6 ft wide trailer for dressage horse?

[coco10]

I’m currently looking for a 2-horse straight-load bumper-pull horse trailer. The height I would like is 7’6", but I’m not sure about the width.

There is a nice 2008 Hawk horse trailer for sale that is close to me, and it is 6 ft wide. I was initially thinking that I would want the wider 6’8" or 7’.

I don’t currently have a horse, but am in the process of looking. I would say the largest horse I will be buying would be a 17 hand Hanoverian, Oldenburg, or Dutch Warmblood.

Would 6 ft be wide enough?

Thanks!

[caper]

It could work but why chance it. Bigger is always better. Most newer trailer are wider for a reason.

[digihorse]

6’ would be fine. Most newer trailers that are straight load are wider because they are stuck on a slant load frame. Some are too wide IMO.

[cherham]

I agree 6 feet is just fine. I just checked the inventory of a local Hawk dealer and ALL their straight load trailers are 6 feet wide. They sell a lot and mostly to the english discipline riders so obviously they appear quite suitable for those big warmblood horses.

[NoSuchPerson]

I’m trailer shopping right now and most of the newer models I’m seeing are wider than 6 ft.

6 ft probably is wide enough. After all, the widest you’re likely to find without a special order is 6 1/2 or 7 ft, which is only 3-6 inches wider per stall, so not really that different.

On the other hand, if it isn’t any (or much) more expensive to get one a little wider, why not get the extra 6-12 inches? You’re not likely to complain later about it being too wide, but, depending on the size horse you get, you might wish you had those few extra inches.

The one I’m probably going to end up getting is 6’9" wide and 7’6" tall. Unless I custom order a taller stock trailer instead of getting a horse trailer. I haven’t decided for sure, yet.

[Gestalt]

If you’re going to haul just your horse you could adjust the divider. I’ve hauled lots of horses in the narrower trailers (straight load). The width was never an issue, it was the length. And straight loads typically have more length. I’d take a 6 ft wide straight load over a slant any day.

[sonata]

not only the horse, but you have to consider the roads you will be on. a 6 foot wide trailer doesn’t count in wheels and fenders. you are looking at another 18 inches at least. a lot of back roads aren’t very wide. some are so narrow that if I had a trailer wider than 6 feet, an oncoming car couldn’t pass… these are roads with quite a bit of traffic, but no shoulder

[csaper58]

I agree with Sonata, The wider trailers can be tricky to haul on narrow country roads, especially with head to head traffic.

The wider trailers sometimes have the wheel well inside the trailer, I hate that.

One plus for the wide trailer, if you have a horse that doesn’t back out, or is injured, you can take out the divider and have a box stall. You would need a full length butt bar.

Did you see this thread in ‘around the farm’?

www.chronofhorse.com/forum/showthread.php?489699-Thoughts-on-interior-size-of-straight-load-trailer-for-larger-horse

[Amberkez]

Last year one of my mares was a massive (WIDE) 17.1hh AHS mare - I ended up having to get a 7’6" x 6’6" 2h straight load just get to her in comfortably I lucked out and found a good condition sundowner for 4k. They are out there.

[LadyNeon01]

My Hawk straight load is 80" wide inside, so its 102" from fender to fender. Its a bit tricky on the narrower roads, but I love that I have so much space in it. My almost 17.1hh gelding doesn’t like to feel crowded. I think I could have gotten away with 6’ wide inside, but I erred on the side of bigger because I tend to like the big horses.

[Equibrit]

Maximum trailer width allowed is 8’6". Bearing in mind that you have to have wheels either side, they either have to go inside or outside the trailer wall. SO usually if the width quoted is 6’ it is because the wheels are outside the trailer walls, and there is no part of the wheel well inside the trailer. If you want exterior wheel wells, the max width is approximately 6’6". Any wider than 6’6" and you have all or part of the wheel wells inside the trailer.

[Quelah]

My XXL hawk 2horse straight is, I believe, 6" wide inside, wheel wells on the outside. My 18.1 hand Shire, who is 2048 lbs on a digital scale, hauls just fine in it, along with his smaller 17 hand Shire friend who’s somewhere on the hight side of 1700 lbs.

[exploding_pony]

Important note - when shopping for trailers, straight vs slant is a huge determining factor on how wide you need to be.

In a straight load the stalls are generally bigger than a slant load. I have a straight load Hawk (older than 2008), WB size and the stalls are HUGE. I also have an Exiss slant load LQ that is 6’8" wide and the stalls are TINY.

Luckily my horses are small so it’s all fine, but if I had larger WBs I would want a wider trailer for the LQ.

[ISR]

The interior width of my trailer is 5’9", with an interior height of 7’8", and has comfortably hauled every size warmblood. It’s a German trailer, so should be able to hold German breeds :yes:

6’ is plenty.

[rjr]

6’ wide is just fine. Mine is 6’7", and I can actually sneak beside my 16.3 hand warmblood in the stall to get from front to back. A 6’ straight load will give you more room that just about any slant load. A slant load that advertises 40" wide stalls means 40" along the trailer wall. It will actually be 31 - 33" straight across, which is considered fairly standard (but is quite tight for a 17 hand warmblood.) 36" across would be good for anything except an actual draft-horse.

[enjoytheride]

My older trailer in which I haul my 14.2 hand horse is 5 feet wide. While a much bigger horse wouldn’t fit (my mare can bend enough that she can get her head and neck over the head guard into the other stall!) it goes line to line when towing down county roads. Which are the only roads barns are located on.

With my experience with the equine pretzel less is more.

[outerbanks77]

I agree that 6’ wide is just fine, but you might consider extra length to your stalls. I have a 2H straight load Featherlite and it has 11’ stalls that are fantastic for my 17H gelding. They are 8’ in the stall and 3’ in the head area, so he has plenty of room for his big noggin and a hay net. He’s QH but built like a modern WB and wears an 84" blanket. I’ve squeezed past him in the trailer too, but don’t recommend it. Previously I had a large Logan slant load and always had to pull the divider back and essentially give him both stalls or he was absolutely crammed, so I won’t do slant unless I start riding 15H cow ponies or something.

[Mouse_amp_Bay]

Sorry OP, not to hijack but I’m also the owner of a giant pony (87" Rambo).

I have always been taught that you want a horse snug between the chest and butt bar - 4 to 6 inches of space is plenty. Th explanation is that this helps provide less room to slide around and more area to balance on. Is that incorrect?

[coco10]

Thanks so much everyone for your helpful responses!

Mouse&Bay that is a really good question. I was wondering about that in relation to width, in that if it is slightly narrower (6ft) possibly it gives them more support? But that is a good question in relation to the length as well.

[Dressagelvr]

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