6 Simple Tips for Loading Timid Horses onto Horse Trailers
If you have chosen the right trailer model from a cornucopia of horse trailers, you have won half the battle. The next objective is to get the horse to walk into the trailer. That should be a piece of cake, right? Well, sometimes it is. But in other cases, a horse may dread entering the trailer, due to rough rides in the past, the fear of being in an enclosed area, etc. Here are some tips to get the horse to feel at home, in the trailer.
1. The power of positive thinking
Winston Churchill, England’s prime minister during World War II, once wrote, “Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.” While leading your horse up the trailer ramp, be confident! The horse will sense this emotion, and become confident itself. In all honesty, a trailer is not the most comfortable place in the world. It is dark. It is narrow. And it is confined. But when you must transport your horse, a horse trailer is more practical than a teardrop trailer or utility trailers.
2. Give your horse one option and one option alone
If you are able, back up the trailer to the door of the stable. That will limit the ability of the horse to dart off, and give it one viable option: the trailer’s entrance. By limiting the number of options that the horse has, it will probably become more cooperative about entering the trailer.
3. Introduce the horse to the trailer, one step at a time
One approach is to feed a meal to your horse, while it is on the trailer’s ramp. Every day, move the food a little closer towards the inside of the trailer, so the horse can link it to something positive. As with humans, food can be used as primary reinforcer. The potential reward of being fed can help to change the behavior of the horse.
Also, you can put your horse and the trailer in a pasture, open the trailer’s door, and then let the horse conduct an independent investigation of the trailer. Allow the horse to approach the trailer, take a peek inside, sniff it, and perhaps even take a step inside. The goal here is to put the horse in a relaxed environment, so the experience of entering the trailer before a trip, will later become second nature to your beloved creature.
4. Hold the reins on traveling
It is important to provide plenty of time to prepare the horse for traveling. The saying “haste makes waste” certainly applies. Animals are more perceptive than we often give them credit for. If you are hurried, your horse will sense it, and will then be more resistant about entering the trailer. Change takes time, so give yourself plenty of time to properly train the horse.
5. Change the horse’s attitude by changing its environment
If your horse is startled by the thump of the ramp as it walks up it, position padding or bedding on the ramp, in absorb the sound. If your horse trailer is tall and the ramp is steep, park the trailer where you can position the ramp on a hill, reducing the angle at which that horse has to walk up. Your physics teacher would be proud! If your horse is shy around strangers, only allow 2-3 people who it is familiar with, to be present when loading the horse onto the trailer.
6. Carrots, oats, and a step in the right direction
As the horse inches towards the entrance of the trailer, reward it with carrots, apples, or grain. It is important to keep in mind that a little reward goes a long way—even if the horse is not anywhere near the trailer’s entrance. For horses that are particularly timid about entering the trailer, reward the animal even if it is not yet completely (or even halfway), inside the trailer.
After securing the ideal horse trailer for your horse, the next project is to get the animal inside it. Sometimes this task can be quite challenging, due to the trailer’s cramped environment, or past uncomfortable travels in them. However, by using some basic methods, you can make the experience horseplay for your steed.
Popularity: 50% [?]