This was not a movie about a baby deer....trust me. That monster in the picture that is contemplating running me over is exactly 13 months old!!! He is Fresian and QH. Not in the yukky backyard breeder kind of way though. His dam is a QH known for producing really nice crosses and he has been sold to a dressage home. In order to get to his new home he needs to be able to load....this is where I come in.I wish I had more pictures but his owner was taking them while trying to watch and pay attention.
We started out like the picture above...me trying to get him to step forward and stay that way. Then we would walk by the trailer and if he was calm we would walk away. If he got upset or pushy then we would stay there and work until he understood to be quiet and follow my energy.
Trailer loading is like building a house, you can just start throwing the roof on if you don't have walls, no walls without floor, etc. So then we decided to LOOK at the trailer while staying quiet.
Then we went through what I call the 3 stages of resistance.#1. Pfft watch this. If I get upset then they will get scared and not make me.
#2. NO WAY! She didn't get scared. I DONT WANT TO!!!
#3. Acceptance with hesitation but finally starting to follow the quiet energy and being still in their core.
Then we loaded all in and out about 20 times. The owner did it and so did her boyfriend. It was a great day. From when I got his leadrope to when he had all 4 feet in the trailer was maybe 15 minutes.
11 comments:
Wow, from the pictures I'd have guessed that would have taken way more than 15 minutes. Glad he cooperated with you. I'm sure the owner thinks you're a miracle worker. :)
I love it! That is one big freaking yearling!
And, yeah - what Andrea said. How was that only 15 minutes? Did he have no prior scary experiences with trailers so you got to start from scratch?
Andrea, Thanks his owner was quite happy.
Gabby, he actually used to load but the past few times he as taken to the vet and had surgeries and all sorts of painful stuff happen. The owner couldnt' get him into the trailer and wanted him to not only load but be calm about it since he is going to be shipped to his new home.
It is rare that it takes longer than 15-20 minutes for me to load a horse....even a really bad one.
Very impressive! I think the mix looks good. I like the photo progression too, with the steps. :)
Saw those photos on NCHN -- very cool! You certainly do have a way with horses, to make so much progress in 15 minutes.
I love the write up with the pictures! I think more than just the owner thinks you are a miracle worker, LOL! ;)
I saw the post on NCHN too, but didn't want to make this comment there. I would have loved to have seen you get Deuce on his new owner's trailer. Part of the problem, though, (at least when I was trying to load him...they tried at first) was that *I* was uncomfortable with that trailer! I did manage to get his front feet in twice, and did not try to push him when he did (wrongly thinking I could get him back in!), but then he just shut down and either wouldn't move much (which i did work on!), or was like resistance step 2! I hate those little 2 horse trailers with only a little "slot," LOL, for an escape "door!" If *I* didn't like it in there, how could I expect the horse to?
Christie, I would have loved to have loaded him. Next time you run into that problem...make sure you completely IGNORE step#2. I don't want a reaction from you at all. The other thing to really remember is the trailer is a walk THROUGH not a step and stop. You need to believe you are going to walk out the front and he will follow you. Just like you were walking through any doorway.
Hmmm, I see. I actually was thinking about it as a walk through at first, but then remembered all those times I have seen people working on trailer loading and only put the front feet in and then back out before loading the whole horse. When is that appropriate, if ever? I am also sure that Deuce was picking up on my dislike of that trailer no matter how hard I was trying not to let it show, too. I felt like I would be really squished between him and the front if I didn't step out, and didn't feel like I would be coordinated enough to walk in and step up, over, and out smoothly!
Christie, Thats a hard thing for me to judge since I wasn't there. Since it had been a struggle and he needed to get in I probably would have let him rest with his front two feet in the trailer but not actually backed him out. The reward would have been the quiet time. For those trailers I usually stand strattling the door frame and ask my horse to lead up if they don't self load.
Well, *maybe* I was thinking on the right track, then, but thinking and doing are two different things! I didn't actually back him out, though, he put his front feet in for me and then flew back out himself. I probably should have been more insistent on him coming right on in, though. I did try straddling the door frame, but I think we were already too far gone by then. ;) Thanks for your input! I just really need to come to one of your clinics!
I'm sorry, but it is my personal opinion that anything under 2 years old should NOT be taller than me! I don't care how cute it is!
Other than that, looks like a fun way to play and make money too!
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