Do you ever haul your horse saddled?

[Sacred_Petra]

[QUOTE=CHT;7917223]
I hadn’t thought of the stirrups being an issue with possible bruising against the dividers. In theory though, shouldn’t I be able to just undo the belvin buckle and take the stirrup right off? I can then put them in my bag, and reattach in the arena.

I will have to look at my trailer to see how far down the dividers come as compared to where the stirrups will hang.

So far it sounds like a doable plan, I just need to look into some of the details, so thank you for pointing possible issues out![/QUOTE]

Drop your stirrups down long enough and cross them over the top of the saddle. It keeps the stirrups out of the way of the dividers, and they’re less likely to catch on anything while loading/unloading. My boss did it fairly regularly to the smaller shows, and we never had any problems. *You may also be able hook your stirrups on your horn depending on what kind of stirrups you have.

[Doctracy]

I do sometimes when hunting. Usually, only if we’re going a few miles out to a fixture. I put a cotton cooler ( the kind with regular straps and leg straps) over everything to help protect and keep clean. I will typically keep the divider open if only hauling one horse.
I knew somebody who was a whip for a hunt that I was a member of who would put 3-5 saddled horses all tied next to each other in her open, 16 foot stock trailer for the hour drive to the hunt.

[Foxtrot_s]

I’ve seen stuff get hung up and a horse panic when unloading out of s/h or a/h trailers. Mine included when an Irish knit got caught on the bum strap. He went AWOL.

What did make me nervous was a woman tacking up in her truck - the area was so confined and she ducked under the horse to do the girth up…she was an adult beginner at an event, but it was definitely not in the Pony Club manual.

[furlong47]

Yes, for short distance hauls. English saddle.

[Beverley]

Yep, for over 40 years, most often for foxhunting but I’ll also tack mine at home, English or western, for trail rides or working cattle. I have a 2H straight load (have always had one though I’ve also hauled in vans and stock trailers and slants). When the big guy has the western saddle on I’ll swing the partition over so he doesn’t get a stirrup caught. Mine are also fine tacking up wherever we are, but if I tack up at home I’m pretty sure I won’t forget the saddle.

[BeeHoney]

All the time. Both with and without coolers over top. Short and medium distances. Open stock and slant load. For western saddles with bulky stirrups, I hook the stirrups over the horn or tie them over the back of the saddle so they aren’t poking the horse in the sides should it lean against the trailer or divider wall. I trailer with bridles on also, with halters over top. I tighten the girth just snug enough–and also with a breastplate so the saddle doesn’t slide back or to the side and then I readjust and tighten up on arrival.

My advice:
In advance, check your trailer for anything that could possibly catch anywhere on your tack.

If your horse is fidgety or nervous in the trailer or about fussy loading/unloading, don’t do this.

Adjust your tack so that nothing can slip or dangle en route. For example, if the bridle is on, you need to secure the reins so they can’t end up by the horse’s knees. Girth doesn’t have to be tight, but don’t have it so loose that the saddle will slip either. If you use a full cheek snaffle (which can catch on things easily) then do your bridle when you arrive.

Throw a cooler over if you want to protect your saddle a bit extra, but make sure it secures adequately over your tack, again, you don’t want something coming loose.

Troubleshoot a second time when you load, make sure everything looks safe and secure, double-check for anything that could get caught.

[Simbalism]

I don’t, but my horses stand tied to the trailer with no problems. When I am going off farm to trail ride it is often an hour drive. I feel better not having tack on my horses.

[akor]

Yes. Depends on the horse of course. I would be lying if I said I always secured the stirrups properly or took them off, but I tried to. Does help to throw a cooler over them. Distance/time was usually under 40 minutes.

I see a lot of western saddles on in trailers in our area. 5-6 horses in a stock trailer, many times with bridles on (tied with halters over).

[CHT]

[QUOTE=Simbalism;7918600]
I don’t, but my horses stand tied to the trailer with no problems. When I am going off farm to trail ride it is often an hour drive. I feel better not having tack on my horses.[/QUOTE]

It’s not about her not standing at the trailer (she’s great), its about not wanting to stand outside in sub zero temperatures while tacking up outside at dawn. I don’t do well in the cold.

[KitKat987]

I trailer 4-5 times a week, and don’t usually, however, when I’m trailering to a show and I know there’s going to be no where to tack up and it’s super cold outside, I’ll throw it on at home and then put the winter blanket on overtop so that my poor clipped horses don’t have to be stripped and tacked up outside when it’s -20 celcius outside! No issues to date. I have a slant load and they have no issues fitting in the stalls with my little english saddle on.

[retrofit]

I used to do this all the time for local hauls. I was always by myself - no helper. My horse was a big young warmblood and he was too green/nervous to tie to the trailer, and too big for me to hold him still & tack up. It worked so well I just kept doing it as he got older. Again, local hauls only. And he was a quiet traveler.

[sophie]

I do. I have a small Tb mare who is used to it. I started doing it because when going to the beach we couldn’t tie the horses to the trailer to tack up, we parked the trailer alongside the road by the sidewalk.
I kept doing it because it’s just easier and quicker. I put the bridle on right before unloading her.
I have an english saddle, and when it’s really cold I throw her med weight turnout on. Never had a problem. The trailer is a straight load 2 horse.