Go to one of the 5 day XP rides. You will see
horses tied to trailers where they can NOT see their traveling partner on the
other side. They will be left in camp, tied to the trailer as the other horse is
ridden that day, and they don't care. `I have a 4 horse trailer, and they can
not peek around the back of the trailer to see the other horse. Traveled with my
3 horses on the long XP of 5 weeks in 2004, and with a friends 3 horses on the
long XP of 8 weeks in 2001. They were tied every night to the trailer, and one
horse was always alone on one side of the trailer, not able to see the other.
They did not fuss, paw, kick the trailer or any other frustrating habits. Yes,
habit. It is an allowed and learned habit for horses to do these things.
I[practiced at home, where the horses were comfortable for some nights, tied to
the trailer, where they ate, drank, and learned that was "home" before we ever
headed to a ride with them. If any had issues, we dealt with them without the
stress of a ride camp. The riders are often more hyped up, and not nearly as
relaxed, and the horses sense that. Learn at home that the trailer is
where they live, and they will be comfortable and not dig holes to China, or
freak out every time their travel partner gets out of sight. What happens if two
horses haul to a ride together, and one does not pass the initial vet check for
some reason, and can't start? Is that horse going to be a problem if the other
horse leaves him the morning of the ride?
Teaching horses to tie that pull and fight, is not
the same as those that don't pull and fight, but mentally stress and dig, kick
etc. Both have issues of the trailer not being a safe haven for them, but the
training methods are often different. In most cases, for me, a horse
that paws and frets would get tied at home, in a familiar and safe place,
and left there until they relaxed and stopped pawing. A horse that pulls
and fights would first be taught to respect the halter and rope, and to give,
rather than fight against it. And there are as many methods to do this, as there
are horses, and one needs to find what works for that horse.
My gelding got a nasty cut up in his elbow area
last year. Part of the healing was for him to be tied so he could NOT lay down
and rip out the stitches for 2 weeks. Yes, 2 weeks. I set up a high line in my
barn, and tied him with a lead that slid along the high line, so he could walk
back and forth in the stall and move some, but short enough that he could not
lay down. This was a non issue. The other 4 horses came and went into the barn
area, and would leave him all alone, and he was fine. I'd say his learning that
being tied to the trailer, often not seeing the other horses helped this be a
non issue.
We never know when we might need to have a horse
locked in a stall, or tied for vet issues. Knowing they have had this done with
them when they are NOT sick or injured will make things go much easier if you
need to do this for medical issues.
But, we all have priorities in what we want our
horses to be able to do for us. One of mine is to be relaxed when tied, or alone
without stable mates. This is not a priority for others. Some want their horses
to walk out of camp on a loose rein at the start of a ride, while others want
the horse to take off fast, and head to the front. All of it is
training.......
