Trailering alone...how do you load/unload

[Nojacketrequired]

The other thread about trailer loading got me thinking about this topic. SO many people say they lead the horse into the trailer....I'm assuming that someone else must then do up the butt barn and the ramp?

What will you do if you ever have to trailer by yourself? You can't tie the horse at the front without the butt bar done up, because I've SEEN that make a huge mess, and you can't leave the horse's head to run around to do the butt bar up without him maybe backing out....How do you do it?

Why not just train the horse to go into the trailer by himself, do up the butt bar, put up the back, go around and do up the trailer tie?

Comments?

NJR

[McVillesMom]

I have one that will self-load, so I just send her up onto the trailer, do up the butt bar behind her, and then go to the front and tie her head. I loaded her like that for years. However, she's retired now and rarely goes anywhere any more.

My gelding, who I haul on a more regular basis (and until vet school, several times a month) will not go onto the trailer by himself. I have to lead him in, and he stands perfectly for me until I go to the back and put the butt bar up. I feel extremely fortunate in this regard, because I would be in serious trouble otherwise. (I do NOT tie his head until after I've put the butt bar up, BTW - had a couple of incidents when other family members went to unload him and forgot to untie his head before putting the bar down - that didn't go so well.)

I suppose, had he not been such a good horse to stay where I put him, I would have found a different way by now, because I haul alone most of the time.

[InstigatorKate]

I try to get mine to learn to self-load, and they are generally pretty good about it. With others who don't self-load, I use an extra-long lead. 12-14', but a longe line would work as well. I walk horse through and jump out escape door. I keep light tension on the lead to keep the horse in the trailer as I walk around to do butt bar and ramp. If the horse backs up, I try more tension, but if they keep backing up I let the lead go and catch it on the way out.

[MunchkinsMom]

I have one that will self-load, so I just send her up onto the trailer, do up the butt bar behind her, and then go to the front and tie her head. I loaded her like that for years.

Same for me, teach them to self load, do the butt bar, then go tie the head. For unloading, untie the head first, go around and when the horse is waiting quietly, undo the butt bar, and ask him to back with a gentle tug on the tail and a verbal command.

[JSwan]

I always trailer alone. Always have.

My horses self load and unload.

I just toss the lead over the neck and say - load up.

When it's time to unload I toss the lead over the horse's neck, and give a little tug on the tail and say - back up.

Horse backs up.

The End.

[wsmoak]

Patrick self-loads (he came that way...) and I have a step-up slant load, so it's just a matter of closing the door and going up front to clip on the trailer tie.

Unloading can be a problem. Once I untie his head, he's happy to stand in the trailer and eat the hay he dropped on the floor. I sometimes have to step inside and convince him to get *out*.

[Perfect Pony]

This is why I have a slant. Mare walks right in, do the turtle snap, shut the divider. To unload I drop the window so she looks out, walk in the trailer and open the divider, unsnap the turtle snap, make her stand for a minute, then turn her and walk straight out the back.

[tabula rashah]

I have a step up slant that I normally have set up like a stock trailer- I walk on with them, tie them up and walk back off- they know tied= stand where you're put

when I had a straight load, I'd walk them on (if they didn't self load), throw the lead over their neck, give the stand command, and then go back and do up the butt bar.

[Little Valkyrie]

Why not just train the horse to go into the trailer by himself, do up the butt bar, put up the back, go around and do up the trailer tie?

Comments?

NJR

Thats what I do! All of my horses have gotten the hang of it and I have no problems with it. IMO its much safer than leading them in and tying them with the butt bar up or leaving them loose to walk around risking a quick escape without you being there.

[Guilherme]

Teach the horse to load/unload quietly and this issue does not arise.

If you have to trailer a horse with "issues" then take an assistant.

G.

[rmh_rider]

Ditto on what JSwan said.

Not more I can say.

