The Ins and Outs of Trailer Loading

by Mary Gallagher

Trailer loading—a task that needs a lot of practice—was the theme of last Friday’s Ground Work class. Getting a horse to be okay at loading into  a scary cave on wheels is a challenge for the horse and handler. We warmed up using our foundational skills to establish communication cooperation and confidence in our horse partner. We did this through exercises like front end and hindquarter yields as well as stepping over and stopping over a pole going forwards and backwards.

Trailer Loading Tips: Loading Your Horse (Part 4 of 4)

by Jessica Crouch
Last in a series


You've played with multiple simulations and developed trust, communication, and respect with your horse. It's time to finally use those skills to load your horse onto the trailer. Within this brief article I can only give you a basic formula to follow; adapt as you see fit, using all the skills you learned from the obstacle simulations. The general idea is to load and unload your horse in increments, so he gains confidence as he goes.

Trailer Loading Tips: Approaching the Trailer (Part 3 of 4)

By Jessica Crouch

Over the last several months we've discussed several simulations to help you develop the foundation you will need to trailer load your horse. Having done those, how do you make the transition to actually asking them to get into the trailer? Horses are extremely sensitive to change, and often taking them to the parking lot where your trailer is to load is not near as successful as if you put your trailer in with the rest of your obstacles. (Or take your familiar obstacles out to the trailer.) That makes the trailer just another "toy" to play with.  

Trailer Loading Tips (Part 2 of 4)

By Jessica Crouch

Last month I gave you my #1 safety tip: NEVER tie your horse in the trailer...... UNTIL the partition or butt bar is in place. This month I continue on the theme of taking the time to work with your horse until he can confidently load and stand quietly while you close the divider and latch it securely.  

Trailer Loading Tips (Part 1 of 4))

by Jessica Crouch

Spring is here - show season's in full swing and the trails are beckoning. Since there's a good chance you are eager to trailer your horse somewhere, I'd like to share with you a few trailering lessons I've learned along the way.

Trailer Loading Preparation: Yielding Sideways (Part 4 of 4)

by Jessica Crouch

Over the last three months we've practiced sending your horse to a specific point, backing with precise focus, and squeezing between narrow openings. Now we'll address  moving sideways.  What does yielding sideways have to do with going into a horse trailer? When you close the slant divider on a trailer, your horse has to yield left from you (or the swinging divider) INTO the pressure of the trailer wall or partition.

Trailer Loading Preparation: Going Through a Narrow Place, Part 3 (of 4)

By Jessica Crouch

Over the last two months we have developed our communication in asking our horse to step forward to an object (step on a plate) and to back carefully and thoughtfully over an obstacle (back over a pole).  Now we are going to add in another challenge - go through a narrow place. I really like to play with 55-gallon plastic barrels. They are easy to move around and reconfigure according to your horse's needs. At the Farm, Jerry's been kind enough to provide us with plenty of barrels, but if you don't have any at home you can improvise - just make sure the object is safe, even if your horse bumps into it.

Trailer Loading Preparation: Backing Over a Pole (Part 2)

By Jessica Crouch

Last month we talked about asking your horse to go forward to a particular point. (Step on a plate.)  This laid the groundwork for the communication you will need when you ask your horse to go FORWARD into the trailer. 

This month's exercise will focus on an equally important piece - confidence in backing out of the trailer.  You might think - most horses can get out of a trailer in a hurry - that's not my problem!  But a horse who rushes out of a trailer is generally not confident about unloading, and the problem can gradually escalate to a real issue.  So teach your horse to back in all kinds of situations so they can be confident when asked to back out of a horse trailer.

Trailer Loading Preparation Part 1 (of 4)

By Jessica Crouch

You load your happy horse into your trailer and off you drive - to a wonderful trail ride?  A fun show? Maybe a great clinic? In real life though, horses often worry about the trailer.  A lot.  Some arrive soaked with sweat. Some bang their heads or legs in their haste to get off the trailer.  Some simply won't go in at all. But it doesn't have to be that way. Training (or re-training) a horse to trailer can be just another relaxed progression in his education.  How you approach it makes all the difference in the world. The key lies in developing trust, communication and confidence AWAY from the actual trailer. Each piece of the trailer loading equation can be broken down. I'll be sharing an exercise each month that will help your horse learn the skills and confidence he'll need when you finally do ask him to load.
 

Giving to Pressure

by Grace Lambert

There are a variety of reasons a horse should be trained to give to the pressure they would feel when tied hard and fast to a hitching post, even if you never elect to tie them. One reason is that they do learn to give to that pressure, and not fight against it. If they fight against it, there is bound to be trouble, as you can see from this image of a horse resisting the pressure of a tight lead rope. A horse can hurt itself or its handler, or at the very least, be seriously traumatized by pulling back against pressure without finding any relief.