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Discussion on Won't get in trailer to come home | |
Author | Message |
Member: Cowgrl |
Posted on Tuesday, Mar 30, 2004 - 12:09 pm: Hello. I have a question I haven't seen here yet but I have gained some ideas on what to do.I have a young mustang that leads great, knows what sending forward is, and generally has a really good attitude. He will load just fine when we are on our way somewhere but when it is time to load to come home -- no way! I've tried flagging him to send him forward and he will get on but only after a struggle. He'll circle around the back of the trailer and it's almost impossible to get him in. I've practiced with him at home and he does great. It's only when we're coming home after a ride. The first time he did this it took an expert about an hour or more to load him with the horse flipping out. The trainer never got upset and remained calm but the horse had it in his mind that he was not getting in that trailer. He's gotten better but I plan to try a different tack. I'll do the stand and let him look and sniff and then ask for the foot in and then out, then ask for two feet. I've tried the John Lyons method and he either moves around to the side or backs away with me tap, tap, tapping. Any further ideas will be appreicated. Thanks. Holly |
Member: Terrilyn |
Posted on Tuesday, Mar 30, 2004 - 1:35 pm: We had the opposite problem with a baby who would not get OFF the trailer...for obvious reasons--the step up is pretty high. However, I wanted to point out that you're probably on the right track with two feet off, two on and then working progressively to put the horse at ease with loading completely. It worked in reverse for us as far as backing off the trailer (thanks to Holly W. who pointed me in that direction...Clinton Anderson also uses this technique) We only had to do this for a few sessions and he responded really well and backs off fine now. |
Member: Liliana |
Posted on Tuesday, Mar 30, 2004 - 4:11 pm: Hi Holly,Sounds familiar, my daughter’s pony had to be carried into the trailer some times (she’s 11.2hh) or if we were near home she would have to ride home! Sooo just like you , we did our home work on this (ask around, books, etc) and the answer was… that on the way home we DrOve slowly as we were not in an a rush to get back, it was an easy ride and the horses/ponies remembered that, BUT, on the way to the show it was a different story. I don’t know about you but, usually there would be the phone call from someone on the other side of the world, natures call, traffic, or white gray pony waking up with a pillow of manure hence green make up! So finally coming to the point I am trying to make… the answer was that I had to really do things by the book, a tick list (which I printed) with all the stuff that one needs for a horsey event, from tack, down to toilet tissue paper and food and water for humans and horses. So we left with plenty of time, and DrOve very slowly on the way to the event, and we never again had any problems loading her or any of the others, in the end we even used Bluebell (11.2) to go into the trailer or horsebox first so that a difficult one would follow. } Oh another thing, which you probably know, if you face the horse/ pony and you are wearing glasses, they will not go in no matter what. |
Member: Terrilyn |
Posted on Tuesday, Mar 30, 2004 - 4:35 pm: Excellent points about not being rushed! So very true. That sense of panic about being late is interpreted as "uh oh!" by a horse. We have definitely been there! I always allow a minimum of 15 minutes or longer for loading when planning departure time. However, I must say the glasses thing is new. I wear them...and I'm sure in the hundreds of times I've loaded my horses I must have faced them at one time or another. I could be wearing a clown suit and goggles facing her, and my mare would jump over me to get on the trailer....every horse is different. |
Member: Cowgrl |
Posted on Tuesday, Mar 30, 2004 - 5:52 pm: I try to never act like it's a major event and he must get in now or else. Plus I'm a very careful driver with the horses and always leave in plenty of time to get where we're going. I like to take my time with getting them there so I drive the limit or a little below and don't worry about anyone passing. I'm sure he'll get better with time since we (husband and I) travel with the horses a lot over the summer and all our other horses are super easy loaders.My husband has a method that he employs for loading. He calls it the "heaven and hell approach" He brings the horse to the trailer and offers them the option of getting in. If they don't, he leads them away from the