[pony4me]

Mine self load. The horse goes in, I put up the butt bar, then go up front to do the trailer tie. For unloading, unclip the trailer tie, give a polite tug on the tail and say "back." This is a good time of the year to do some training if yours does not self load.

[Bravestrom]

my gelding self loads - throw the lead over his back and say up - up he goes - when we come home I go in and untie him - he turns around and walks off and into the barn - this is off a 4 horse slant load.

All of our horses will walk on - you can tie and then close the divier or the door - the trailer is an extension of the barn and the same manners apply. We can tack up in our trailer and they stay in the trailer at events in between times when they work.

The only time I don't tie is a weanling or foal - they are usually in the stallion divider and can't turn around or slide under the divider. Most of our horses turn and around and walk off but all know that they must be told to come off - they don't just rush off.

[oldenmare]

I do exactly what InstigatorKate does with one horse that came with bad habits firmly entrenched. I use a long 12' lead that works like a charm - if I try to leave her without holding the lead - she'll fly backwards off trailer and gleefully run amok. As long as she knows I have the lead - she doesn't test me. Smart little **** pony!!!

No amount of retraining has proven successful (nor will she load herself and I've only gotten her to leading on with minimal hesitation - but she has cause from prior experience to be wary of trailers/loading handlers which I saw firsthand - and thus is why I now have her) - and honestly, its just as easy to use the long lead.

90% of time I haul alone - and an assistant isn't an option.

[mvp]

I can lead mine in and he'll wait while I go to his butt.

He'll self-load.

He'll wait until I tug on his tail to come out.

Guilherme is right. They can be taught to do it any way you want, so long as you do it quietly from the beginning and actually spend the time to teach them.

When my gelding was young and thought about backing out after I left his head, I simply went back to the escape door and corrected him. I also loaded him and spent a minute just standing with him near his head to let him settle there. Once he was exploring his haynet, I knew he wasn't thinking about backing out. Then I'd go around to his butt.

Waiting to come out involved me not letting him lean against the butt bar once the ramp was down. We'd hang out there until he took a deep breath or went back to his hay.

Once he got that, I'd lower the butt bar and ask him to wait. If he tried to sneak out, I'd raise the butt bar for him to bump into and say NO. Dangerous, I know, but there was nothing fast going on in this horse's mind or body.

Finally, with butt bar lowered, I'd stand for a minute, THEN tug on his tail.

Everything was done in pieces, the next one not attempted until he was quiet and relaxed.

[Nojacketrequired]

OK, so it seems there ARE horses out there that self load. After reading the thread about teaching horses to load, I began to wonder if I was the odd one out here!

NJR

[Cindy's Warmbloods]

I have a stock trailer so will take my horse in, turn her around and then tie her and close the partition. Makes it easy to do by myself.
I would NEVER tie a horse in a straight haul without having the butt strap up so in that case I would teach my horse to self load which I have done in the past.

[eponacowgirl]

Mine self load, and if they don't self load, they learn! I'll run a lunge line through the trailer, out the door back to me standing behind them. With a carrot stick or a lunge whip, I'll taptaptaptaptap until they step forward, rinse, repeat until horse is on trailer. Usually once to teach them, a handful more with tension on the rope, then they pretty much figure out that open door=get on the trailer. They load, butt bar, then walk around and tie.

[Hampton Bay]

My mare self-loads most of the time, if I ask. Now that I think about it, she self-loads better than she follows someone on. Haven't taught the gelding or filly, as right now they are both just loading calmly with me leading them in.

Not that I can go anywhere by myself. I can't drive anymore, so someone is always with me.

[matryoshka]

I trained all of mine (and quite a few horses belonging to other people) to self load, and I stay to back and attach the butt bar. My ramp has a hydraulic assist so I can put it up myself.

My trailer also has a front ramp for unloading, so I can unload that way. But I also train them to back up for me when I tug on their tails. In that case, I untie and put the shank over their withers where I can grab it as they unload, then take the butt bar down and signal for them to back off the ramp.

