Trailer Loading

By Meredith Hodges

One of the most daunting challenges to face equine owners around the world and throughout history has been the age-old problem of loading an equine into a trailer. It’s always nice when the equine will just follow you into the trailer simply with the incentive of a food reward, but it can often be much more difficult than that. For the experienced person, it is usually a minor chore, but for everyone else it can end up being a nightmare. When I was only ten years old, my own half-Saddlebred, half-Quarter Horse mare was so cantankerous about loading into her trailer, that both my parents were soured on letting me show, which severely limited my Horsemanship experience. I have since learned to combat the trailer-loading problem by applying a few simple ideas and techniques, which you can learn too. Many loading techniques generally work well with horses, but fail when it comes to loading difficult mules and donkeys. The technique I use will work with all three animals, but you must be cautious when applying this technique with horses, as they can often pull back and flip over backwards.

Although it isn’t absolutely necessary, for safety purposes it is best to have someone to assist you while loading. The first thing to remember is not to be rushed or anxious during loading. If you are rushed or anxious, otherwise docile animals can become nervous about loading, and animals that are already nervous may become even more resistant, so it is important for you stay calm and do things in a methodical manner.

First, make sure that you have your animal tacked up with a stout nylon halter (one that will not break) and a 25-foot lead of the same strength. A heavy-gauge nylon lunge line works well for this. When attaching the lead to the halter, do not use the snap, as it can easily break. Tie the lead directly to the halter ring with a knot that will not slip or come loose. Note: Never use a chain, as this can cause pain and/or injury to your animal. It is always best to cover your animal’s legs with either shipping boots or leg wraps, to protect his legs from possible injury during loading or transporting. If your equine is a kicker, hock protectors should also be used. If he is the type to throw his head around, a poll guard is also advisable. Sheets or blankets, depending on weather conditions, will help to protect the rest of his body.

Once he is tacked up for transporting, reassure him with a calm and soothing voice, offer him a small handful of oats and lead him quietly to the door of the trailer, leading him only as close as he is willing to go. Then give him one more small handful of oats, and while holding the excess lead, you go ahead of him into the trailer. Feed the lunge line out the side window and then walk back to your equine and give him some more oats for standing quietly. Fetch the end of your long line outside of the window and bring it down the side of the trailer, where you will find a place to take two wraps and snub the line.

Your lead line will go from the animal into the trailer, around a snub and down the outside of the trailer, so that when your animal moves forward toward the trailer, you can easily take up the slack, while encouraging him forward from behind with a medium-length whip which will serve as an extension of your arm. If you have help, you can snub closer to the front of the trailer and have your assistant tap your equine on the fetlocks, while you take up the slack at the front of the trailer.

Note: It is advisable with horses not to keep the slack snubbed so his feet are too close to the edge of the trailer. Let out the slack in the line just enough to keep him clear of anything he could hit if he struggles. Hold him snubbed there instead of directly behind the trailer like you would with a Longears.

Mules and donkeys can be snubbed right to the base of the trailer, but you need to hold the snub there until they actually step up into the trailer with at least one front foot. If they slide under the trailer, give just a little more slack to encourage them to step up into the trailer instead of sitting down and sliding their front legs under the back of the trailer.

Most equines only need an opportunity to survey the situation before they decide that it is really not all that threatening. So, if you remain patient and move only a step or two at a time, your animal should eventually go into the trailer with little or no resistance. If you are loading on the left, make sure your lead comes out of the trailer on the left side, and if loading on the right side, your lead should come out the right side of your trailer. This will aid in keeping your animal lined up straight behind the trailer. When you want him to load, making a clucking sound and give the command, “Get up.” If he takes a step forward, take up your slack and hold tight. Wait for him to settle before you ask him to move again. If he is resistant, encourage him to step forward by lightly tapping him behind his rear fetlocks, one leg at a time. If he still won’t go, tap a little harder each time you ask. More than likely, if he doesn’t go forward, he may try to back up. Do not allow this!

