[Brijjy]

My incredibly stubborn Fell gelding is a real bugger to load. Yesterday I took him out and he loaded ok for the outward journey. It took over 2 hours to get him back in the trailer to go home. I am very careful when towing and always creep round corners and accelerate and decelerate gently. I've tried treats, boring him, cajoling and to my shame, I got cross with him which definitely didn't work. He's not at all scared just really really pig-headed. He gets to the bottom of the ramp and point blank refuses to go any further. We've tried a wide webbing strap round his bum too, he just sits on this! I've been trailer training this morning with no success and I'm going to go back out for another go. Any advice, as always, gratefully received.

[lachlanandmarcus]

Can you put the trailer in the field and feed him in there? Every day I mean, just to make loading boring and routine and not necessarily always to do with traveling?


Also any sessions are best done on the basis that all day is completely fine for them to load, and that standing still is ok, but any movement backwards makes for a circle round - they get bored of the circling! And if they know you have all day they tend to load in 5 mins :-))


A Dually type head collar can be useful so any forward movement is rewarded by release of pressure.


Sometimes horsesdont like leaving the exciting pony party - our big chap was like that, ok at loading to go out, but didn't want it to end. So maybe when you box him up for the next few times, just box up and go round the block, or for a longer drive not stopping then drive  back home. That way he will stop anticipating where the end point of his journeys is. Or take him to an event but instead of going home, once youve loaded him take him in a circle and back to the event. So he got to come back to the nice exciting place! And then load and home.


It may be worth if problems persist borrowing or buying a CCTV camera so you can see whether there is actually some issue that is making the horse reluctant, but if it's one way only I would think it is more not wanting the party to end!

[Rosemary]

Obviously you know your horse, but I would argue that he's not pig headed but scared / unconfident. He may not be showing it by dancing around but he's not happy about it. Of course you can force him (webbing strap and all) but it will impact on your relationship - hence "you can make me once, but not twice". If you think about it, a predator asking a prey animal to go into an enclosed metal cave is about as far away form a "natural" situation as you are going to get 

I'm not sure what trailer training you are doing but if you can get hold of the Parelli trailer DVD, it's well worth a watch. I hesitate to use the word Parelli in case someone goes off on one - but the techniques do speak for themselves.

[ZaktheLad]

I had an arab gelding that would NEVER Load and as a result I was very limited with being able to take him out to shows etc unless they were within riding distance.   I mentioned this to an experienced horse lady who ran a business in taking people to shows/transporting horses across the country, and she said that a method that never failed was to get a syringe full of water and shoot it at the horses backside as they are stood on the ramp.  Have to say it is not the most conventional method and probably will be frowned upon by many, but all I can say is, it sure as hell worked for my arab and we only had to do it the once - he loaded every time after that! 

[shygirl]

i had a pony like this. we would regularly practise loading him at home with a bucket no problems but if you were to load him for a lesson or something that involved WORK he would be terrible to load again for the return journey.
im sure he was just bone idle and stubborn and he really was happy just pottering round the farm without doing a days work. he was similar to catch - if he thought work was required - he'd hop it.

[SallyintNorth]

Monty and Kelly at Intelligent Horsemanship do a good line in helping bad loaders too - and the same idea, don't make it an issue of forcing, but of continual encouragement; pressure and release; building on small successes and making very very sure it isn't scary or unpleasant while they're being trained.

It's easy for me to say, I've been lucky that all mine have been good loaders so far.  (Thank goodness!)

One thing I have often thought about is whether it really is best to tie them up in the trailer?  When we transport cattle we wouldn't dream of tethering them, thinking it a welfare issue that they can find their own place to stand, move around, etc.  Yet with equines we lash them to the frame and restrict their movement - usually in not the best place for their comfort either, which I understand is at 45 degrees to the direction of travel.  Does anyone let their ponies turn around in the trailer?

[Rosemary]

method that never failed was to get a syringe full of water and shoot it at the horses backside as they are stood on the ramp. 

