Some rescued horses may have had to be rushed into a trailer under difficult or stressful circumstances. For some that might even have been their first and only trailer experience. After a period of rehabilitation, the horse will need to be trailered to their new home, and there are three steps that will help them get to the point where they feel at ease with a new trailer experience.
The first step is to create a stress-free setting where the horse can be with the trailer. The horse can be free to walk around the trailer safely and not be bothered by other animals that are not calm. A feeding bucket with treats can be in the trailer. The trailer door needs to be secured open so that the wind doesn’t catch it. And any handler needs to assume a very relaxed, if not disinterested, demeanour.
The second step is to have patience as you introduce a trailer for them to investigate and explore. The quickest way to feel frustrated is to have expectations, so try not to have any expectations. Just let the be around the trailer with the trailer door open. A feed bucket or hay can be inside to entice but have patience as the horse sums up the big new object. The horse will use their sensory abilities to notice how the trailer smells — perhaps of cows or other horses — and how it sounds rather echoy too. A horse who leads already could be led into the trailer, but for a horse that is not yet sure about a halter and lead, it might just have to take its time to be ready. If a handler is in the trailer giving cues to come, it is important to stand in a safer corner so that if the horse makes a quick exit or spooks, the handler is not in its path.
The third step is to let the horse have their own feelings about it. In time, and it might seem to take more time than a lotted for, the horse will come to see that the trailer is not a trap and is instead a location of niceties such as treats and eats. The horse can overcome the sensory overload of echoes and strange smells, and the closed space when given the time to assess the dangers on their own. It will be natural for their first exit of the trailer to be quick, but in time, their feelings about the trailer will mellow as the rewards outweigh the apprehension.
Making everything around trailering as stressless as possible, having patience, and allowing the horse to deal with their own feelings will help any horse have a more positive and successful trailer loading, travel, and unloading experience.
Whether a horse has already had a stressful trailering experience, is leary of being trailered, or is new to the scents, echos, and confinement of a trailer, the choice and reward method can help them come to load calmly — even to self-load.
Increments of improvement is what you are looking to reward. Start small by letting the horse investigate the open trailer. Build upon the choice and reward work you have done to have your horse come to you with hand signals and follow you. Now you can stand near the trailer and invite your horse to come to you. If they can get near the trailer, than the next increment would be looking inside. And now you can ask them to come to you while you are standing at the trailer entrance.
Eventually, the increments will become you inviting your horse to come near you while you are standing in the trailer. And bit by bit with many similar sessions, her level of comfort will progress to the point when she can put one foot inside. And with increments, if one front foot can be achieved, then the second front foot can also be achieved. And in time the back feet will follow as the horse comes into the trailer with you.
At this point the door has never closed and the horse is free to escape. A natural response is to bolt out of the trailer, so finding a safe corner or position for yourself is important.
In time, the trailer loading and unloading experience will become calm. To further imprint the feeling of safety around the trailer, it can even be a place for feeding grain, mash, or hay. Eventually, the trailer experience will become fully accepted by your horse.
Of course, closing the door and driving away adds a whole new dimension to their trailer experience.
An open floor plan of a trailer might be easier for a self-loader who does not lead or tie consistently yet. The open floor plan gives them the chance to turn around to exit rather than backing out. Inside they would be free to move around.
Once haltering, leading, and tying is established, then trailers with angle stalls make for more supportive road time.