# Putting one horse in a two-horse trailer



## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

I hear people say that when they trailer one horse in a two-horse trailer they either take out the divider or at least swing it out so the horse has more room to move around.

What do you guys do? It's a straight load. I'm thinking to just load him up as usual on the one side (yes I know people say the driver's side) and leave the divider like it normally is. It would be a half-hour drive and I am not a confident enough driver that I'd like him to be moving around a lot back there.


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## Indy2021 (Feb 3, 2021)

Can you swing the divider to the side? If so, that will give him more room and balance the trailer better..However just driving 1/2hr - if there are not too many corners you should be fine.


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## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

I can, yes, but I'm not sure I want to. I feel like he'd balance better and be safer just in his little stall. Plus he'd move around less, which would mean the trailer would move less.

WRT to balancing, I have a 25-gallon water tank on the driver's side of the trailer, which I calculate weighs 200 pounds full. Pony should weigh in the 700-800 pounds range. So if I put him on the driver's side, as people recommend, I would have 1000 pounds, say, on that side, and no weight on the other side. Whereas if I put him on the passenger's side, I'd have 200 pounds on one side and 800 pounds on the other side, so a 600-pound differential.

The trailer weights almost 4k pounds, so it may be that his weight relative to the trailer (20%) isn't significant enough to change things either way. I don't know.


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

While you're getting used to hauling, I would leave the divider alone. He's not going to move around enough to really mess up your haul, but why make even 1 more thing to think about? Just give him some hay and treats up in the front of the stall he'll be in and just go about your business.


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## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

Harley rides alone in the trailer with the divider in. I think it's probably easier for him to balance when he can lean on both sides. Letting horses move around sounds nice, but if you happen to brake quickly or turn a bit too sharply, I'd be worried they would lose their balance. Unlike us, they can't predict that you are going to be stopping at the light.


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## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

Acadianartist said:


> Letting horses move around sounds nice, but if you happen to brake quickly or turn a bit too sharply, I'd be worried they would lose their balance.


That's exactly what I'm starting to think -- better for them to be boxed in and supported.


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## Zimalia22 (Jun 15, 2021)

We pulled a 2 horse trailer a lot with just one horse in it. Never did anything with the divider. We liked to load the horse on what would be the passenger side, away from oncoming traffic. All the horses we hauled could be hauled in either the 2 horse, or our 6 horse reverse slant. It pays to have them be able to load easily, and haul in both. 
I would just leave the divider alone, and load and go.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

ACinATX said:


> better for them to be boxed in and supported.


Yes....accurate is what others have said..
So, your trailer if I remember what you have shared is custom made with extra-long, extra-wide and very high you decided you wanted so your horses had ample room to move around while trailered...
So, if my memory is accurate then your trailer is already able to let your animals move more than a regular sized trailer made for large, oversized horses such as warmbloods and you have large ponies.
Based on that...I would _*not*_ be leaving the center divider unsecured on a slant.
That divider is extra security and safety for your horses to not ping-pong around should a unthinkable happen.

The reason why when hauling alone you load the driver side is...
Roads constructed in the US are all made with a crown in the center where lanes often meet and is edged to the lane outside edge for drainage reasons. If a super highway then the entire road surface has a slight grade for allowing of water runoff to not flood and create hydroplaning conditions.
Whether you can see it or not, there is a crown or angle to the pavement.
So based on that now known, a trailer will hold the road better and not tend to pull as easily to road edge so great when it is loaded more weight to the left/drivers side as said in this country.
A moving load when not balanced is apt to walk a trailer in the driving lane...
As you already know not all roads are the same lane width, so a narrowed road is going to have you dropping your trailer tires far easier off the pavement and out of the driving lane....which in some locales can result in you being ticketed if you cross a white line marker for lane edge.
Load left side of the trailer when trailering alone...
Want to find out...load the right and go drive at high highway speed and see how your trailer handles the road..
Your truck can compensate and handle much...but remember when another vehicle same size or larger passes you initially feel a drag/suck in but actually it tends to push you away and that is off pavement edge if you are driving right lane as you are supposed to do unless passing.
Go experiment, but be prepared for evasive actions needed.
🐴...


