Tips For Safe And Happy Horse Trailering

How to Travel Happier with Your Horse

There’s nothing quite like taking your horse out on a long trip, but all that excitement can quickly be destroyed if your horse is a trouble traveler.  Even if he loads willingly, your horse may habitually paw, kick, rear or otherwise misbehave during transport, making you a nervous wreck the whole time you’re on the highway.  It doesn’t have to be this way, though — we’ve got some tips to help you and your horse travel happier.

Movement is a Huge Horse Stressor

You probably know that the movement of your vehicle is a huge stressor on your horse, but you may not realize how your driving is affecting his trip.  When you turn or stop, your horse is forced to blindly compensate.  Even if your horse could see out the front of the trailer, his lack of driving experience would still mean that he has no way of guessing if you’re turning right, left or just breaking.  Heavy traffic can be hard to navigate, but stick to your guns and leave at least two car lengths between you and the next guy so you have plenty of time to gently maneuver your trailer, allowing your horse to adjust his position gradually.

Along with being a generally safe driver, it’s important to limit your driving.  Your horse is standing on a hard floor that’s mounted on wheels, it’s safe to say that from his perspective the trip is exhausting.  Limit your driving to 10 hours a day and remember to take frequent breaks.  Experts recommend a 20 minute break every three to four hours.  Don’t unload during this period, but do go inside the trailer to check that your horse is calm and the air quality is still good.  This is great time to make small adjustments that can keep your horse comfortable.

Of course, the movement isn’t the only part of traveling that’s stressing your horse out.  Be sure to tie up, tape down or grease anything that may swing freely.  All those extra noises break your horse’s calm, leading to a myriad of problems at unloading time.

Soothing the Savage Beast

Even if you’re the safest driver around and you do everything right, your horse may still be stressing himself out.  If you can, bring a friend along to keep him company.  Horses destined to travel alone, according to researchers at Nottingham Trent University, benefit from a large, easy to view mirror mounted inside the horse box. Just seeing another horse has a soothing effect on nervous travelers, though it’s not quite as calming as having an actual traveling companion.

Another trick some horse owners use to keep their horses relaxed during travel, reported to work by Equine Wellness Magazine, is to play soothing music that’s just loud enough to drown out the sound of the hauling vehicle and other road noises.  Even if your horse box is well-insulated, your horse may still benefit from calming sounds that they associate with home while they’re on the road.  Start acclimating your horse to music in the barn before you try melodies in transit, that way you can discover which sounds he finds most soothing.

Traveling happier is the goal of every horse owner.  Along with limiting drive time, being a careful driver and providing calming visual and auditory cues for your horse, basic changes like using a thicker horse mat or considering horse trailers for sale that have heavy, non-slip rubber flooring can make a world of difference to a nervous horse.