# Trailering Services - Your Experiences?



## canterbury (Jun 29, 2014)

Hi all;

I'm thinking about purchasing a horse out-of-state. Have you ever done this and have you ever used a service? Am looking for a reliable, reasonable option for trailering long-distance - for those of us who can afford trailers, but not the expensive vehicle needed to pull one!

Thanks


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## GracielaGata (Jan 14, 2012)

Never purchased an out of state horse, but did have to have my mare hauled from SC to WA when we moved. 
Go to google and type in something to the effect of 'long distance horse hauling bids' 
That will bring up various pages. 
In there somewhere should be a page where you type what you are looking for and you get responses from specific shippers with what they will charge, provide and such. 
Then I would take those names and come back here and ask people about their experiences with them. Some are ones you don't want to touch with a 20 foot carrots stick no matter what, lol. Some are middle, some are highly recommended. 

I could suggest my shipper, as they were wonderful. But they may not be making the trip at the time you want, so they would technically be useless. 

Hope that helps!


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## PrivatePilot (Dec 7, 2009)

Don't automatically accept the lowest price/bid. 

A lot of people do hauling on the side and might jump at a long distance haul like this. A lot of the same people have no idea what they're getting themselves into or the costs or logistics involved and sadly your horse may pay the price when they're half way through the trip and realized they've drastically under quoted you (and they might actually *loose* money hauling your horse...seen it happen), or they put the money before your horses wellbeing and don't stop for proper rest breaks, overnights, etc etc.

Proper equipment is the other consideration. If it's a big horse, do you want it jammed into someones tiny little trailer that isn't really ideal...but all they have? 

Is the trailer safe, or are they cutting corners there too?

Is the trailer sanitized between hauls?

What I'm saying basically...is do your homework. If you just put an ad out there looking for hauling you'll without doubt get some seemingly too good to be true offers. Make sure you know what you're getting into.


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## GracielaGata (Jan 14, 2012)

PrivatePilot said:


> Don't automatically accept the lowest price/bid.
> 
> A lot of people do hauling on the side and might jump at a long distance haul like this. A lot of the same people have no idea what they're getting themselves into or the costs or logistics involved and sadly your horse may pay the price when they're half way through the trip and realized they've drastically under quoted you (and they might actually *loose* money hauling your horse...seen it happen), or they put the money before your horses wellbeing and don't stop for proper rest breaks, overnights, etc etc.
> 
> ...



All this


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## Kay Armstrong (Jun 28, 2015)

I just purchased a foal who will be transported from Maine to Oregon in November. I'll be using a company called Brook Ledge. They aren't cheap but I am much more interested in my filly arriving in one peace and healthy. I didn't want to hire a company who would haul her all over the country picking up other horses on the way to get her to me. Also, I have heard horror stories of horse owners unloading nearly dead horses off of the transport truck due to poor management on the trip. My motto in this case is it's way better to be safe than sorry.


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## its lbs not miles (Sep 1, 2011)

canterbury said:


> Hi all;
> 
> I'm thinking about purchasing a horse out-of-state. Have you ever done this and have you ever used a service? Am looking for a reliable, reasonable option for trailering long-distance - for those of us who can afford trailers, but not the expensive vehicle needed to pull one!
> 
> Thanks


I haven't had one hauled in years (2011), but the last was brought from Ohio to SC by JD Hughes, Cowboy Express. Did a great job. My filly was 16.2, 1150 lbs. Carried in a 2 box trailer. Each box looked large enough for a draught horse to move around in easily, with plenty of head room. Water and hay was available in the box. It was a nice rig. I think he even had camera coverage. Had a second driver riding shotgun. Horse had never been hauled before, but showed no signs of stress on arrival. I was very pleased with his service. Not sure if he has any distance limits for hauling though. He's a small operator, but did a fabulous job.


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## STT GUY (Apr 23, 2014)

These folks hauled our two paso finos from FL to UT and did a great job.

Ben Stout
SSC Ranch and Transportation
www.ssc-ranch.com
(904)994-4652


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## elle1959 (Sep 7, 2015)

Resurrecting this thread to ask if someone would be willing to divulge what price per mile is "not cheap" but good service with good care. 

I'm trying to weigh my horse budget between the costs of buying a local horse or possibly accepting a horse from a family member who is downsizing but lives on the other side of the continent. If the costs are similar, the "free" horse might be a good choice but I want to know more about those costs before I fly out there (I'll be going out, anyway, since I'd like to see my cousin.)


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