I am thinking of having a trailer ramp installed, my horses load and travel well but I have noticed after traveling long distance, they are stiff backing out and sometimes drag their front legs after their rear legs are already out. Also sometimes when we leave the well traveled areas the uneven ground make the trailer pretty high. I am interested in hearing PROS and CONS from those of you that actually have and/or have used ramps.

Most horses seem to do fine with a ramp, even a really steep one (ever seen the commercial big rigs?) IF the surface is grippy enough to make their hooves not skid too badly.

A slick ramp will booger even a good loading horse.Cons - some of the ramps I've had to deal with are WAY too heavy to close in a hurry, like the one on our steel 2-horse slant BP. UGH. Some are fine - like the one on our five-horse GN Trail-et! but the heavy ones are a back-breaking proposition for a not really big woman, plus your red face is right there at horse heel level for way too long.....

Unreasonable horses can still step off the side of the ramp and bark a leg or slide under just like they can with a step up. You do have to really keep the hinges and springs etc clean and lubed - a ramp falling off is not a fun deal, especially if it's the back door when it's closed! Wooden fillers do rot. One more maintenance check item.On the whole - I like a ramp, and prefer to have a ramp OVER back doors, and better shorter than longer.

Kate

Edited by halfpint23 2007-04-09 12:06 PM

I've had 2 trailers with ramps (since '95) and my new trailer is a step-up.  I find pros and cons for both with my experiences, others may not agree

Ramp:  horses seem to back out easier and less stressful as they hit the ramp, then stepping down.   Easier to reach and put items up on saddle racks, bridle hooks, etc in the rear tack. Safety - my ramps are inside the rear doors, so when the rear doors are opened, the ramp is still blocking the horse from exiting, so you can't get run over from a horse backing out too quick.

Cons: neither ramp was spring loaded & it couldn't be added, so the ramp is a bit heavy.  It's inside my rear doors, so I couldn't sleep in the back of the trailer as the rear couldn't be closed from the inside.

Step up Pros:  some horses prefer to step-up into a trailer

Cons:  my horse is much more tentative backing out and really seems to like the ramp better.  My trailer seems pretty high and while my horse loads great, I have had some issues with other horses loading. I now have to use a folding step to put the saddle on the top rack or to reach the bridle hooks. 

Guess I really prefer a ramp, but I'm not sure I'll bother adding one to my trailer. It's not that critical to me.

 good points made by other posters while I was typing.  The ramp came in extremely handy when I moved and used a dolly to load tons of boxes into my trailer instead of having to rent a truck or hire movers. 

People may think I'm crazy when they read this(if they didn't already). I bought a trailer about 5-6 years ago and had a ramp put on it because of a horse I owned at the time. She was the best rope horse I have ever sit on, she would also do a reining pattern, anywho, when you asked her to back out of a trailer, there had better not be nobody behind her because she would run backwards out of the trailer, then her back end would fall off the rear, and she would throw her head in the air and hit the top of the trailer with her head. Damnedest thing you have ever seen. So not only did I buy the ramp($1,000) but also ordered the trailer 7'6"(extra $1600), that ramp probley saved her and my life, as you can tell I thought alot of this horse, I am now a Dad(adopted a little guy from Quatemala) so I don't rope as much, so I bred her(not personally)(she is grandaughter of Jesse James topside and Grandaughter of Dry Dock bottom) I bred her to a Congress winning Stud that was a grandson of Collins Jesse top and Topsail Cody bottom. Sold her in foal and paid for my new trailer complete.

She did have the baby, A buckskin filly that has Jesse James, Dry Dock, Collins Jesse, Topsail Cody all on her papers.

I had one on an extra tall WW 2H once. It took somebody like Samson to raise it up and lower it both.It was not spring loaded.If I had another one,which I doubt that I would,but if so,it would have to be spring loaded and perhaps hydraulic too! IT was one heavy piece of steel,I can tell you.One of my horses was bad to run around on each side of it  to keep from loading.He didn't mind the ramp because he had to cross over it to the other side,but when he got in that space between trailer and ramp,there was sure no getting him back up there quickly to make him load up.

By the time 3 of us gave him some loading lessons,once,he went up the ramp into the trailer each time.Sounds like we were meanies,but,he wasn't afraid,just didn't want to go in the trailer.

I had a ramp for many years and got tired of repairing it.  I also had a lot of trouble with horses slipping and sliding down, or worse yet, falling to their knees with the tiniest amount of rain/manure.  Some trailers have what appear to be less slippery surfaces but they will ALL get slick with rain/manure. 

I went to a step up, BUT, I have a slant load with no rear tack- both horses can walk out forward.  When loading they have to lower their heads so don't have to worry about them balking halfway up the ramp and banging their head.  I don't worry about the weather anymore either. 

Haven't really missed the ramp yet- definately don't miss lifting it up - esp. having my head so near the back end of a horse when bending down to lift it- which is another reason to have the ramp over the doors. Good luck!

I have a ramp, like the ramp, horse likes the ramp...seems to work well for us.  Yes, you have to worry about a horse backing over the side, or slipping.  I hated the looks on horses faces when they know they are going to have to step off the back of a step up but aren't sure where the end is.  My horse has stifle and hock issues, so ramp is a great alternative to wear and tear on his legs.  Also, he has been trained to wait for me and turn straight to come out head first instead of backing.