TIME spent training a horse to load is never time wasted.

Naturally, horses like to be where they can see clearly in a large area around them because the horse is a prey animal that depends on flight as its primary means of survival. Horse owners have to bear this in mind when asking a horse to load into a horsebox or lorry. Dark, narrow and unfamiliar spaces can be off-putting for the horse. But, with patient training and preparation, horses will learn to load.

Ideally, horses should be familiarised and trained to load from an early age, if this is done correctly then there will rarely be problems with that horse as it gets older. A horse who is comfortable with loading will save their owner hours of frustration and worry. From a safety perspective, it also reduces the likelihood of the horse causing injury, either to his handler or himself, while loading.

During the initial stages of training, a horsebox should have the partition removed so that there is a visibly larger space, this will help to encourage a horse to enter the box. Young horses often feel more comfortable if they are following an experienced stable companion, foals will usually follow their mother.

The more light inside the box or lorry the better, so if your horsebox has a front window or door that can be opened to begin with this might help entice the horse into the horsebox or lorry. Having a few treats in your pocket is also advisable. Feed or treats will encourage a shy horse to load and should be given to the horse as a reward once on the box or lorry.

The procedure of loading, leaving the horse to stand on the box for a few minutes and unloading should be repeated multiple times before any travelling is done. Once the horse has been familiarised with loading and unloading and stands quietly on the box then a short trip should be planed, ideally on a relatively straight, smooth road.

ESTABLISH THE CAUSE

Many horses and ponies are difficult to load because they have been handled poorly by inexperienced or nervous handlers. Try to be calm and have a positive, reassuring attitude when loading horses - often difficult animals load with very little argument when handled by an experienced person.

If the horse continues to be reluctant to load, try to establish what is causing the horse to be unwilling. It might be that the horse doesn’t want to leave a group of horses; if this is the case loading another animal first might help. Maybe the horse is frightened by the sound made when they step onto the ramp; if this is the case, some desensitisation work might be required.

Last year, in an interview with Garda Orva Keogh of the Garda Mounted Unit, Garda Keogh discussed some of the methods and techniques used to desensitise and train Garda horses. Desensitisation training is the process of exposing the horse to things or situations which resemble what they fear. The aim is to have the animal display a behaviour that is different than the current reaction to the stimulus.

She described how they start by building a small “Nuisance Lane”. A Nuisance Lane is an area where training items are placed, these are items that the horses might encounter on a daily basis. For a horse who is nervous of stepping onto the ramp of a horsebox or lorry, a rubber mat can firstly be placed on the ground for the horse to walk over.

Avoiding SETBACKS

When speaking to Garda Keogh, she stressed the importance of building up desensitisation work very gradually with all horses. She said: “This even applies to horses that show exceptional bravery traits from the time that they join the unit. The danger with over exposing a horse with too much stimulus too soon is that it can cause major or irreversible setbacks.”

Once the horse is comfortable stepping onto the mat, the mat could then be replaced by a sheet of plywood to help replicate the sound of the ramp. The horse should always be introduced to desensitisation work in a safe and controlled environment such as a lunge pen, arena or quiet, non-slip area of the yard.

Horses at the Garda Mounted Unit who are beginning their desensitisation work are always worked in the company of a more experienced and established horse. Do not hesitate to allow a less experienced horse to watch a more experienced horse from a distance at first.

Safety is paramount, so consider starting at first by leading your horse past hazards in hand. Once your horse shows signs of trust and acceptance, he can be allowed to follow a more experienced horse over the mat.

Approach the stimulus from different directions as your desensitisation training develops. At the Garda Mounted Unit, horses are always asked to negotiate the stimulus at a walk. This is done to ensure that the horse accepts the hazard and does not fear it.

By going quicker you are allowing the horse to evade the hazard. When the horse walks you know they have accepted it. Natural instinct is to take flight and we want them to conquer it. Take each step very slowly and never push the horse.

ADDITIONAL MEASURES

If the horse is not a kicker and is relatively quiet an extra handler can assist by placing a hand behind the horse’s quarters to push and urge the horse forward.

Where you have two assistant handlers, one should stand at either side of the horse holding a rope or strap behind the horse’s quarters, again to apply pressure and urge the horse forward. The assistant handlers should stand in close beside the hind legs as there is less chance of injury should the horse try to kick.

Using two lunge lines to make a passageway for the horse to walk through is another commonly used method. You will need two assistant handlers to help you. Fasten one end of each lunge line to either side of the horsebox or lorry and have the handlers hold the loose ends out until taut, creating a passageway for the horse to walk through.

As the horse walks forward through the passageway the assistants’ crossover sides so that the ropes apply pressure to the horse from behind. This method should not be used on very sensitive horses as they may be inclined to rear up and could slip or fall backwards.

If the horse walks straight up to the ramp but requires some encouragement to step on, an assistant handler on either side of the ramp can help by lifting one front leg at a time up on to the ramp.

TIPS FOR THE HANDLER

  • Position the horsebox or lorry alongside a solid wall or fence if possible as this will help make life easier, ideally the area would also be quiet and free from too many distractions.
  • Give yourself plenty of time to load and try to have one or two other experienced handlers there to help if necessary.
  • Handlers and helpers should wear appropriate clothing when loading i.e. a hard hat, non-slip boots and gloves.
  • The horse should also be well protected, many people choose travelling boots, bandages, a poll guard etc. Please see the accompanying table for a more detailed list of protective travel wear.
  • A cavesson with lunge line can be placed over a headcollar or bridle to give the handler more control when leading the horse.
  • Remember to always stay at the horse’s shoulder and be looking forward, if the horse is hanging back do not pull him, use a treat or some feed to encourage him forward.