Hold your snub firmly and wait until he stops struggling before you tap again with the whip. As he discovers that he cannot back up, his attention will be refocused forward. If he is a nervous animal, reward him moderately with a small handful of oats when he ceases to struggle and stands quietly. Do not hurry an animal that is struggling, as this will only make him fight harder, increasing the probability of injury to himself and to you. Just step back and wait for him to stop moving. Once he has completely ceased struggling, you can ask him to go forward again.

Since an equine’s depth perception is somewhat different from ours, give him plenty of time to survey the situation, particularly if he has to step up into the trailer. During the first couple of tries, make sure he has slack enough to put his nose to the floor at the trailer opening before you snub him more tightly. This will prevent injury by keeping his legs from sliding under the edge of the trailer. Every time he puts slack in the lead after he has a foot up on the trailer floor, be sure to take it up so that he is continuously snubbed. Once an animal learns that he can get away with it, an animal that is allowed to go backwards for any distance will use this avoidance behavior whether he is actually fearful or not. The same goes for those animals that are always loaded into the trailer with the use of a reward. They sometimes will eventually take advantage of you and refuse to load easily, even with the reward. A good reward system is essential—however, you must be careful to reward your animal for a task well done and completed, and not use the reward as a bribe. Before you release the snub, make sure your animal has all four legs securely on the trailer floor and is standing quietly.  Then attach the breech strap behind him, exit the trailer and close the doors before you release the snub and go to the front to tie him off. You can reach his head through the escape, or feed doors in almost any trailer. The open sides of a stock trailer afford easy access. In an enclosed slant-load, you can step in and easily tie him once the doors are closed behind you and he knows there is no escape. When he is loaded and secured, a reassuring word and a reward for a job well done are in order. In order to assure your animal a comfortable and non-threatening ride, try to make smooth stops and turns as you drive down the road. As he learns that he will not be harmed in any way, the loading will most likely become easier each time and, eventually, you should be able to entirely fade out your 25-foot lunge line and send him into the trailer from behind with his lead rope draped over his back.

When unloading, simply reverse the process. At first, let him back out as quickly as he wants, but maintain your hold on the end of the line so you can stop him once he is out of the trailer. As he becomes more comfortable with the process, he will back out more slowly on his own. If you have an animal that wants to explode out the back of the trailer, be sure that he is untied in front before you open the doors to unload him. If he starts fighting the tie rope inside the trailer, he could be severely injured. If you keep your animal tied in the trailer and make a habit of removing his shipping boots inside of the trailer before unloading, it will help him to remain calm and will teach him to wait patiently before you release him. In addition, you never want to cause any claustrophobic tendencies in your equine because of a bad experience.

Remember: Do not allow your animal to turn around inside the trailer unless it is in-hand and at your verbal command to “Walk On.”

Always insist, at least in the beginning of training, that he back out, while keeping a continuous hold onto his lead rope and intermittently give short tugs on the lead rope to slow him down. Always remember to give the verbal command to “Back” and if he is speeding up, just say “Easy…Whoa…” If he gets stuck and refuses to back out of the trailer, you can step into the trailer in front of him, maintain contact on the lead close to the halter ring and push on his chest with short nudges from your thumb to encourage him to back out—always carefully, and only one step at a time. Talk to him in a calm manner in order to allay his fears and be sure to verbally praise him when he steps back. By using these guidelines in an orderly and patient way, your loading and unloading nightmares should cease and desist, leaving much more time for fun and enjoyment for both you and your equine.

To learn more about Meredith Hodges and her comprehensive all-breed equine training program, visit LuckyThreeRanch.com, MEREDITH HODGES PUBLIC FIGURE Facebook page, or call 1-800-816-7566. Check out her children’s website at JasperTheMule.com. Also, find Meredith on Pinterest, Instagram, MeWe, YouTube and Twitter.

Covered in TRAINING MULES & DONKEY: A LOGICAL APPROACH TO TRAINING, TRAINING WITHOUT RESISTANCE, EQUUS REVISITED and A GUIDE TO RAISING & SHOWING MULES at www.luckythreeranchstore.com.

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