[Woodsperson]

One of mine walks on quietly and stands while I go around and put up the butt bar. He's such a gentleman.

Woodrow is not so good about loading anymore so I cheat. I hang a hay net with alfalfa in it. He'll do anything for alfalfa-so he just munches while I go around and put the butt bar and ramp up.

Both guys unload with a tug on the tail.

[Simbalism]

When I first started trailering alone, I had to open the divider(2hsl) and lead my mare in. I would put the lead over her neck and walk to the back, hook butt bar and then around to front to hook trailer tie. Now mare has learned the JSwan method...hehe.

[AdAblurr02]

We train all of ours to walk on and WAIT. Doesn't matter what trailer, or anything else. NO backing off til asked to do so, and NO trying to turn around in the trailer, either - they BACK off, much safer for all concerned. You have not had pain until you are caught between an unyielding trailer and a starting-to-panic horse who is "stuck" on your mashed carcass.

Even the big stud (near 17 hands and 1600 pounds of him) does this for me, even when he KNOWS that the trip is for sport (ie, going to vet for collection!).
Matter of fact, he zones out in the trailer - we had to wait quite a while once while vet was training another stallion (never before collected - scheduling snafu on their part), and the big boy just hung out and munched hay til I asked him out. I did shut the top door so he wouldn't be offended by Amateur Hour going on 50 feet away :)

Safety first - if the horse won't wait, either get help or use a long line to control them while you get things buttoned up behind.

[ToTheNines]

Not only do I have to load alone at home, but I am getting old and feeble!

My first theory of safe loading is that a lot of it is a tying issue. Mine all learn to tie and wait, using a tree. However, that being said, I put Blocker Ties in the trailer just in case. You can use different tie methods to reduce or increase the tension that will cause the lead to slip, depending on the horse.

My second theory is that most of their loading stress is from being alone, not from being in the trailer per se.

I have a two horse slant with a ramp. When I am hauling two, my approach to minimizing stress and accidents is to not leave one alone in the trailer. Thus, when loading two, first, I take the second horse to the trailer, and tie him to the side of the trailer (I also put Blocker ties on the side of the trailer), so that his head is close to the front of the first stall. My trailer has windows so that when the next horse is loaded, they can see each other. Then I bring the first horse to the trailer and load him. I walk him in, tie him to the Blocker tie, and close the divider. Then I load the other one.

When I unload I usually have help (my trainer is a sweetie and watches for me to come help me). I unload the first one, and either have someone hold him or tie him in the same position outside the trailer near the loaded one's head. Then I unload the second.

Regardless of hauling one or two, I also am very consistent about doing everything slowly and making them wait for me. When I load, I lead them in and tie before closing the divider (first stall) or ramp ( second stall). That is probably dangerous, so knock on wood. When I unload, I do try to untie first through the window (I have one that I get lazy about because he is such a reliable tier). I drop the ramp and/or open the divider if I am using it, go to their head, make them wait until I say ok, then untie them if tied, wait a moment, then turn around and slowly lead them out.

All that being said, I have never had a bad loader or one that wanted to leap out. My trailer is tall and wide and open at the back (I took the tack compartment out) and they do not seem afraid in it. Just worried and spoiled about having to leave their buddies!

[ChocoMare]

I always load and haul alone too with a 2-horse strait load. Mare was trained to self load too.

Every now and then, she'll have a Test moment and will just put herself 1/3 of the way in. At those moments, I reinforce the You Go In By Yourself training by running a lunge line from her halter, around the escape door and down the side of the trailer to me at her butt. A tug and a GIT UP works every time.

Then I do up the butt bar and walk around to undo the lunge line and secure her head.

To unload, she's a dream. I untie her, flip her regular lead over her back, walk around to the back of the trailer, lower the ramp, undo the butt bar and tug on her tail and say BACK. :cool:

[inquisitive]

Same for me, teach them to self load, do the butt bar, then go tie the head. For unloading, untie the head first, go around and when the horse is waiting quietly, undo the butt bar, and ask him to back with a gentle tug on the tail and a verbal command.