Bloody disgraceful and amounts to abuse in my book. Just another example of the unprofessionalism of the so-called equestrian "prefession".

[lachlanandmarcus]

method that never failed was to get a syringe full of water and shoot it at the horses backside as they are stood on the ramp. 

Bloody disgraceful and amounts to abuse in my book. Just another example of the unprofessionalism of the so-called equestrian "prefession".

Sort of agree but it's a lot less harmful / milder than a lot of techniques used by 'professionals' - ESP at the end of an event when they won't reload, we had complete strangers trying to beat our horse up the ramp without even asking permission to interfere.....I'd have been glad if they had only brought a water pistol :-)

[sabrina]

I spent over a year getting Archie my chestnut stallion into the trailer. He would stand at the bottom of the ramp for hours and nothing would move him. I knew he was not being naughty but could not work out what his problem was. As time went on he would put a foot or two on the ramp and I would give him lots of praise then stop. I felt it was better to finish on a good note. One day he followed me in and stood and shook. We took him on short trips of 10 mins, he was always shaking and wet, then I decided to let him loose and behold he was fine. I think he got travel sick and by letting him choose how he stood helped him. Now he loads no problem, going to shows is something he seems to enjoy. He is quite the show off and off coarse going to my friends for the summer to run with her mares he is one happy boy. There is always a reason why a horse will not load, just because we cannot see it does not mean it is not real to them.

[WhiteHorses]

I agree that you want to get to the bottom of why but habits can also become ingrained.

I have a Spanish serreta which is similar to a lunge cavesson but with a solid curved metal noseband inside the leather. In Spain this is used for handling/showing everything including stallions. I have found that stroppy/stubbon horses really respect it and don't argue. A friend borrowed it a few times to load her stubborn 16.3, who would rear and kick, but was alwaus happy to load to come home from parties and travelled well. With the serreta on he was very good. I've also heard good things about the Dually but never used one. These methods aren't about beating the horse into submission but the serreta at least is certainly useful for horses who have learnt that they are stronger than humans.

[ZaktheLad]

Strangely enough, I have also witnessed that same water squirting treatment used in several dog training classes in my area and also one dog training place in Guernsey.  If a dog or puppy kept barking the "professional" would creep up behind the dog and squirt it with a water pistol.  The reasoning being that the sudden shock would stop the dog barking and install better behaviour.

[Rosemary]

These methods aren't about beating the horse into submission but the serreta at least is certainly useful for horses who have learnt that they are stronger than humans.

Sorry, that's beating by another name - it's the use of force to subdue the horse's natural instinct.

[Brijjy]

Well after about 3 or so hours of trailer training and playing about, I eventually got him to load. The trick with Jim was to keep backing away from the ramp if he started to back off himself and then do lots and lots of boring circles. I had the front ramp of the trailer open as well as the jockey ddor so it was flooded with light and less like a dark cave. Once he got all four feet on the ramp and his head in the trailer, I let go of his rope and kept tapping him on his bum and verbally telling him to go in. As he walked in, I chucked the rope round his neck, kept on talking to him and telling him to stand still and then I went in through the jockey door and rewarded him with food. I didn't need to beat him to get him in but just remind him that I'm the boss and as such I can be trusted. I've repeated this lots of times and he's getting much better. I think there was a certain amount of apprehension but not outright fear from him. He is still a stubborn beggar though 

[Brijjy]

As for the to tie up or not to tie up. I'm coming round to the idea of not tying him up. The trailer has a central partition which restricts too much movement but also helps to support him. If the partition were to be removed I would tie him up as he does move a hell of alot in the trailer and does cause the towing vehicle to shift about. It's like he's having a party back there! I remember the first few journies he did and he sweated up loads but now he's dry when he gets out. The only thing with leaving him untied is that he could get his head under the breastbar and get panicked if he smacks his head on it.....

[ZaktheLad]

You could take out the partition and then tie him from both sides of his headcollar to offer him stability.  That would also lessen the risk of him getting his head under breast bar - heaven forbid that should happen.