loading nightmare

[dartie92]

My young mare has only loaded a handful of times the first few times she was hard work and planted her back feet on the floor after a bit of practice she will inch her way in if given time and a bit of bread everytime she inches forward so she could be loaded stressfree in about 10 mins. However yesterday morning i was loading her to go to a show she was stood quite happily thinking about putting her back feet on the ramp when someone on our yard decided to walk straight up without her knowing he was there put his shoulder up her bum and shove resulting in her rearing straight up and sitting on him. Now this person knows the horse is funny about things coming from behind at the best of times and to say i wasnt happy is a complete understatement. She is now refusing to load quietly does anyone have any tips on starting again with her. Once loaded she happily stands on the trailer either alone and in company she doesn't get stressed travelling at all. She is simply planting her feet and saying NO.

Thanks x

[LMSmith]

You could try feeding her her tea every night in it??

[fanfarefan]

i have seen a practice where you dont even try to load them but just walk themacross the ramp sideways , so they are not even looking at going in the trailer , just getting their confidence putting their feet on the ramp, as said above feed her in, on round the trailer, ,,,,, probably not something you want to hear as i know alot of people do it , BUT , i was told by our vet never to feed horses bred as it can ball up and gum up their works , not easily digestible for them , but good luck with the loading

[GinaGeo]

I like pressure, release techniques with loading. I use a halter and a longish stick with a visual aid attached - a bright yellow duster does the job - and to start with a useful helper.

First get horse used to the aids. Pressure put on the halter means yield to it, so put pressure on for a walk on if you don't get the required reaction the wafting long stick with visual aid will send the horse forward. The moment the horse moves forwards, both the pressure from the stick and the halter are released. This goes for sideways movement too so you are in full control of where the horse is positioned.

Once you have this full control then the trailer can be introduced. Walk confidently up to the ramp, if the horse plants apply pressure to the halter. If the horse yields and follows you then release the pressure straight away, if the horse doesn't yield and stays planted then the wafting stick with attached yellow duster is used as a visual behind the horse to push him forwards, if that doesn't work then back the horse up, re-affirm moving away from pressure and go again, if the horse does move then release all pressure immediately. This is continued, even if the horse has two front feet on the ramp, if it plants then back it off again. A planted horse is going nowhere, if it's going backwards at your wish then at least you remain in control. Eventually, horse will learn that loading straight away is easier than the faff of be backed out etc etc.

I also don't like to drop front ramps or swing partitions as I think that creates an illusion of an escape route so they feel "tricked" and "trapped" once they are in. I avoid the bribary route too, have never found it works for the most stubborn of bad loaders.

I have one that won't load by himself into a trailer with a partition as he doesn't travel well alone like that. Take the partition out and travel him with full breast and breeching bars and he's fine. He will travel with a friend with a partition in though.

Most importantly stay calm and never try to load in a pressured situation, give yourself loads of time.

[shpony]

I had a lot of trouble with mine loading him on the trailer. He won't have anything behind him or he just darks backwards. We spent a lot of time feeding him on there to get him used to it. Also by putting pressure on him through the lead rope wand not trying to fight with him just waiting patiently until he gave in and the pressure was released. He will only ever go onto the trailer if I lead him know as he has built up trust. That is the key with horses!

[gillwales]

every horse is different, I had 2 that were difficult and I used different methods. What I will say is if you choose to load then you stick to it until the horse goes in as once you give in you have lost the war. If your horse is working then lunge well prior to loading so he has the edge taken off of him.

Best of British!!

[janet]

wehad a welsh c who would take 1 hour to load! we met a lady at PUK south and she had a richard maxwell halter and loaded him for us in a minute, needless to say we bought one and it was never an issue again but always loaded with the halter, it was like magic

[mara]

It may be the ramp itself she doesn't like.

I think equimat did some research into this issue & found that by using green matting many tricky loaders altered their behaviour and loaded more willingly.

Do you always make sure the ramp is level and wedged on blocks of wood to stop it rocking?

