Who has experience teaching an older horse to load in a slant load trailer?

Answer 1

There shouldn't be any problem getting a horse to load in a slant load if the trailer is big enough. If the trailer isn't tall enough the horse will probably refuse. Many "bad loaders" are being put in trailers too small.

But some tips to help...keep the trailer open. Park it so the sun is behind you - shining into the trailer from behind. If the other way the horse is looking into a dark hole and self preservation will keep many from going there. With it plenty lit, use enough bedding to muffle the sound. Have the trailer SOLID - hitched so it doesn't move around when he steps in. Park it 10-15' from a fence/barn/something behind the horse. when you open the door it will then form sort of a 'chute - the door blocks one side, the back something is there, the other side is open and the "front" is the trailer. This way he can't run backwards 30-40' avoiding going in the trailer. Go slow. Watch him but don't turn around and face him. Walk in from the back of your open side and walk in like there's nothing to it...if everything is in place right many horses will follow. Sometimes a rope around the butt helps but use it to guide not force him in. Forcing is what you want to get away from. He has the right to refuse (and you have the right to do what you need to in order to make the trailer a "safe" place to be). Some horses a whip popped behind them does that. You can touch them with it but unless he's kicking DON'T *HIT* hime with it. The whip is a guide, not a weapon. Some horses a little feed works - others will refuse until you feed them outside the trailer.

If this doesn't get through to him - and if you've got a proper size trailer lit up so there's no excuses...try parking it in a paddock with him. He has water outside but his food is in the trailer. Obviously you must make sure he knows it's there. If he goes in and comes out a few times that's ok...he's learning he can go in and he's in control of coming back out without being forced. Once he's relaxed about it do up the back. Fuss over him a bit praising him. Make it no big deal unless he goes in (praise) or does something dangerous (striking, kicking - discipline). Don't jerk on him - if you jerk on his head, he flips up in the air and hits his head it's going to be that much more difficult next time.
Using these things the biggest challenge was a horse who they had to drag in - she was a notoriously bad loader and a bratty personality so her timid owner she learned she could run over. She'd kick to intimidate (not really meaning to hurt but unacceptable). She'd rear, she'd run backwards...it was a 45 minute to an hour battle to get her in a trailer. Then she'd dance, jump around and all once in the trailer. Using these techniques within a week her teenage owner was loading her alone and it became a case of get out of the way she wanted in the trailer. She learned she wasn't going to be hurt in there and there was hay in the trailer more often than not. I did, however, veto a trailer the people looked at because it was too short for her...she could do it but if anything ever happened to raise her head suddenly (braking hard to avoid a vehicle pulling out in front of them, whatever) she'd smack her head and become afraid again. They ended up getting a larger, wide, tall trailer and combined with a few simple things to let her choose what we wanted anyway the "loading problem" was solved. It was done without whipping and dragging her into the trailer, although there was a whip there especially the first few times. (The whip could touch her rump and, with her previous attempts to kick if she kicked the whip no harm done).

Answer 2

What's the issue? If your horse loads onto a regular trailor a slant load really shoudl be no different.
Try to make the trailor as inviting as possible. Open any side front doors, windows, anything to make it lighter and more welcoming. When loading, lead your horse up to the trailor, let it sniff, do whatever it wants, look around, anything, just keep its attention focused on the trailor, it can step on and back up, that is fine, just don't let it walk away or look away. Stand off to the side of the ramp, many times horse will not load because the person is standing in front of them and they don't want to run them over or feel intimadted. So just hold the horses lead rope, let him figure it out, do what he needs, dont rush him, but always keep the attention focused on the trailor. IF after about 45 minutes he still wont lead get a whip with some bright plasitc at the end, not a bag, but a piece of orange tape or something. Take this and wave it around behind the horse, slep it on the ground, do NOT hit the horse. This just gets him thinking about moving forward. My mare woudln't load to save our lives and with this technique she loaded in about 15 minutes, without the whip. It's great, they just have to be given time and to figure it out themselves. good luck

Answer 3

How old is the older horse? Many times, horses refuse to load into slant load trailers because not enough light gets in to the front. Have you tried opening up all windows and escape doors, etc? If that doesn't work, reward the horse for every step it takes up the ramp (if you have one) and in the trailer. The first few times, don't make the horse stay on the trailer for very long. Eventually, you should be able to loop the lead over the horse's neck and cluck, and it loads itself. (This has worked for all horses I've ever tried, please email me if it doesn't.)

Answer 4

I have a slant load trailer and have for several years.
I also taught my horses to load into it.
What are your specific questions? Does your horse load into a trailer now? If so the slat is not really different.
Just load them in and then stand beside them and ask the to step over to close the divider gate or ask them to mve forward into the stall section.
Make sure your horse will move to the side or forward when asked. We taught a vocal cue to move forward and a touch at the girth area on the side will usually work for the side step.
My horse is very sensitive and moves very easily from the pressure. Some times he will back up with only pointing your finger at him and not touching him.

Answer 5

Your horse may have the same problem as one of my dad's horses did. My dad was at a show at the local fairgrounds when he was a teenager, and overheard a girl screaming at and beating her horse to get into a trailer. Finally she gave up and yelled at her father saying that she hated the horse and to get rid of it (dumb thing to do, as it was a prize-winning saddlebred). My dad walked up to the girl's father and asked if they were serious about giving the horse away. The man said yes, but if my dad wanted the horse, he would have to figure out a way to get it home. My dad tried for a bit to load the horse, but he still refused. In the end, my dad saddled him up and rode him home. By working with him on the farm, he found out that the horse would only load into trailers that were roofless. Any open trailer he would walk right on to. By working with him in this trailer, he was able to make him comfortable with covered trailers also.

That's one possibility for your horse's dislike of trailers.

Answer 6

I do, what is going wrong?