Welp,
I promised my kids a vacation down south. On the way, I'm dropping my daughter and horse in South Carolina for a week of fun. I've done day trips with the horses (and daughter) hp here in the summer, but this is the first trip down south. I've got to get through the winter NE stuff first. I'd be very appreciative of any suggestions (other than stay home!!).

regards,
AJG617
NOT!!

 

If your trailer is open on the sides I would suggest a blanket for the horse until you get into warmer weather. If your trailer is fully enclosed then no blanket. I like to give the horse at least 30 min rest (no driving) every 3-4 hours. Since you will likely have to stop and spend the night somewhere I would search for "horse motels" (yep they are available), There is a website that lists them nationwide. I like to keep a list of motels along the travel route in case of vehicle/trailer problems.

Just a few things I learned from my horse transporting day's.

Have fun.

 

Oh yea, don't forget coggins test and health certificate from the vet.

 

I will be picking up a horse in WI this weekend. In the cold, I keep the windows shut and leave the top roof vents open half way. Just enough to get some air circulation but no direct air on them. When it is this cold out, we always ship with a heavy turnout blanket. We also keep a cooler handy. We also always ship with shipping boots on. I will stop every 2 hours to give the horses a break and give them some water. I also give them a bran mash slurry before long travels. It helps with digestion and keep things moving. If they start getting too hot or sweating, I will throw on the cooler and remove the heavy blanket.
Stopping over night is up in the air between different folks. Me personally and my vet both agree it's better for the horse(s) to ship straight through and stop every couple hours. Every year I take 3 horses to Fort Worth Texas and we go straight through and it takes a total of about 22 hours with the stopping. It's better for the horses mind than stopping over night in a strange place just to be loaded up and shipped to another strange place the next morning. Of course we are always shipping to shows so, we like to keep them as sane as possible (most dressage horses are nuts anyways). This is of course if you keep it safe behind the wheel. Rotate drivers if needed.
Good point on the coggins and the health cert.

Oh and please don't forget your Banamine and Bute!! Any horse owners out there that don't have these on hand, come here and let me smack ya...

Happy trailering!!!!!!

 

THanks for the guidance folks. I'm bringing one or two horses from NH to SC for a week of training. I always blanket mine in the winter for local travel. Interesting about the windows though. I close most so that there is no direct cold air blowing on him but I usually leave one open a bit on the side he is not on and behind him to get a little air flow. Otherwise, it becomes like a sauna in there with steam pouring out when I open the door. I have one nervous pony that we took on a 40 minute drive in zero degree weather. Spent over an hour blow drying her when we got home.

Also, my top vents only open forward so that air is forced in and down on the horse when open, so I tend to keep them closed. Side window is in each door (small two horse trailer) and I usually open that a hair to get the air in. Bad idea?

OK to stop every two hours for water and every 4 hours for half-hour rest? He's a good size Canadian warmblood that is very comfortable with trailering.
I like to keep the water warm in the winter at home, not sure how to do that in the jugs that will be in the back of the truck. I figure it will take me about 10 hours to get out of the real cold northeast and into Virginia.

Thanks again,
AJG617

 

[QUOTE=HorseHauler;1360181]I will be picking up a horse in WI this weekend. In the cold, I keep the windows shut and leave the top roof vents open half way. Just enough to get some air circulation but no direct air on them. When it is this cold out, we always ship with a heavy turnout blanket. We also keep a cooler handy. We also always ship with shipping boots on. I will stop every 2 hours to give the horses a break and give them some water. I also give them a bran mash slurry before long travels. It helps with digestion and keep things moving.... [QUOTE]

What's your recipe for the slurry?
THanks,
AJG617

 

I take bran and fill it with warm water and get it to a good consistancy. A little more soupy for the slurry. I also add some carrots and apples to it. You could add some electrolytes in it, that wouldn't hurt at all for a long trailer ride.

Yea it can get steamy in there thats for sure, you will just have to adjust that when you stop. the less direct air on them, the better. good circulation is the key. Keep an eye on any neck sweating and check the ears to see if they are getting cold.

 

a tip for those forward facing roof vents: duct tape a piece of thin cardboard( I use cereal boxes cut apart) over the vent leaving the sides loose and the rear un-taped. Directs the air backward a bit so its not straight down on the horse.
I also blanket mine if its very cold out, and stop every three-four hours. I agree with HorseHauler that its easier on the horse to make a straight through trip, rather than stopping overnight. theres nothing worse than being in an un-safe or unfamiliar area dealing with a horse that has decided its been long enough and doesn't want to get back in the trailer! Bring along a couple hay-nets,(I prefer them to mangers) but be sure you tie-HIGH....
When you do stop, shut off the truck. Many horses wont relax their legs while they can feel the vibration of the truck thru the floor, and that can add to the risk of splints and stifle stiffness or even travel induced colic.

