I recently bought a new trailer, and have been working with my horse who in the past has been an unreliable loader, mostly because she would be trailered only once every few years and I had no trailer of my own to practice. I have a 2H slant with drop-down windows, a double back door and collapsible rear tack.

I have collapsed the rear tack and can now send her in calmly. She goes in, gets near that slant wall and automatically turns around to her left until she faces the back of the trailer. She stands there calmly with her head hanging out the back. If I close the divider, I can also send her in to the back stall--again she turns around, though it's pretty small, and faces the back. At first, I did not want to get in the trailer with her--I was always taught that was an unsafe no-no. However, my past experience was with a straight-load, and I realized that with a slant I would have to get in no matter what, to close the divider, right? So after she got really calm, I did go in with her, and worked on backing and moving her hindquarters and forequarters. After she goes in and turns around, when the divider's open, I can turn her around again (so she does a 360) and position her right next to the front slant wall where she belongs.

Is there a way to get her to just stand with her head in the front corner without doing a 360? Or should I just keep doing the 360? My next lesson I planned to tie her (with my Blocker tie ring) and close the back doors, and hopefully the divider. I am thinking that I would tie her while I'm inside the trailer with her...is there any reason to wait and go outside and reach through the drop-downs instead? I only have one horse to haul, but I know I should get her used to the divider, both stalls, in case I need to haul her with another someday. But when I just have one, would it be okay to just tie her in the corner, leave the divider open, and close the back doors, as if it were a stock trailer? She seems to prefer turning around and going out frontward--should I also teach her to back out? I guess if I had the rear tack up, she would have to back out, but I am not sure how to cue her because there wouldn't be room for me to go in with her safely.

Thanks in advance for all the good suggestions I'll get! I'm open to all advice.

Jennifer

There as many ways to load as there are different horses...

I open the drop-downs and send the horse into the trailer.  Then I come to the drop (outside)and offer a treat while I hook the trailer tie to the upper ring of the halter. ( to allow him to drop his nose to his chest, yet not enough to nip the next horse)  Back to the trailer to close the swing divider. 

I like having the divider closed.  It provides some physical bracing to keep the horse in place should we have an accident.  I also have the panic snap of the trailer tie attached to the trailer.  If the horse was having a melt-down, I wouldn't want to have to reach my arm toward a wildly thrashing horse.  With the panic snap at the trailer window, only my hand is at risk.  Plus, the trailer tie then becomes a short lead line when he does calm down.

The secured halter gives some safety from an unruly horse while closing the divider.  A helper makes the process go pretty quick.  My horses are trained to our trailer so we can load the two horses in a flash.

I do get into the trailer to back the first horse out.  Otherwise he'll turn around and jump out.  To counter the rush of backing out, I make him pause back feet on the ground, front feet in the trailer.  Consistent routine is key.

Both horses were trained with a treat at the window at first.  A helper with the grain bucket for instant reward makes the training faster.  Now they just stick their head out  the window ... sometimes a treat sometimes not.

I agree with hosspuller and snoweary on what works for them.  I'd like to ad that if you don't teach her to back out, you will have an accident waiting to happen.  Spend the time to teach your horse to back out AND WALK OUT.  There might be a time when the choice will make your job easier.  I would strongly suggest purchasing or borrowing a video on trailer loading.  There are so many good trainers out there producing videos that the selection is endless.  I like Charles Wilhelm and his calm way of working with the horse.  My first choices would be Charles Wilhelm or Kenny Harlow.  Clinton Anderson is also good and the list goes on.  You can find any of these guys on their website, or EBAY.

I've trained my horses to almost self load and I do just about exactly what hosspuller does with his horses.  I also trained my horses that when I tug on their tail, they are to back out slowly and WAIT at the bottom of the ramp for me to pick up the lead rope.  We have trailers with and without ramps, so if there is no ramp, I just catch the lead rope when their front feet hit the ground. 