Ditto

[mhtokay]

I have a slant load and a bunch of horses... some young. I generally have to teach them to load by sending them on.. Then I follow. If I'm nervous about them turning around or pulling back after tied, I use a long lead and hold their head front with the lead end in my hand pulled through the tie ring, but not tied. Once the partition is latched, I can tie the end in the ring in the neighbor's stall. the back horse, I stand in there holding the end of the lead pulled, but not tied, through ring and reach back to get the butt bar.

I've been told you should never tie one in a slant load while you're in their stall with them. Only after the partition is moved over. If they were to pull back, they'd sling their head to the side knocking you out. I also have the one that occasionally likes to turn around while tied, so they're then all bunched up.

[SkipHiLad4me]

For the longest time I always had someone with me or around me when I was loading so I had help. Recently I've found myself trailering to and from places by myself with no one around to help me. I realized how spoiled I was!! So at the ripe age of 19 my gelding finally learned to self load :yes: Started out with a lunge line and a short dressage whip - I'd stand at the ramp, point his head in the trailer and tap his hip with the whip to ask him to go forward. Now that he knows the deal, I can just throw the lead rope over his neck, point him in the trailer, kiss to him and he'll go in. It helps if I still just hold the dressage whip as a reminder - he knows when I don't have it ;) I put the butt bar up and then walk around and tie his head.

Unloading is easy - I have a ramp off the front of my 2-horse straight load so he can walk all the way through:D

[Hollywood]

I always trailer alone. Always have.

My horses self load and unload.

I just toss the lead over the neck and say - load up.

When it's time to unload I toss the lead over the horse's neck, and give a little tug on the tail and say - back up.

Horse backs up.

The End.

Same here. I work with them all to self load.

I have a new one that does not self load YET, but he will in time. For now I walk him on and he stands like a gentleman while I go around to the back to put the buttbar up. I am lucky on that.

My other one would back up as soon as he got on until he learned to self load. So I would use a lunge line through the escape door to keep light pressure on him (and a lunge whip to tap his butt when he tries to back) to stay in the trailer while I would then put up the bar. But this was only an issue for the first couple of loading sessions.

I've also been known to put some carrots in the hay bag to keep their attention while I run back and put the bar up.

[JumpWithPanache]

Well, sounds like it's time for my girl to self load. She had some disagreements early on about not wanting to leave home, but we over came those. I have a 2H BP SL with mangers, so the escape doors are kind of small anyway, plus the center divider can swing to either side. I walk her up into the trailer, which she now does on a nice loose lead. Then the lead gets tossed out the window and I walk back out the trailer, not out the 3/4 sized escape door over the wheel wells. I immediately swing the divider into the middle and put the butt bar up then walk around to her head and tie then shove her hay net up into the manger. If I'm hauling two I load her last because I trust her walking back with the divider already in the middle. I think she'll do well getting the "self load option" installed this winter. Thanks for all the great tips!

ETA: forgot the unloading part, which is a self-unload option. I untie her and throw the lead over her neck, being very careful to make sure the snap is pulled up. Learned that one the hard way and stripped the thumb thing off the snap on my nice leather lead. I also tell her to "jus' stand" which is her ground tie command. Walk to the back of the trailer, drop the ramp, make sure she is settled and standing without weight on the butt bar then drop the butt bar and give a gentle tail tug and tell her to "back up." She walks out calmly and halts when her back feet come off the ramp, which is about the same as her head out the trailer. I then back her the rest of the way down the ramp and proceed with life.

[BEARCAT]

Sometimes I go in with them, sometimes I send them in. They all get taught to STAND once in there and not fly out backwards or fidget around. I trailer alone 90% of the time, but sometimes catch rides with friends in different types of trailers (slant, straight, back tack, etc)

[KitKat987]

I trailer alone a few times per week generally. I imagine that my two horses will one day self load, but currently I usually get in the trailer ahead of them. They're only 4 still, and they hop right on 99% of the time. I have a stock type trailer, it's white and wide open, very inviting, which makes it pretty easy.

