Your loading advice and suggestions please

Jane&Ziggy

Jane&Ziggy

Jane&Sid these days!
Apr 30, 2010
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Surrey Hills
Hello all.

Since I got Ziggy 2 years ago he has loaded 4 times. To go to the New Forest and back for our holiday, and to horsepital and back with colic. On all 4 occasions he was going into a small Equitrek box.

The only time he loaded at once was when he had colic, when he was in so much pain he would do absolutely anything I suggested. All 3 other times he was very reluctant and loading him took between 10 and 15 minutes. He didn't want to go on to the ramp, then got stuck with his front feet on the ramp. Eventually he seemed to give up, walked in quite calmly and once in travelled extremely well, quietly and with no sweating.

On Tuesday me and my friend Suzi are borrowing just such a box to practise for our trip to Windsor on Saturday. Ziggy will have to be the horse by the pavement because he is little. I am intending to get him in and out of the box as many times as possible, using these principles:
  • Use his rope halter and a long lead rope.
    Watch my body position so I am encouraging him forward, not blocking him.
  • Do not let him go backwards at any time.
  • Don't drag on his head but keep up the pressure.
  • Person 2 may encourage him from behind with a hand on his rump (he is not a kicker) or even "walk" his feet up the ramp by hand.
  • No hitting or whipping.
  • Haynet inside trailer and treats for successful movement.

He is clicker trained, so I'm not sure if I should use the clicker to indicate that forward movement is good. What do you think? Also, do any of you have any other advice or suggestions?

Once he has gone in and out a few times we will close up the trailer, then reopen it. If we have time we may go for a very short drive around the block, with both horses in position.

Please let me know if my plan is sensible and what you think I should do as well or instead!
 
Wally gave me the best bit of advice ever with regards to loading .... cant remember it word for word but basically, load as thought they are going to :smile:

If you think something is going to go wrong - it will. You have to believe that your pony/horse will just walk on without any issues

Good luck - if I can load Archie first time without any issues - anyone can:wink:
 
Well Tobes was a proper pain for loading.

So

1. I used his pressure halter and a long line.
2. The minute he pulled back - I made him back up - not nicely but vigorously.
3. I then asked him forwards and the minute he planted - back I made him go again - vigorously.
4. Any loungeing on the ramp with one foot cocked - cue back up vigorously.

This was after nearly an hour of Tobes loungeing on the ramp and deciding he couldn't possibly get on the trailer. Mind you, actually he wasn't scared of the trailer, just taking the pee.

He now loads in between 2 and 5 mins with no one behind him - I really wouldn't advise anyone behind the horse in whatever fashion because I think it builds resistance.

Oh and lots of apples once walked on waiting for helper to do up bottom bar!!!
 
I think your plan sounds pretty solid tbh! I would definitely try to make use of his clicker training, reward him for every forward movement. How does he respond to having something around his back end? - the lungeline-behind-the-bottom often works to encourage them forwards when they plant, you can make it a consistent pressure but without being forceful.
 
Just take your time, main problem with loading into the second partition is turning them as they have to turn with you on the offside while their back legs are still on the ramp.

Just a heads up though that the carrying capacity of Equitrek 3.5 t boxes is only 1t, check weight of the two horses ,tack, people, equipment, diesal etc. They often recommend leaving out the spare wheel but that may leave you in problems with your breakdown cover, check!!!! Vosa people are getting very hot on pulling and weighting horseboxes.
 
I had an issue loading Inca on our way back from the show on Saturday, I'm not entirely sure why as she loaded fine on the way there and had a good ride in the lorry. We just quietly persisted (it took two hours!) but just using pressure and release with lots of reward for any forward movement and of she reared and pulled away I used that momentum to swing her back round to the ramp & rewarded her for being at the ramp.

When she was ready, she just walked up like she had done every other time. When we got home I got her back up the ramp twice without too much of a fuss.

Sounds like you have a good plan, just lots of patience and he will get there :)
 
My boy Bertie used to be a PITA, he would throw his head up and sod off, about the only time he could turn on a sixpence at speed.

Like you I borrowed the lorry that I travelled him in the most to have a pratice.
Lesson I learned that day with Bertie was that for some no pressure works the best.
I kept him on a loose lead rope, he did the usual planting at the bottom, I waited, I stepped onto the ramp and called him, still no pressure, up he came.
After a few more goes, he just followed me up without a lead rope.

I have never had a problem since.
 
We had one in Portugal like that ^^. Pressure of any kind didn't work with her at all. Whoever was loading her led her up the ramp until she planted (usually with front feet half way up) and then sat down in the trailer holiding her leadrope, after about 5 minutes she'd just wander in. Any "encouragement" whatsoever and she'd back out, she just wanted to do it in her own time!
 
If you're going to load using halter pressure then the timing of your releases is very important. If you're used to spotting the try clicker training you shouldn't have too much trouble with this. I'd not get too hung up on him not going backwards so long as it's not taking you away completely from the job in hand.

I'd personally either use elevated halter pressure, or clicker training, but not the two combined, although you can always give a food reward once they're on. It is possible to target a horse onto a box, but the difference is that if they really don't want to go on he clicker won't get them there.
 
I looked at my notes of how Mark Rashid taught a young horse to load.
Like Yann said, he did not insist on forward motion. Indeed he asked the horse to stop after one step on the ramp, back him off again and walked round before progressing to the second step. At each step up the ramp, he asked the horse walk backwards off the ramp again. He said he was teaching the horse both to load and unload (backing down).
He said this was a safety thing. That if horses knew how to get off the ramp, they didnt panic, nor spin and knock you or themselves off the edge.
Only when the horse was fully loaded did he turn it and show it how to come out forwards.
I have detailed notes if you want them -
Absolutely every video I have on loading, and every demo too, including Mark above, the trainer presented loading as part of lessons in leading. Not as something in isolation. Day 1 he taught the colt to lead. day 2 he taught it to load.
 
Similar to this ^^^^

When Izzy has been sticky to load I go back to doing a bit of extra groundwork in terms of leading, backing up and getting him really switched on to me and moving with very little pressure. I also stop him and back him up before he has chance to stop if we are having any issues.

I am also a big fan of rewards once they are in. I think Izzy thinks the lorry is a treat machine. Everytime he goes in the lorry he gets something good to eat. Never on the ramp, only when he is in tied up and the partition done.

I am doing the ride on the Saturday as well.Hopefully it will be going ahead....
 
I have never loaded a horse before and have no experience of this myself.

However, years ago I used to share a welsh section D. He was very strong minded and if he didn't want to do something, he didn't. Loading was an issue and I remember one night looking on through tears as the yard 'experts' tried to get him in the box. There were whips, lunge lines, aggression, fuss and this poor horse was going insane. They didn't get him in and everyone just got angry - apart from me who was very upset.

One evening when I was alone with him I explained the situation to one of the instructors on the yard who I trusted and he got him to walk on trailer with no problems whatsoever. It took him 1 minute to get him to walk in the box. The difference was all to do in the body language of the handler. It was amazing to watch how someone could make such a difference just by body language and being very quiet with his handling.

I hope that Ziggy loads well and you have a good day out.
 
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