The more time you spend with your horse, the better the horse will be.  An old horse trainer said, "you can take a really bad horse and just spend time with it and wind up with a really good horse."  By example, I've seen a friend's daughters from an early age working with full grown Percherons and training them to lower their heads enough that the girls could use the halter as a climbing assit, so they could scramble up the front of the horses head, slide over the ears, shinny down their neck and turn around to face the right direction when they got to the middle of the back.  It was a sight to see the first time I watched them do it and stood there speechless for a while.............that's something unusual for me............the speechless part.

Bottom line; the more tme you spend, the better the relationship, the safer the horse and you will be.

deranger

Some interesting discussion!!...  http://www.horsegroomingsupplies.com/horse-forums/rear-facing-trailers-28692.html

http://www.mdhorseboxes.co.uk/rear-facing

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8966985?dopt=Abstract

 Looks like the rear facing thing is really big in the U.K.

http://www.ricetrailers.co.uk/netbuildpro/process/45/newsview.html?ContentID=19&PHPSESSID=290e6020d997d67412813034cd9bf55c

http://www.fieldfaretrailers.co.uk/trailers.asp?cat=horse_trailers

http://www.about-trailers.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=THRICHEXCEL&tabid=2

http://www.sbltrailers.co.uk/pages/equitrek.html

I thinks it's a fad, maybe a scheme to sell a different style trailer..... It's just so good, everyone will just have to have at least three of them... LOL!! I haul with a head to head, I can't tell if the front horses, that are facing rearward, are any less stressed that the ones riding in the rear facing forward, I'll have to take a poll, next time we go on a trip.... I bet they're not as stressed as I am after an 700-800 mile one day trip!!

P.S..... I do know this as a fact.. The horses riding backwards in our trailer get to the show before the ones riding forward do. Same deal going home, horses facing rearward will get home first every time!!

I used to haul with a stock trailer years ago... I would just turn them loose and they could decide where they wanted to stand and in which direction they wanted to look out.  (most of the time they would be at the rear looking out the rear!) That's the way we haul a baby the first time or two they go on the road.

Will your horse stand quietly while tied?

To check, tie the horse outside the trailer. PUt a hay bag there if necessary. Let the horse stand there while tied.

If the horse is okay with that, then walk on the trailer leading the horse. Tie the horse, back out and close the divider.  Let the horse hang out for a while. Repeat as necessary until the horse learns to load on and stand without being tied. I would hang a hay bag (not a net). to keep the horse busy while it stands there.

If you are loading in the second/back stall, send the horse on, close the divider / butt bar. Go outside to the head and tie the horse and remove the lead rope (that you put over it's neck when it loaded).

Untie the back horse from outside, attach a lead rope, undo the butt bar, unload the horse. Untie the front horse from the outside, attach a lead rope, go in, undo the divider, ask the horse to back out slowly, grab the lead rope.

To teach the horse to back out, when loading the horse have it put 2 feet on, then back out. 2 feet on, back out again. then 3 feet on, back out. 3 feet on , back out, repeat repeat repeat. Then 4 feet on, back out. repeat repeat repeat. This teaches the horse how to back DOWN and out.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.

Farmbabe, I guess you're right that I've trained her to turn around by allowing it. I figured my first goal was to be able to send her into the trailer calm and relaxed, and I didn't mind a bit that she turned around. In fact, turning around made lots of noise and banging, so it was good she got used to that. I wanted to reward the going in, not give a correction for turning around or standing in the wrong place. And at first, I sure didn't want to be in the trailer with her! Now that she's going in calmly, I'll work on keeping her from turning around. I think just walking in beside her will let me keep her pointing the right direction.

If I don't close the divider, it wouldn't swing around--there is a little ring where it hooks to keep it still. But I think I do need her to get used to having the divider closed. I also agree that I should teach her to both back out and walk out, so we'll be ready for any situation. This is exactly why I decided I needed my own trailer--I can keep practicing until it's old hat.

Thanks all!