Horse Trailering

What do you need for selecting the best horse-towing rig and successfully using it? Good horse sense, of course. When you're new to the adventure of trailering your horse(s) to events or trailheads, you can always ask fellow horse people for their suggestions. What you'll end up with is as many different opinions as sources. Most of those opinions will be valid, but it's up to you to sort through them and figure out what applies to your situation. The following information is designed to help you in that process, let you know what's available and what's necessary.

What You'll Need
First, you'll need a full-sized, half-ton capability or more, tow vehicle. Depending on the horses and trailer, you'll be pulling between 4,000 and 5,500 pounds, so the safest tow vehicle should have a towing capacity in the 6,500- to 7,000-pound range. You'll need that margin for safety, and to reduce the mechanical stress on your tow vehicle. Remember, if anything goes wrong en route, you'll be stuck with one very large, very angry animal in which you undoubtedly have an equally large emotional investment.


Some veterans insist on a three-quarter-ton tow vehicle and, depending on where you're headed, that's good advice. If you won't be towing up and down steep grades at freeway speeds, then you'll probably be fine with a smaller rig. Just understand the limitations of your tow vehicle and don't exceed those limitations.


Next, the trailer: The first two categories are bumper pulls and goosenecks. Gooseneck trailers, which attach to a ball in the truck bed, are easier to maneuver and more stable since the tongue weight is directly above the rear axle. Those who live in horse-territory have probably seen many more bumper-pulled trailers, so your final decision likely depends as much on your checkbook as anything else.

Travel Room
The next series of categories cover how the horse travels. Some horse experts recommend the traditional straight-load trailers, noting that the weight shift from front to back is easier on the animal. Others cite studies that indicate a horse, left to his own devices, will opt to travel with his head sticking out of the back of an open stock trailer. Then there's the oddball creature that beats himself up in a straight loader, but can't wait to jump into a slant. Go figure. If you have the luxury of testing out the different configurations with your horse, that's ideal. If you don't, here are a few guidelines.


Make sure your horse has enough room to maintain his balance. You can get a Quarter horse into a trailer designed for Arabs, but he's not going to be comfortable. Once in the trailer, the animal should be able to lower his head (that's how he keeps his airway clear of dust, lowering his nose below his chest) and spread his legs for balance (partial partitions in straight loads are better than full partitions). With a straight load, if you have to push and shove the poor animal to get the butt bar fastened, you need a longer trailer.