What is your preferred form of leg protection while trailering?

[Lusoluv]

This is such a quandary! I hate to have thick shipping boots on when traveling to summer shows. Plus my horse ALWAYS poops on the trailer, so whatever she’s wearing is gooped all around the bottom of the hind boots. I always wonder if my horse will feel clumsier in shipping boots since they all step/walk awkwardly. Maybe the overall best option is bell boots all around and front/rear brushing boots?

I did have a gelding go down in a 2-horse trailer years ago after we had to brake hard to avoid a car that cut in front of us. No boots of any kind and he didn’t have a mark on him. But if he had hurt his legs struggling, I’m sure I’d be in the “bubble wrap from head to toe” club!

[TheHunterKid90]

I don’t bandage or boot for travel unless I have a particularly bad horse to haul and we travel cross country.

[quietann]

Bell boots because of trailers on front shoes, front splint boots based on a general history of whacking herself when ridden.

I have seen horses go absolutely nuts in those big shipping boots. Mine hates “stuff” on her legs, so I’ve never even tried.

[splitrockfarmnc]

I don’t think I do anything different than what has already been mentioned… Either “quick wraps” with the pillow insert or standing wraps on all fours, plus bell boots on fronts but have done hinds as well. My bell boots are only used for hauling and have fleece around the top. Not sure if that makes any difference but they seem comfy and cushy and I like them. I haven’t altered this routine for hot days.

Personally I don’t love the big shipping boots. My primary traveler is a hony and I have not been able to find a set that seemed to fit well and stay up. IMO shipping boots that slide down and interfere with the horse standing and balancing in the trailer are worse than skipping the wrapping altogether…

[Alita]

Like a lot of other people here, I don’t like putting horses in trucks/floats without some kind of leg protection on. I’ve heard professional truck drivers say they usually truck horses without them and have never had a problem, and there are some reasons why it may cause problems (like wrapping a horse up from head to tail on a hot day,) but the end of the story is no matter how carefully you drive, you’re eventually going to get some idiot cut you off because they’re despirate to dive one car ahead of you into that nice stopping distance you’ve left between yourself and the next car, and cause you to have to hit the breaks or run into the back of them.

I never had a problem until one day something like that happened and my horse walked off the float with a slice into the side of the boot where she’d banged it with her hoof, but zero injury to her leg. Without the boots it probably would have been a stitch up job. I usually just use the shorter multiple velcro closure padded boots with a layer of vinyl or leather as the outer layer for a bit of extra protection. and fit them low on the leg to cover the coronet band. Touch wood, they seem to have done the job as seen above, and never slipped. Particularly because it can get so hot where I live, I’ve been reluctant to get the long trucking boots as they might overheat.

[fledermaus]

When I was talking to big shippers about transporting my horse across the US, I noticed that they all forbid anything on the legs. Ultimately a friend of mine brought her across in a 2 horse slant, quite bare, and she came out of there in perfect shape.

On the other hand I took her to a trailhead 25 miles from my barn once and she had stepped on herself and cut her front heel bulb. Simple bell boots would have prevented that.