get to go, we all got the cold shoulder, at least until dinner time. When he did get to go, all the other horses politely loaded and went to their stations within the trailer. Then it was finally Nicky's turn. We led the jigging, fully leg-wrapped adventurer to the trailer, taking off the lead rope a good ten feet from the entrance and watched as he happily loaded himself. His prancing antics always made us laugh, making the journey start out on a good note.

His very first voyage, however, was a completely different picture. As Nicky was my first horse, and myself a mere child of 12, getting him into the scary, rented trailer was fraught with resistance and angst. Just weaned at six months, never having been around humans much at all, and a small girl trying to wrap spindly legs without being kicked, was about all that colt could take. Then, not even halter-broke, he was pulled and pushed toward a dark cave made of metal. His reaction, finally, was to just lie down. The big farm hands were easily able to place Nicky into the trailer and we inevitably got him from Missouri to his new home in Kansas.

How was it possible to make the change from that first traumatic experience to that of an exuberant trailer-trekker? In a word: bribery! Thank goodness most horses just love their treats. When it came to trailering horses, our rule was: any horse that loads into the trailer always gets a treat. Every time, no matter what! We might use a handful of grain, a few carrots, even a bit of hay or grass. Loading the horses just was never a problem at our barn. When asked, I was met with some skepticism as to our routine, but we held to our barn rule.

That doesn't mean to say we never had trailer troubles. We often had horses that had problems getting in the trailer at first. To which, we used a myriad of techniques to get them happy to get into the trailer. The foremost concept we employed was to make the trailer a comfortable, safe place to be. The second was to practice, practice, practice long before any scheduled event. Here are some tips to help turn your horse into a trailer-trekker like Nicky:

Use the herd instinct

• 1
• 2
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about Tips on loading your horse into a trailer or horsebox?
We want to hear your view. Write now!