My new horse has decreed that straight load trailers were invented by the devil. Slant load is the only way to travel. I actually prefer slant loads, but one of my horses is 17.2 so I can’t just sell my straight load and buy a slant load.
However, I have a great welder who can make it so my trailer does both; straight and slant load just by moving where I want the divider to go.
But the trailer is only 5ft 9inches wide (measuring the inside) Too narrow? It seems slant loads are usually 6ft wide. I don’t want to spend the $ if it will be pointless.
Yes, 5’9" is going to be way too narrow for a 17.2 horse!!!
While not all slant loads are created equal, mine is 6’ wide and my 15.1h horse won’t even fit in the front stall. My 16.1h horse won’t fit in there with the divider period-- I pull it out and use it as a giant box for her.
Low end model slants are often 6’ wide. Higher quality brands tend to be 6’9" or wider. People with large horses usually opt for something 7’ or 8’ wide.
If I could go back in time, I might have not bought my 6’ wide slant. It was what I could afford and it is certainly better than nothing. But it’s pretty useless as a true slant load unless you have bitty little horses.
I suspect you will end up with a 1-horse slant rather than a 2-horse slant. I’d want 7’6" or 8’ in a slant to try to get a 17.2 horse in there. Since you already have the trailer and horse, I’d suggest some measurements. Measure the horse nose to tail, and then measure the width of the straight stall. Get some tape and lay out where a stall of that width/length would sit on a slant. See how much room is left for the second stall.
The people I know with old style slants and big horses haul 1 horse less than the maximum (i.e. 3 horses in a 2), or have an extra-large rear stall for the biggest horse.
Can you just pull your center divider out to make a giant box stall for the difficult horse? Might be easier and safer from a structural standpoint than re-welding the divider.
Take a spay pain can to your lawn. Measure with nails, string, and a tape measure, then spray the outline. Lead your horse over and make sure he fits!! Sadly a friend of mine had to do this after the trailer was delivered and the horses didn’t fit!
I think I worded that wrong, 17.2 hand horse won’t go in when it’s configured for slant load. It would be able to be either slant or straight load.
she is about 16h but short in the body (wears the same blanket size as my 14.2 h pony)
Currently I am just hauling her loose but that doesn’t work with more than one horse.
I will try the spray can!
Sorry, in my original post, I had a “doh” moment and didn’t realize you weren’t trying to fit the 17.2h one in there, too, until after the fact.
@Blugal ‘s spray paint suggestion is a really good one. But I don’t think you will be able to fit more than one horse in a 5’9" slant. Maybe two small ponies, or a small horse and a pony. From my own experiences with similar sized (and smaller) horses in a 6’ wide slant, it just seems really unlikely unless your trailer is super long and you make the divider almost vertical.
The trailer area for horses is either 9 or 10 ft long… I have to check again.
Unless the trailer is super long, you probably won’t be able to load 2 when you configure it as a slant either, unless one of them is a small pony.
So today I loaded her up and put her in sideways. I actually think it will work. The stalls are a bit steeper than a true slant load. The back of the second stall will be a touch narrower than the front stall but she would only haul with a pony or my small horse so I think it should work out!
Both my 15.1 hand horses fit in a 6 ft wide slant trailer. When I measured them prior to buying the trailer, i measured about 8 ft from nose to tail.
If you need to fit a bigger horse in a slant load, you turn them around in the trailer, and haul them backwards. That way they put their heads over the divider and it gives an extra two feet of room. Plenty of room for my horses. My horses prefer riding backwards but I trained them to go in the slant either way. When given an option, they always want to turn around though. This works if your horses get along well.
When I haul two horses, the first one likes to face backwards, the second faces forward. At least for loading purposes. The second horse can turn around and face backwards as well, if they want.
the slant load does give you more options on how you haul them or if you want to use a box stall type setup.
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Interesting, love the idea of hauling them backwards in a slant to provide extra head room. It seems odd to me but I bet they get used to it.
Just ordered a Shadow 2 horse slant, I have a 15 hand quarter horse, that’s all but think I will have room for a second horse if I get one. My trailer is 6’4" wide and stalls are supposedly 121" long. I’ve always had a ramp load so am a little nervous about the step up. I think since I don’t have a large horse, I will plan on turning him around to walk out.
Thanks for your post, makes me feel better about my slant load decision.
You can certainly add a ramp, my Shadow has one behind a full width door. And my long bodied 16.1 mare manages to turn around in the 6’4" width.
