Chase0109
FNG
- Joined
- Feb 4, 2020
- Messages
- 51
Sounds like you’re figuring it out as you go! I think it is often good to share the good and the bad so other can learn what to do or not to do in the future. That’s how we all learn through experience, rather personally or through other’s experiences.
I’m still learning plenty myself and don’t think I have enough experience to give others advise. But I will comment on one part and share a tip/personal experience that might be helpful.
“Problem: Pony doesn’t want to load.
Mare loads no problem. But today, the gelding decides he doesn’t want to. Normally it’s not a problem.
Again, lack of skills come into play: I’m 180lbs of office-fat and bones. The horse is 1000lbs. Do the math.
I try a bunch of the tricks I’ve seen in the past on youtube, but it just seems to be one of those days. In the end, I get him, but no idea how/why it worked.“
I had a similar experience with a new to me gelding I purchased in January. Nine-year-old experienced ranch horse. Loaded/unloaded untold amounts of times. Took him to a trailhead two hours from home in Texas. Had a nice ride did 6-7 miles everything went Perfect. Went to load him up in the trailer and you’d swear his feet were stuck in concrete when he got to the back of the trailer. I loaded and trailered him a handful of times before this with zero issue.
I tried everything I could think of. Getting back on him and working him a bunch, lunging him a bunch, etc. Same result every time. Walk right up to the back of the trailer and freeze without stepping in.
I probably had the same thought as you. How the **** do you get 1000 pound horse into a trailer when he doesn’t want to and your alone?
Being completely out of ideas, I decided to phone a friend. I called someone who is way more experienced with Horses than I’ll ever be. Told him what my issue was and hoped he might have an idea so I could at least get home and then work on fixing the issue.
So here’s the tip and what worked for me in a pinch. Friend suggested I take a long rope ( I had to tie two 12 foot lead ropes together) put the clip at the back of the trailer. Run the rope into the trailer through the side window and down the outside to the back door. I always keep a buggy whip in the trailer as I’ve seen it Come in handy with other people. Walk the horse up to the trailer as far as you can. When he stops clip the long lead up that you’ve run through the trailer onto his halter. Then you can put pressure on the halter while standing to the side of the horse and putting pressure from behind with the buggy whip if you need to. It’s impossible to put pressure on both ends of the horse when solo without this leverage.
It took very little pressure and the gelding jumped right in the trailer like nothing was ever wrong. Obviously not how you wanna do it every time lol. But saved my bacon in a pinch!
Moral of the story I now keep a 50 foot 3/8 inch check cord rope in the trailer along with the buggy whip. For emergency situations like that, because you just never know.
So my suggestion is put a long rope and Buggy whip in the tack room in case of emergency. Also here’s a book I would recommend picking up and reading. It’s cheap and it’ll save you from a lot of frustration in the future.
Chase
I’m still learning plenty myself and don’t think I have enough experience to give others advise. But I will comment on one part and share a tip/personal experience that might be helpful.
“Problem: Pony doesn’t want to load.
Mare loads no problem. But today, the gelding decides he doesn’t want to. Normally it’s not a problem.
Again, lack of skills come into play: I’m 180lbs of office-fat and bones. The horse is 1000lbs. Do the math.
I try a bunch of the tricks I’ve seen in the past on youtube, but it just seems to be one of those days. In the end, I get him, but no idea how/why it worked.“
I had a similar experience with a new to me gelding I purchased in January. Nine-year-old experienced ranch horse. Loaded/unloaded untold amounts of times. Took him to a trailhead two hours from home in Texas. Had a nice ride did 6-7 miles everything went Perfect. Went to load him up in the trailer and you’d swear his feet were stuck in concrete when he got to the back of the trailer. I loaded and trailered him a handful of times before this with zero issue.
I tried everything I could think of. Getting back on him and working him a bunch, lunging him a bunch, etc. Same result every time. Walk right up to the back of the trailer and freeze without stepping in.
I probably had the same thought as you. How the **** do you get 1000 pound horse into a trailer when he doesn’t want to and your alone?
Being completely out of ideas, I decided to phone a friend. I called someone who is way more experienced with Horses than I’ll ever be. Told him what my issue was and hoped he might have an idea so I could at least get home and then work on fixing the issue.
So here’s the tip and what worked for me in a pinch. Friend suggested I take a long rope ( I had to tie two 12 foot lead ropes together) put the clip at the back of the trailer. Run the rope into the trailer through the side window and down the outside to the back door. I always keep a buggy whip in the trailer as I’ve seen it Come in handy with other people. Walk the horse up to the trailer as far as you can. When he stops clip the long lead up that you’ve run through the trailer onto his halter. Then you can put pressure on the halter while standing to the side of the horse and putting pressure from behind with the buggy whip if you need to. It’s impossible to put pressure on both ends of the horse when solo without this leverage.
It took very little pressure and the gelding jumped right in the trailer like nothing was ever wrong. Obviously not how you wanna do it every time lol. But saved my bacon in a pinch!
Moral of the story I now keep a 50 foot 3/8 inch check cord rope in the trailer along with the buggy whip. For emergency situations like that, because you just never know.
So my suggestion is put a long rope and Buggy whip in the tack room in case of emergency. Also here’s a book I would recommend picking up and reading. It’s cheap and it’ll save you from a lot of frustration in the future.
Chase
