| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| sab2 |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 10:57:45 AM
Scraping the bottom of the barrel a bit here but dose anybody have anything else we can try for a mare who is very unhappy on her own in the horsebox. When she has company she is fine but sadly i compete on my own egb, as we are out of the horsebox for so long at rides it is not fair to take a companion pony along and none of my friends compete so i cannot give anybody a lift, we have tried a mirror and it only worked once , tried music, tried with partition in and without, tried boots on boots off, she is now getting so stressed that she is injuring herself and the worry is that she dose herself a lot of harm, she is a very insucure mare at the best of times and can be a real stresshead at home or in the field so its not just wagon issues , but at home we can manage ok its the horsebox we are in dire straights with. I have tried various calmers to no avail so please dose anybody have any suggestions to try and help her . |
| 5 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| sab2 |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 6:11:22 PM
Have you tried the mirror, it did work for my mare at first but now she seems to of worked out that its not a real horse  if we find some way of getting her to travel on her own i shall let you know, all this started last year when i went to an egb ride and she met up with her old field companions, up until then she had traveled on her own fine, it is soul destroying isnt it. |
| BeckyBoodle |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 2:39:27 PM
I hired one of the little rear facing boxes - I can't remember if it was a Renault or Equitrek and she travelled really badly - she also doesn't like going on her own, and is fine with another horse, but in the same way as you, I don't have another horse so we can get stuck. When I mentioned it to RM he said that he thought he had heard of there being a stability issue with one of these small boxes, where the horse finds it hard to get its balance.
If you find any answers I would love to hear them. I was going to start off again on the slow process of getting her back used to the trailer, and while I am ok to set time aside, it isn't always possible.
B |
| sab2 |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 2:19:26 PM
Beckyboodle what type of box do you use ? if it is a case of balance in my box then i cannot do anything about it as my OH would not be prepared to buy me another one, mine is a 2 horse facing backwards. We do not think she is worried about the box as she always walks straight up the ramp the problem is seperation stress when she leaves the other horses, as soon as you leave them she gets her knickers in a knot.I am friends with the lady who had her before me and they have had similar problems with the stress when leaving the horses, once you are on her back and riding her shes fine but getting to that point can be hard work unless you tie her up by another hors,. I can put up with that bit but the fact that she is behind my head in the horsebox and the damage she is doing to herself and the horsebox is not something that i can accept anymore. |
| BeckyBoodle |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 1:00:09 PM
Have you tried different vehicles? I had Richard Maxwell out recently - not for loading but can definitely endorse him - and we were talking about transporting horses. Some boxes are much less balanced than others and therefore the horse finds it very hard to get balance.
I am sure you have, but have you tried feeding and grooming and getting her to stand in the horse box for long periods of time without it moving at home. Having slowly built that up, then can you try stepping out of the box/trailer for 5 seconds then 20 seconds then a minute etc?
This is what I am trying but if you find an answer do let me know, as I have something similar.
B |
| Nut |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 11:02:08 AM
Can only recommend someone like Richard Maxwell come out and help you. You've probably see a few threads from those of us on here who have used him. Its not just the loading itself he deals with it can be all manor of other challenges such as you are describing.
x |
|
|