trailer and raps them a few times on the chest with the end of the leaDrOpe, making a big show of it so the horse thinks he's going to die. He then leads them back to the trailer and offers again to let him get in, if not, away from the trailer he goes and does the same. Then offers again. Usually by the third time the horse thinks the trailer is heaven and away from the trailer is hell and will get in at that point. Generally after that the horse is a very good loader but I really don't want to go that route. I'll procede with original plan and just have an easy and enjoyable time with it. The mention of goggles reminded me of something that you'll probably get a kick out of. I was riding with a friend out on some backcountry trails one day and at the trailhead while we were getting ready to leave, this little old guy on a small mule comes down the trail. He parks his mule and goes and gets his truck. He has an open bed stock truck so he pulls up the loading ramp and loads his mule. He then pulls out a pair of huge homemade goggles and puts them on his mule! I thought I was going to die laughing, it was the funniest thing I ever saw. The mule proudly looked out over the roof of the truck and had a great time. The only thing missing was a white scarf for his neck! If I hadn't seen it, I wouldn't have believed it. Thanks for the responses everyone. Holly |
Moderator: DrO |
Posted on Tuesday, Mar 30, 2004 - 9:55 pm: In my area I am renowned for teaching horses to get on trailers: folks bring horses from many miles and I charge big bucks as often the horses are almost ruined by repeated poor attempts to get them to load. You can have my lessons for nothing more they are in the article and yes my ideas are adapted from John Lyons and have never had it fail in hundreds of applications. If it is failing you, you are missing something. I will go deflate my head now but it really was JL who put me on the right track on this.DrO |
Member: Cowgrl |
Posted on Thursday, Apr 1, 2004 - 3:43 pm: Here's an update on my trailer training. I wan't able to take him anywhere by the time I got home from work yesterday but I worked on loading and unloading anyway. Dakota loaded himself just fine with me standing outside the trailer - hopped right in and turned around to wait for me. I walked him out and he stepped out just fine. The next three times I backed him out and he was a little more uneasy with this and wanted to turn around and come out. We tried it a few times and each time he was better. When he got close to the step down, I had him stop and think about what he had to do and then I told him "step" and he started to associate it with needing to step down. I also had him stop with one foot out of the trailer and then two feet out and he was perfectely fine; licking and chewing. Tonight I may take him around the block and unload and reload and see how he does. I'll keep you posted.Holly |
Moderator: DrO |
Posted on Friday, Apr 2, 2004 - 6:32 am: Sounds like real progress Holly.DrO |
Member: Cowgrl |
Posted on Thursday, Apr 8, 2004 - 1:21 pm: Here's a further update. Yesterday I took him alone for a day ride. When it was time go home, at first he just put his two fronts in and stood there. I was inside the trailer so I stepped towards him to tap him on the rear and he stepped back out and backed away. I then brought him back up and this time stayed out of the trailer sent him in from there. He climbed right in just fine. When we got home I loaded him in and out a couple of times just to reinforce what he needs to do. He's such a good guy.Hopefully this problem is solved. Thanks for all the suggestions. |
Member: Miamoo |
Posted on Friday, Apr 30, 2004 - 2:18 pm: I know that this is an old post so I may be too late but here goes. The method I use for loading (It takes some time at the outset but then works smoothly once they get it) is a pressure/release system. I put the chain over my horses nose (not to yank but to allow them to feel the pressure) and walk them to the trailer. I will apply light pressure and only increase the pressure if they back up. If they step forward I immediately release all pressure as a reward. After they stand there for a minute I apply light pressure again. I have had about 15 horses in my barn over the last 10 years and with using this method the only "discussion" I have ever had has been with a fat stubborn pony. He took one slap on the butt and then decided that "Yes, I really did mean it" and hopped on. The key has been to take time and not lose my temper when they do back up a few times. I also set things up so that I have several days to work on it. With 10 minutes a day for 4-5 days I have had all good loaders. |