If you have loading props do you use them or does the trailer move slightly as she puts weight on the ramp - some horses are far more sensitive to the trailer settling under their weight than others. We always start off our youngsters loading with the props firmly down and also the jockey wheel down to minimise any movement - once they're confident we then stop using them all the time.

Is the ramp sturdy enough - some of the lightweight trailers are so lightweight that even when new the ramps themselves bow slightly under the weight of a horse - they're perfectly safe but may upset a very sensitive horse who is being asked to put their feet & thus their safety onto what they may feel is a very unsafe surface.

Some horses find the ramps 'thump' too much - have you tried putting bedding down on it to quieten it down - the old coir matting was great at deadening the sound, the modern ramp mats are nothing like as comforting.

You could also try backing the trailer up to somewhere that will allow the ramp to be at a flatter angle.

What happens if you try loading her through the front of the trailer? Does she plant with all trailers or just yours - it may be worth trying a couple of different ones out if friends have different makes/sizes etc. Does she load in a lorry ok, can you try this.

She clearly can load but something is making her not want to - once you've sussed what it is then you can work on changing things to make her more confident.

I don't think I'd be trying a pressure halter at the moment - they do have their place but this is definitely a worry for her rather than her being pig headed.

You could try some in hand work, getting her to walk over old carpet etc to build up her confidence & trust.

I hope the idiot that interfered is feeling well squashed - I hate it when people start to interfere with someone loading a horse - if you've not asked for help then butt out!

[gillwales]

Forgot to add for your own safety:

Always wear gloves
Never wrap the lead rein around your hand
Wear a hard hat
Wear boots
Make certain all those involved know what to do in different circumstances

[sarahp]

I do agree with mara about helpers - always ask first.

As I'm a one woman band mine are all trained to load single handedly, so anyone charging in to help will only distract and worry them. I'm very glad that now most are home bred and trained, it's so much easier than having to retrain one with an existing problem, had my share of those over the years.

[fanfarefan]

i now have a Bateson trailer , that has a little ramp that you can pull out from underneath if needed , (barn doors at the back ), and i must say that loading has never been easier , and have never had anything , that has not been happy to hop up inside , even the minis , so maybe the ramp is the issue , is there anybody near you who has a similar trailer that you could try your horse with.

[mara]

Mar 17, 2013 9:47:38 GMT fanfarefan said:

i now have a Bateson trailer , that has a little ramp that you can pull out from underneath if needed , (barn doors at the back ), and i must say that loading has never been easier , and have never had anything , that has not been happy to hop up inside , even the minis , so maybe the ramp is the issue , is there anybody near you who has a similar trailer that you could try your horse with.

the Van Fautras & another of the continental makes do the short ramps as well which seem to suit a lot of horses.

Forgot the self load - single handed here usually as well so all mine do - eventually!

This if often beneficial to many horses as they then feel they're in control of the situation & don't have a person blocking from the front which can be offputting. They do need to feel confident first but it is also very empowering to them when they realise they can do something as leader.

It does require a contained yard for safety & also a degree of trust that the horse won't react strongly initially but mine will all load by being led up the ramp with me on the ground, rope over the neck - when they get to the top of the ramp & I can no longer reach their heads I just slide my hand down their body to their quarters to reassure them & tell them to go on. I can also rear unload the same way if I need to.

I'm lucky that I've not had a real problem loader for some years - 1 very opinionated mare who used to lie down on the job Pressure halter with 2 people on the end sorted this one but it needed 2 of us to get enough pressure on her to get her to her feet.

She was self loading by the time we sold her on.

Does your mare long rein/ground drive Dartie? This is hugely beneficial to building self confidence - anywhere you would ride, long rein her, let her gain the confidence to walk out without you as her support & you may find the loading issue goes away.

[Karen, garrettponies]

My connie years ago was a swine to load. Anyone coming from behind made her worse and she would go plum up in the air. I used a pressure halter which helped. I also put the trailer where there were two sides enclosed so she couldn't jump sideways and if she went backwards there wasn't much room for her to go far. She soon learned going forwards was easier as she had no escape route apart from the left side which is where I was. She got much better with practice and got to the point where she bounded in.