Last summer they weren't always the reliable loaders that they are now. As in, it would take 5 - 10 mins to get them in, rather than 30 seconds. If they were being stubborn, what I'd do is throw the lead through the side slats, grab it from the outside and get behind them and give them a few growls and smacks on the rump. They walk right in now, sometimes give the floor a sniff first before hopping in. The only real difficult part of the equation is when it's really windy and the door refuses to stay open without being tied.

I had a REALLY REALLY bad loader when I was a teenager and there was no way in HE11 I was going through that again, ever. Obedient loaders are very important to me, especially since I have them at home and have to trailer all winter to ride/lesson or to go to any sort of show.

[Ty2003]

My gelding is a saint and walks right on with the lead line thrown over his neck, so I can stay behind him and put up the butt bar/close the door. The mare isn't as cooperative....but I can lead her on with a bucket of grain and once she's on she'll stand there so I can scoot back and put up the butt bar. The thing that works best is leaving the grain up front for her. It keeps her occupied for the few seconds it takes me to get behind her to close the door.

[DMK]

add mine to the self load crowd, it's generally not hard especially if you are starting with a horse who may not know how to load but doesn't have an issue with it. It generally takes those guys 3 lessons, tops (margin for slow learners). The young ones who flat don't know how to load? Maybe 6 lessons.

I start with the assumption there will not be anyone to help me a) load, b) unload and c) tack up or work around the horse at the trailer, so the very first thing they all need to have a doctorate in those three tasks as well "stand quietly on the trailer when it isn't moving".

My old hunter is so good at the loading thing he pretty much heads for the trailer on his own from 30 yards away. As in so many things (finding 8 perfect jumps, teaching the youngster how to pony, etc.) I find I'm not really necessary to the loading process either. :lol:

[RAyers]

Take a cattle dog along with you.

Having hauled all sorts of other folks' horses/issues, I always walk in first. I have the trailer wide open with plenty of room. Once they are in, I will go out the front door (I have 2 in my trailer). I find that most horses once loaded rarely will back out if they are hard loaders. I can usually get to the butt bar of rear doors fast enough so even if they start to go out, I can stop them. Otherwise my heeler takes care of that (or any hesitation about getting on the trailer). Then I tie and do all the rest that needs to be done to haul down the road.

As for my own horses, they have hauled so much, they just hop on and are good to go. Those guys I don't even tie.

Reed

[IrishWillow]

I train my horses to walk in the trailer and stand quietly, and then eventually to self load. I know that I will be loading alone quite a lot, so I have to take the time to do this.

[Montanas_Girl]

My older guy has been on a straight-load trailer exactly once in the ten years that I've owned him, but I have no doubt that he would self-load if asked. The baby has never seen a straight-load and would probably need a few lessons to figure out the self-loading thing.

In the stock trailer, I load the horse, tie his/her head, then walk out to either get the next horse or close the door. My horses know that being tied means they DO NOT MOVE until told otherwise. They also know to stand quietly when the doors are opened until I untie their heads and ask them to back out. No flying backwards and NO turning around allowed here. As another poster said, there isn't a much more dangerous situation than being in a trailer with a horse that is determined to turn around and blast out.

In a slant load, I walk the horse in, toss the lead rope out the window, close the divider, then snap the trailer tie to the halter and remove the lead rope and close the window. To unload, I open the window, untie the horse, snap on the lead rope, walk around, open the divider, and back the horse out. No muss, no fuss.

[Heinz 57]

Mine would probably self-load, but we have a 3H slant and I'd have to get in to tie her anyway. She ties well, and doesn't have any loading/hauling anxiety, so I just load, tie, close the divider, and close the door. Reverse order for unloading, and I turn her around to hop out. Its NBD - we haul 2-3 times a week. She stands quietly in the trailer, moves when asked, and doesn't move once the divider is undone or she's untied until she's told. Ties quietly to the side of the trailer, as well.