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## farmpony84 (Apr 21, 2008)

I always left the divider in and put him on the drivers side. I learned to always put the weight on the drivers side so if you have 2 horses the bigger one goes on the drivers side. I have a slant load now but if I have on horse in the trailer, I still leave the dividers in and just put him in the front...


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## george the mule (Dec 7, 2014)

Hi AC
We load one critter, or the heaviest of two, on the drivers side in our straight load BP. I was told that since the crown of the road is higher in the middle, the trailer is more stable with the weight toward the center. Real science or myth? Couldn't say, but I really doubt there is very much difference. But if you need A Plan, that would be the one. I've never had the divider out; there are nice pads at torso level on both sides, and on the chest and butt bars. Gives them something to lean on if they need to. And I keep the rubber mats clean (as in "If/when they poop, clean it out." Do some horses _not_ poop when you load them in a trailer?), so that they have good footing.
Sometimes I put my aftermarket "Backup Camera" (Where it would normally screw to the license plate bracket, I have installed some strong magnets. Stick it anywhere within wireless range. A very useful tool.) in the trailer to watch the horses while traveling. They appear to be quite relaxed, munching hay and looking out the side windows. I figure that means they're comfortable and relaxed in their mobile stall.


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

I was always told to load one horse behind the driver. If I loaded 2 horses ,the heavier horse went behind the driver.


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## JCnGrace (Apr 28, 2013)

Left the divider in place when hauling one horse and always on the driver's side. Not only because of the crown in the road but also because if you have the weight on the right side and your right side tires go off into a slanted ditch then the trailer will be more likely to flip.


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## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

By your own admission that you’re not a confident driver is all the more reason to keep the divider in, making the horse more stable.

As Others have commented, a single horse always rides on the outside for the reasons @JCnGrace stated. That safety method has been around since the beginning of time and is one of the old time things that does not need to change.

Please don’t over think in trying to make the horse more comfortable - you could end up killing both of you. Safety always comes first.


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## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

george the mule said:


> Hi AC
> We load one critter, or the heaviest of two, on the drivers side in our straight load BP. I was told that since the crown of the road is higher in the middle, the trailer is more stable with the weight toward the center. Real science or myth? Couldn't say, but I really doubt there is very much difference.


Our country roads have a very exaggerated crown in some places. When I first got our trailer, I didn't know about putting a horse on the driver's side and hauled Harley on the passenger side. When we arrived, he was soaked in sweat from trying to keep his balance. It wasn't a hot day. On the passenger side, he was too slanted to stand easily. Lesson learned. When we arrived, my daughter's coach pointed this out to me and I never did it again. Harley also never showed up drenched with sweat after trailering again.


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## carshon (Apr 7, 2015)

horse should be in the divider and over the axle if possible. We have a 3 horse slant and I haul 1 horse quite often. She rides in the center stall with both dividers up. If I left the back one open and she was shoved into it she could cut herself on the edge or hurt herself because the divider does not fold 100% flush against the trailer wall.


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## kewpalace (Jul 17, 2013)

I have a two horse slant (Trails West). When hauling one horse, I typically move the divider to the wall so they have more room. But there are times when I will use the divider when only hauling one horse and that horse is if the front stall. It doesn't really matter - horses can find ways to get hurt regardless of what you do. However, I agree that since you are new to hauling, using the divider to keep your horse in one place is better for you while getting experience hauling. Also agree with NOT overthinking things. You'll soon get to a routine and comfort zone in your way to haul.


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## QueenofFrance08 (May 16, 2017)

I always haul one horse on the drivers side with the divider in when I use our straight load. They're perfectly fine munching their hay for hours and I like that they have the divider for support. Our big trailer is a slant and we've hauled 8 hours before to ND and SD and they've been just fine in their slant divider spot as well. We also have a stock trailer and I much prefer them in a divider spot than loose in the stock trailer for longer rides because they don't move around as much (easier ride/drive) and they get into less trouble (no tangles/scrapes/etc).


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## weeedlady (Jul 19, 2014)

I have never taken out my divider when hauling one horse. As mentioned, the horse goes on the driver's side. I feel like they use the divider to lean on and that it helps with their stability.


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