Agree about being sensitive to ramps, though, when I had a little lorry she didn't seem to trust the ramp, she would bang it and 'test' it. Turned out she was right one day as when I put the ramp up part of had slightly split. She still hated lorries but always was keen to go in the trailer after we had got over the problems.

I also found, bizarrely, she used to get over-excited after being bathed and ready to go anywhere, she had overnight to wind herself up with excuses as to why not to load. I took to bathing her for no reason so she didn't associate it with travelling and turning her out after a proper 'show' bath for the night well rugged, she stopped stressing.

Strange things sometimes ponies! I learned a lot about reverse psychology from her!!

[sarahp]

When I had a trailer I used to let my then mare self load, I preferred it on the grounds that I could then do up the breeching chain behind her to prevent her backing out again. Well I let her self load until one day she went round the front of the partition and came back out down the other side....... I had to trail to hack out, almost always on my own, so loading had to be spot on - and I had a front unload trailer and never ever taught any of them to back out so that they didn't when it wasn't wanted.

[kew]

Two techniques you might want to try that have worked for me - the first was long reining the horse or pony onto the trailer. The other is when the mare plants on the ramp to back her off in a straight line - and keep backing her until she really does want to come forward. Do this every time she plants or backs off and after a while she will get mightily fed up of going backwards and will be very keen to go forwards - doing the right thing being much easier than doing the wrong thing. This was a technique shown to me by a well known natural horsemanship expert and it honestly worked - the young mare I tried it with was never a bad loader again.

[dartie92]

Thanks everyone for all ur ideas we have tried covering the ramp and we always make sure it is on a level surface once all 4 feet are on the ramp she will load. I have tried a pressure halter and a dually (not together obvs) and she just rears up and turns away she knows her strength. She is the same in a box as a trailer so I don't think this is the issue or trust as she will follow me past scary things normally. She is a cow to lunge and longrien so I don't think that would work as she just gets stressed and flys round like an idiot. I think I will try backing her up til she wants to go forward. And unforetunatly the unwanted helper thinks he did nothing round and found the whole thing highly amusing (plonker) was the nicest word used

[sarahp]

In a halter, if she goes up try to keep pressure on, you may have to go with her, it should only be released when the pony makes even the smallest move forwards towards the ramp. It's not a battle of strength but of mind, making it less pleasant for them to do the wrong thing and more pleasant to do the right one. The backing up works, I use it too when teaching foals to lead properly - I recently had recourse to it with a colt foal that rushed, or rather bounded forward. It didn't take many repetitions for him to realise he only went into the box for his supper if he walked politely by my side instead!

I had one difficult D filly to teach to load years ago. After 1 1/2 hours I changed my objective (she didn't know what it was of course) from getting her on the lorry to just getting her two front feet on the ramp, at which point I made a big fuss of her, backed her off and it was my victory, not hers. I then walked her all round the garden for a bit going on and off every different surface I could find as I think it was the change under her feet that worried her.

I wonder if your filly thinks she has you under control, rather than the other way round, if she is difficult in other ways besides loading? I try to be herd leader to my lot - I aim for trust and obedience from them.

[Karen, garrettponies]

My connie was taking the mickey, she wasn't scared or troubled by it. It was the one thing she found she could get the better of me with by going up and twisting sideways then backwards. I used the pressure halter and the techniques taught by a chap called Mike Barker, not sure what method but it was of the natural horsemanship persuasion and involved use of the halter, turning circles and reversing. It was the reversing which helped, when she went backwards we continued backwards, she chose to start to walk forwards as she didn't like backwards anymore.

I would be tempted to do some groundwork with the halter/dually to get her used to what is expected of her with it and learn to respect your wishes, not what she wants to do. I have a lovely dartie who is a super pony but she does have a stroppy streak when she has a different idea to us. Persevere, she'll get there.

[rubydoo]

apparantly the monty robert dually halter is gret for difficult loaders theres a clip on u tube.