[asterix]

One of mine came as a self-loader and he seems to have taught the young horse by example :D

The young horse had never been trailered alone or in a straight load when we put him on to take him home the first day, but he has such a good brain that we just gave him a few minutes to process and he was fine.

Then spent a few months leading him on and going round the back to do up the butt bar if alone -- he's quite docile and generally stays where you put him.
Intended to spend a couple sessions on self-loading as soon as I found time.

In the meantime took him with my older gelding several places...he watched the other one load before him, and after 2 times, I figured I'd see what would happen, put the lead rope over his withers, and stepped back...he walked right on.
Then a few times where he'd self load if his brother went on first, but had to be led on if going alone...then transitioned to self-loading even if alone.

He's very easy to teach but I must say that surprised me.

Now that I know him better, I know that he is quite enterprising and figures things out on his own, so I guess it was mostly just a matter of deciding this was something he was interested in doing.:lol: Works for me!

[kookicat]

Both of mine are good loaders. I lead them in, drop the rope through the ring, then do the butt bar up. Once that's done, I go back in, clip the trailer tie to the halter, unclip the leadrope and close the groom's door.

Unloading is simple too- switch trailer tie for leadrope, drop it over their neck, then undo the butt bar and ask them to back out.

[smay]

TotheNines, I often do the same as you do, when loading two horses with one person. I let the other horse "help" me while I load the first. It is true that even reluctant loaders will do better with another horse nearby. Sometimes a horse that refuses to load at all, alone, will self-load when another horse is already on. The reluctant loader will also SOMETIMES self load when the second horse has been tied at the front near his window! We discovered that by accident once while trying to load a bad one... I led the OTHER horse alongside the trailer to get a dressage whip ( for a little motivational tapping!) from the dressing room, and as he walked alongside the trailer, the bad loader...LOADED RIGHT UP! haha

This all sounds a little convoluted, but the bottom line is that when trailering a horse or two ALONE, you MUST have a horse trained to self load so you can safely do up the butt bar.

[Ajierene]

I cheat...I have a two horse stock. I walk my mare one and she rides loose, so usually by the time I'm closing the door she's turned around, but she doesn't try to leave. For unloading, she has her head at the door (I think she does most of her time facing backwards when traveling).

The only unfortunate side effect is that after 10 years of doing this, apparently that has become *her* trailer and don't try to stick another horse in there and tie her head and make her SHARE *her* trailer. It didn't help that the other horse was a nervous Percheron cross who kept moving his butt around. She may have been afraid of being squashed.

[deltawave]

Loading: All of mine self-load. On they get, do up the butt-bar, go tie up their head, then raise the ramp. Unloading: Above, in reverse. :) I trailer by myself 99% of the time, and a horse that won't self-load is just a no-go for me. I'll keep them at home until they become self-loaders! :)

[BeastieSlave]

Why not just train the horse to go into the trailer by himself, do up the butt bar, put up the back, go around and do up the trailer tie?


I haven't slogged through all the responses, but I also wanted to say that I haul by myself 90% of the time. I trained my horses to self load (point at open trailer, say "load up", put up the butt bar when they do, walk around and tie the head).

Years ago I had a mare who would not load. I tried everything: drugs, feed, butt rope, threats, bribes, etc.... Finally in desperation one day, I sat down in Books-A-Million and read the chapter on loading in John Lyons' book. Then I went to the barn and in two 20 minute sessions trained that mare to load. It was hugely liberating! I'm not a huge NH follower, but Lyons' method was very simple, straightforward, common sense, and it stressed safety.

[matryoshka]

I started out teaching them to self load using John Lyon's method too. Took a lot of the anxiety out of loading, which helped the horses.

I've since modified it to suit my own personal style, but at the core, it's Lyon's method.