KBR Horse Training Information Exercising Body AND Mind

Trailering Made Easy
Part Two

By my maintaining a correct position and encouraging him to move forward, Stormy simply explored his way up the ramp with little more than his own natural acuriosity. We also had placed a small flake of alfalfa on the floor at the front end of the trailer, not as bait, but as a distraction once he found his way inside. We did not want to have someone shake the hay, call to him, etc., as we wanted him to negotiate his way through this problem and as a result, be experienced and confident the next time he's asked to load. Similarly we didn't want to "drag" him into the trailer by the lead line.

Actually, Stormy's entrance into the trailer was anti-climactic. He explored around, enjoyed a few munches of hay, then it was time to repeat the performance.

You'll notice that I didn't follow him into the trailer. I concentrated on keeping him from getting tangled up in the rope and let him explore the trailer on his own terms. I want him to be independently confident inside that trailer. Also, if he did bump into something or make a noise that spooked him, I didn't want to be inside having to rush out behind him which would present the illusion that I, too, was frightened and fleeing also. If he came blasting out, I could simply step away from the trailer and put him back on the longe and return him to the ramp before he even thought about it.

Before we could repeat this performance, I had to get him out of the trailer. I didn't want to jerk him around to do this. With a taller horse, pulling hard on the rope could cause the horse to raise his head and bump the roof. Therefore my objective was to get him to focus on me and to give him a familiar aid. I simply wiggled the rope until I caught his attention and started to step away from the trailer. If he stalled out, I'd back him up slighty and try again. Notice the lead rope is slack and I'm just keeping enough tension that he won't step on it.

We walked away, I got him moving again on the longe, and this time he just trucked right up the ramp first time! We repeated the "reloads" a half dozen times. Each time in the trailer he got a little break and could nibble on the alfalfa.

Important Note: If you take on the project of developing an untrained horse, everybody will want to give you advice. Don't act on any advice, including the ideas offered in this site, unless it makes sense to you and fits your individual situation. Your abilities and the sensitivities of your horse(s) may differ from the examples given. Be alert and rational with your actions so neither you nor your horse will get hurt. This information is offered as illustrations of what we do and the reader must apply common sense since he or she is solely responsible for his or her actions.