[winterwood]

Breaking the loading down into small chunks and working on moving the horses feet rather than concentrating on 'loading' I find works well

www.youtube.com/watch?v=TU6L9uz3ktg

[gillwales]

Can I just say that moving each foot one at a time while can work is also very dangerous, it is VERY easy to get kicked or sat on that way so please be careful. What you need to decide is is she scared or being stubborn, once you have worked that out you can decide how you approach the problem. Placement of the trailer or box can really make a difference. I would also urge anyone buying a new pony or horse to ask to see them load when you go to view without prior warning, if it does not go in easily then walk away. If you breed then this should be the next lesson after being halter broken, a little tip if you have a broodmare that does not load then put trailer or box in a yard with the gates shut, empty box or trailer of partitions let mare go loose with head collar on, pick up baby at 2 to 3 days old and put it in the box, the mare will follow, take the baby out then repeat until the mare is walking in calmly, I did this and it worked for me, the pony had to be sedated and carried in previously

good luck

[sarahp]

If you use a pressure halter of any sort you do need to learn how to use it properly, the technique matters at least as much if not more than the piece of equipment.

Mind you the stubborn, as opposed to frightened, ones soon learn when they're outmanoevred - daughter had a couple who were difficult to load in a headcollar or bridle but as soon as the pressure halter (she had a Richard Maxwell one, and made up a home made one too) went on they knew the difference and went straight in without a murmer.

[Guestless]

Mar 28, 2013 6:55:41 GMT sarahp said:

If you use a pressure halter of any sort you do need to learn how to use it properly, the technique matters at least as much if not more than the piece of equipment.

Mind you the stubborn, as opposed to frightened, ones soon learn when they're outmanoevred - daughter had a couple who were difficult to load in a headcollar or bridle but as soon as the pressure halter (she had a Richard Maxwell one, and made up a home made one too) went on they knew the difference and went straight in without a murmer.

I couldn't agree more, particularly about learning to use the pressure halters properly - the Richard Maxwell version comes with a DVD and I almost feel that is more important than the actual halter! I wouldn't be without mine - I put it on ponies regularly but it rarely comes into action as they learn quite quickly it's easier to do what is required.

[sarahp]

I actually use ordinary rope halters anyway, only because I always have since long before MR, IH, Richard Maxwell and all that came in and I've never seen a need to change - unless loading the two ponies above! Very handily the rope ones adjust to any size of head which I find much easier as I have such a variety of head sizes from A foals to D adults.

[not-a-charity]

I would contact IH - Kelly Marks can suggest someone near to you - they are fabulous and no gimmicks or short cuts, we had Paddy Gracey out to our very bad loader who had had an accident on the lorry - within a few hours the pony was self loading and now is a very content loader/traveller.

[lilliella1]

I have taken on a rather messed up VERY well know show pony who was deemed a "killer" if you tried to load him. Last night I though I would give it ago and he took one look at the box and said no way!! Using a special Parelli technique I have been taught I loaded him in 2 mins, the 2nd and 3rd time he went up the ramp without me!. PM me if you want to know more.

[winterwood]

Mar 27, 2013 21:12:26 GMT gillwales said:

Can I just say that moving each foot one at a time while can work is also very dangerous, it is VERY easy to get kicked or sat on that way so please be careful. What you need to decide is is she scared or being stubborn, once you have worked that out you can decide how you approach the problem. Placement of the trailer or box can really make a difference. I would also urge anyone buying a new pony or horse to ask to see them load when you go to view without prior warning, if it does not go in easily then walk away. If you breed then this should be the next lesson after being halter broken, a little tip if you have a broodmare that does not load then put trailer or box in a yard with the gates shut, empty box or trailer of partitions let mare go loose with head collar on, pick up baby at 2 to 3 days old and put it in the box, the mare will follow, take the baby out then repeat until the mare is walking in calmly, I did this and it worked for me, the pony had to be sedated and carried in previously

good luck

When I say concentrate on moving the horses feet. I don't mean literally go down and pick up each foot to move it . Use pressure and release to move the horse around and take control of the feet/movement of the horse as shown in the video I posted a link to. And by taking away the 'intent' in ourselves of loading it can really change things as far as the horse is concerned.

The video is me working with a difficult loader at a demonstration