The other thing to add is SLOW DOWN....if your travelling a long way, it can be easy to get fatigued and if your not used to long-hauling, you will start making your corners too sharp and your stop/starts too sudden. What feels fine to you probably WONT to your horse....

 

Thanks all for your suggestions. I'm planning on driving through if I can. My wife and daughter can both spell me for a bit and if need be I have friends in Virginia with about 20 horses. I'm going to shut the windows and try the duct tape idea from chrisreyn. He's only five, but pretty good traveler. The only thing I'm concerned about is that he had juvenile arthritis in the hocks last year. He went through aggressive Tildren treatments and the latest x-rays show the bone calcifying nicely and vet gave us the go-ahead. I'm wondering If I should stop a bit more frequently though. Might have to anyway since I average 13 mpg with the trailer on. Then again, seems like I only go up hill in New England and Penn, never downhill.

Horsehauler, I normally give him a small amount Blue Seal Strider in the morning but I know the local tack shop sells a bran mixture for such occasions.

Thanks again for all of your guidance. Anything over 3 hours is a new experience for all of us.

regards,
AJG617

 

Glad to be of help. If he seems to be bothered, a gram of Bute wouldn't hurt anything for the pain and swelling.
Have fun and be careful.
Eric

 

I know I have posted about this in a different thread but it seem to fit over here also... I haven't hauled horses in years but ride shock transfer can really wear on a horses joints....
Check this out... I am not exactly sure how much is costs but I know horses aren't too cheap...


Or this one:


The airsafe site has a video on it that shows it in motion >>>
http://www.airhitchtechnology.com/goosenecks/index.cfm

Oilguy

 

I trailer horses from Montrose, Colorado to Kentucky regularly in either a stock-type gooseneck, or a straight-deck semi cattle trailer.

Rule number ONE, that I never break, NEVER haul a tied horse, ever.

Insist on tying, and sooner, or later, you will get a hard lesson on why not to.

This is especially dangerous in so-called horse trailers with little horse-sized compartments for them to stand in.

Several years ago, I had two well-traveled well-broke horses in a two-horse trailer.

Thank goodness I was only going a few miles.

No stupid driving, no sudden moves, everything smooth as silk.

I reach my destination to find my best horse nearly choked to death by the halter, down in the trailer, wedged in so tight that she couldn't get up.

I quickly cut the tie rope to give her some air, but had to disassemble a portion of the trailer, before she could get up.

Had I driven five more miles, I don't think she would have survived it.

Since that day, open-floor stock trailers and no tying is the only way I will haul a horse, and I have hauled thousands.

We load horses in the Rockies and haul them non-stop to Kentucky.

On one trouble-ridden trip, we got snowbound on Monarch, were rear-ended, and finally gave it up and layed over for a few hours in Kansas; the horses never touched the ground until unloaded in Kentucky and seemed none the worse for the experience.

The main thing to remember is that you are not in a truck race and you should be fine.

 

On the 11-12th of Jan I pulled my beloved 3-day horse (I take better care of this horse than I do myself ) from N. Va to S.W. MT. I had planned to stay at 2 different horse motels, one in Wisconsin and one in SpearfishSD but ended up driving straight through, stopping every 8-10 hrs to let my girl walk around, smell new smells, and pick some grass. I was extremely surprised at how well my horse handled the 2300mi trip and I wouldnt hesitate to do it the exact same way again. FYI, Make sure the horse has at least 1 bucket of water and a hay net full of grass hay that has been soaked in water. Also make sure he/she has plenty of room to stretch out, if not move around(ie-not tied, in a stall)--I have a 3horse slant and I took out the first partition to give my horse more room to stretch her back out, it wasnt enough to leave her untied though. THis trip was a pretty cold one and I foundthatclosing the windows w/ a medium weight blanket was perfect(my horse is clipped though). From my experience, taking the horse off the trailer every 8-10 hours is more than enough, but definitely check on the animal every time you stop for fuel, food, or a pee. My horse took the trip like such a pro that I decided that the horse motels would be an unnecessary waste of time and 80$--from now on the only time that I will use a horse motel is if Im driving by myself and want to sleep in a bed (which probably wont happen, because I like my $ too much, the front seat is agreat place to take a short nap, and a trip like this wasnt meant for a female copilot ). As an interesting side note; on the 10th in Va it was sunny and in the upper 70's. At 5:00 AM on the 11th in VA it was in the upper 40's. When I got to my destination in Montana around 7:00 PM on the 12th it was a whiteout blowing blizzard and around -20F ( the next morning the ol'cummins started like a champ w/out being plugged in but since it was -27F the clutch didnt work very well ! I put 2 heavyweight blankets on my horse that night.
Good luck w/ the trip--and dont worry too much, itll probably be a lot easier than you think. (THis trip was done in January)
-----Oh ya, and just like the other guy said,DONT FORGET YOUR COGGINS AND HEALTH CERTIFICATE!!!
Drew Stuart

 

BK, you'll have to let me know next time you do this, you probably pass within 20 miles of me...