Travelling tacked up is very common in racing, polo, Foxhunting and many other disciplines. I think it is probably safer than dealing with a fit horse in an enclosed space inside the trailer. It is probably safer than attempting to tack up an excited horse in the wide outdoors.
6 Likes
I ship to my lessons tacked (5 min drive) but also hauled this horse tacked for a year when he was having some issues standing at events (up to 2.5 hours tacked.) I won’t personally ship in western tack but I ship in both my jumping and dressage saddles. I typically do a cooler or light sheet over everything, ship in a halter, and bridle when I get there. With that said, I have a very roomy 2 horse straight load, my horse is small, and there’s nothing he should be able to get stuck on in there. With my set up, unloading is probably the biggest potential risk, getting stuck on a ramp latch. My horse self loads and unloads, so I stand to the side and push him away from the latches if he gets crooked. I’d check your trailer looking for potential snagging points, because we all know if a horse can get stuck on something it will. 
2 Likes
We always trailered tacked up when I lived in the UK. It was the norm to trailer to XC schooling or the beach.
I used to trailer out in the winters and would also tack up at home and trailer over without issue. It wasn’t a long drive though.
Just do what you feel comfortable with and be safe, smart and take your time loading and unloading.
Any time I have to stable off site at an event I trailer tacked (sans bridle) for the reasons @Foxglove posted above. Never had a problem. I sheet or cover my saddle, weather depending.
Many, many fox hunts we would end up after dark miles away from the barn and on the wrong side of a major highway. The call would go out to the hunt barn and a convoy of trailers would show up. All the horses were loaded tacked up , including bridles. No problems seen by me in over 20 years. There are times when this is necessary.
2 Likes
