I have 3 OTTB 16.2h and 1275#. I’m looking at two trailers and are stuck on which one would best fit my guys. I like attributes of each.
Trailer 1- 1997 Featherlite 4 horse head to head. Side ramp. Escape door. NO rear ramp.
Trailer 2- 2000 Sooner Riata. 4 horse slant. 7 ft wide. Rear ramp. No rear tack. (Bonus IMO) No escape doors.
I’m a little nervous about only having one exit & having to back horses in on Trailer 1, but like the straight load. (I’d love a 2+1, but can’t find one for under $30k). I don’t like not have an escape door in Trailer 2 & worry my guys won’t fit the slants. Thoughts???? Help! (Attachment is of trailers & horses for detail)
Posted 2021-06-22 6:47 AM (#173973 - in reply to #173971) Subject: RE: Trailer preference
Regular
Posts: 76 Location: Michigan
I had a 16.3 hand at least 1200lb paint gelding that would only fit in the back stall of a typical 7 foot wide slant trailer. If I tried to put him in one of the front stalls he would try to squeeze it in but there was no way he could be comfortable. 8 ft wide I could put him anywhere but I chose to go to a straight load with warmblood stalls so he would be more comfortable and I wouldn't have to deal with the added width of the 8 ft trailer on our narrow back roads. I would suggest you measure the horses and the stalls and see if you can make a determination from that.
Posted 2021-06-22 8:05 AM (#173974 - in reply to #173971) Subject: RE: Trailer preference
Elite Veteran
Posts: 804 Location: Tenn/Ala.
Rule of thumb is that long bodied horses work better in a straightload configuration. With the 2 options you've given us, the head to head will by far be better. Longer and thus more of a pain to pull, but they'll fit better.
Posted 2021-06-22 8:44 AM (#173975 - in reply to #173971) Subject: RE: Trailer preference
Veteran
Posts: 124 Location: Calgary, Canada
Big (long) horses and slant loads are generally NOT a good combination. We have an 8 ft wide slant load LQ trailer and a 7 ft 6" wide trailer we use for day use and both trailers have mangers. Neither trailer would be a good fit for your size of horses ... the straight haul would definitely be the way to go.
You have probably already considered this but I raise the question anyway ... do you really need a 4 horse trailer for your 3 horses? If you plan to regularly take all three horses to your events, then cased closed. But as RTSmith mentioned, pulling a longer trailer can be a pain to pull ... and may also require an upsized tow vehicle (likely a 1 ton minimum or a 1 ton dually). If you only regularly haul 1 or 2 horses to events, then perhaps a 2 horse straight haul might work for you.
Posted 2021-06-22 8:49 AM (#173976 - in reply to #173971) Subject: RE: Trailer preference
New User
Posts: 4
We only show 2/3, but haul all 3 to trail ride, so we definitely need all the spaces! I had a 2 horse that I loved, but it just didn’t cut it for those times we need everyone.
Posted 2021-06-22 8:49 AM (#173977 - in reply to #173971) Subject: RE: Trailer preference
New User
Posts: 4
We only show 2/3, but haul all 3 to trail ride, so we definitely need all the spaces! I had a 2 horse that I loved, but it just didn’t cut it for those times we need everyone.
Trailer preference
