# Horses in a trailer



## CheyAut (Nov 26, 2008)

Mine stand at a slant but facing backwards if I have them loose


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## Nita (May 24, 2007)

Mine face any way. ha I think they face backwards because they know that's where the door is... >.> 

They will stand any direction, though. And none of the ways really affect/bother them. *shrugs* sorry, I wasn't much help lol.


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## StormyBlues (Dec 31, 2008)

I think that if they have to be not free in the trailer, standing in our slant seems to be pretty comfterable, because they have the open window, have two sides to brace against, are over the axels and won't bump around alot.


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## Spastic_Dove (Oct 4, 2007)

I find they like to stand backwards and at a slant.


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## ilovemyPhillip (Apr 4, 2009)

Spastic_Dove said:


> I find they like to stand backwards and at a slant.


Same


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## .Delete. (Jan 7, 2008)

I like slant. Always have. I trailer bunches of horses from my 4h group. Iv only met one horse that will not load on my trailer the first time. Horses seem to love my slant load.


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## Vidaloco (Sep 14, 2007)

Since I have a straight load trailer they have no choice but to face forward. I guess I could try backing them up the ramp. That might be fun to watch :lol:
I do notice they ride with their butts braced against the butt bar.


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## horseoffire (Apr 7, 2009)

I like forward and slant


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## RubaiyateBandit (Jan 25, 2009)

Vidaloco said:


> Since I have a straight load trailer they have no choice but to face forward. I guess I could try backing them up the ramp. That might be fun to watch :lol:
> I do notice they ride with their butts braced against the butt bar.


I have a friend with a two-horse straight load... one of her horses won't walk straight in, but he'll back in with no problem. :lol:


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## CowGirlUp9448 (Nov 23, 2007)

We only have a livestock trailer we use so they load straight but end up standing at a slant. I guess they prefer to stand that way


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## pup (Jan 22, 2009)

most horses like slant, they have a smoother ride and comfort


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## ThatNinjaHorse (Jul 26, 2009)

We only have a straight load, my horse however was fine in it untill about 3 years ago. Now he literally cannot travel in it, unless of course we go about 20km/h but for obvious reasons we cant..He has terrible balance issues, and stresses pretty bad. Is fine in a truck though, we havnt tried an angle float but i presume he would be fine in that too. 
I think they prefer angle loads because its easier to balance


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## thunderhooves (Aug 9, 2009)

slant load!


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## Pidge (Sep 5, 2009)

well we have a little two horse strait load but the only way to fit two horses comfortably is lead them in then tap their butts over so they are standing slanted... But when my boy trailers he always stands forward or at a slant...


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## NorthernMama (Mar 12, 2008)

If I take the divider out, my girl will turn around and look out the back standing straight every time.


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## back in the crosby again (Feb 4, 2009)

I had read a lot of articles about how uncomfortable it is for horses to stand at a slant in a trailer, so I originally was going to get a straight load. Then I was given a slant load so could not be picky. 

I found that if I am just trailering one horse and I fold the divider back so that they can have the whole trailer they still ride at a slant, so I guess all those articles were wrong.


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## gypsygirl (Oct 15, 2009)

we had a stock trailer that we would put the horses in [loose] & they would ALWAYS stand at a slant facing the back. every horse would always do it. but now we have a 2horse straight load & they do fine


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## Vidaloco (Sep 14, 2007)

NorthernMama said:


> If I take the divider out, my girl will turn around and look out the back standing straight every time.


I've heard that said many times. If left to themselves, horse prefer to travel facing the rear. Guess we all need stock trailers :wink:


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## shortbusgeek (Oct 23, 2009)

We've got a 4 horse head to head Sundowner, so 2 face forward, 2 face backwards. We looked at lots of brands and lots of configurations. I did quite a bit of research before we ended up making our decision and we've been extremely happy with our purchase. Here's what I've found:

1. A slant load trailer is typically built for horses 15.3 and shorter. In order to give the horse ample room to move their head to clear their lungs and breathe properly, they need the extra space of a straight load. (Our 2 year old is 16.1... he should mature to 17.1ish we think. Our 7 year old is 16.3. We also move other peoples' horses as well, both for shows as well as transport around town or within the SouthEast.)

2. It doesn't matter that a horse wants to stand at a slant when they're in the trailer. It's physically healthier for them to not have to use diagonally opposite legs to try and balance on. Think about it... when a horse jumps, they take off and land on pairs of legs. They're used to using their legs either both fronts or both rears for most balance situations. The same goes for trailering. I've seen horses that like to stand in the mud as well... is it good for their feet? No. Do we let them continue to stand there? No.

Just about every horse has gotten on our trailer with very little to no hesitation. We've got a rear ramp and side ramp, though we typically load and unload everyone through the side ramp.

Anyhow, just my two cents... your results may vary.


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## ~*~anebel~*~ (Aug 21, 2008)

I agree with shortbusgeek!
I have also done tone of research on trailers and the two kinds that I like the most are the two horse straight haul or 4/6 horse straight hauls. My horse simply does not load into stock trailers. They are too small and he doesn't like the open-ness of all the windows blowing wind into his face. He will load in backwards facing slant trailers, like the Turnbow (Slant load reverse slant options - Turnbow Trailers - aluminum horse trailers, aluminum horse trailer, custom trailers, custom trailer, horse trailer repairs, horse trailer repair, living quarters trailers, living quarters trailer, horse trailer part) which I also like because the horse never has to back up.

People also don't realize how imperative it is to get a goose-neck if you can!!! I watched my horse come flying off the road in a trailer into a snow filled ditch and the only reason that trailer didn't flip was because of the goose neck, and even then the entire rig almost flipped for an instant. Had my horse been in a bumper haul at that moment, he wouldn't be alive right now, I'm sure of it. He came out of that goose neck 4 horse straight haul head to head (it sounds a lot like shortbusgeek's trailer) in his shipping boots without a scratch.


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## Haley (Aug 18, 2009)

I know horses prefer to stand backwards, but for hauling I personally like them at a slant. It distributes weight more evenly, especially if you're only hauling one horse, like I most often am.


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## shortbusgeek (Oct 23, 2009)

anebel, I just uploaded a picture of our trailer to my profile. I'm at work right now, so I don't have full access to my albums, but I'll upload a few more later.


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