I like having the cart/carriage in first. If it is a gooseneck, the shafts can go into the gooseneck. That way, the horse is over the wheels and next to the door and you don’t have to unload the vehicle to get to him.
I have a winch but only use it with the 4 wheeler. I can pull the cart in without it but the 4-wheeler is just enough heaiver that it is difficult.
You can get a ramp added to any stock trailer but I have board ramps with ends from Lowes. Walmart has really nice, lighter weight aluminum ones but they cost more.
About the ride, in a 4 wheeler, you feel the road but not the horse. In a 2 wheeler, you feel the road and the horses gaits. But if you are just starting, it is easier to stay out of trouble with a 2 wheeler.
With a regular ball hitch my 2 horse bumper pull can be turned enough, jacknifed if you will, to allow the unloading of the carriage from the bed without having to unhitch.
The easiest and less costly way to get my 400 pound carriage in the bed of the truck is with ramps and an electric winch.
Tractor supply sells the winch for ATVs for about $50, rated at 1500 lbs. I bolted the winch onto 4x4 posts which I secure easily to the front on the bed and can be easily removed to have my bed open for other farm duties.
To power the winch and avoid the expense of wiring it to the truck battery I used a portable, rechargable battery (Costco–$40) meant for jump starting cars. The charged battery easily lasts for a weekend of use.
[QUOTE=myblackmorgan;2914563]
Okay, I am reading through all these fabulous ideas about how to transport a cart and horse. I am middle-aged, 5’2", horse is 14.3hh, truck is a Ford F150, and I will most likey NOT have help.
Being a newbie and just now studying-up, this is what I am leaning towards so far (with many thanks to the COTH forums!):
-
Eazy Ryder Cart (if I can get my hands on/afford one); cob size.
-
a stock trailer- preferrably around 12’ (I understand that longer trailers are easy to manage but I have to watch weight); bumper pull.
-
Horse in front, slant load (he’s little); cart in back with shafts sticking out the back slats complete with red hazard flags (better than hassling with removable shafts all by myself?)
-
I assume a stock trailer and a ramp are mutually exlusive, so would have to use portable ramps and hope they fit in the back as well.
So - opinions/ possible pitfalls, please:
Both on cart (I am recovering from a broken pelvis and need something with suspension and that one person can handle. I also understand it is better to start out with a 2-wheeled vs. 4-wheeled).
And on trailer/transport idea…
I don’t think I could manage hauling the cart up ramps into the back of the truck. Plus that necessitates unhitching the trailer or getting a hitch that sways sideways. A Brenderup is the most palatable trailer for this, but try buying one new (ouch!) or finding one used (that’s not already sold!).
Thanks![/QUOTE]
While shopping, you will want to ask about options. Like a wider front escape door to put horse in and out with. A ramp addition. Some places to put load bars anchored in the walls. If you are shopping used trailers, maybe a local welding shop could do some work for you. Adding a ramp, several tie rings inside and out, to tie or hang things from, cover the slats for rain or dressing inside. I would check for a 14’ trailer, you will be really glad for the space.
Get a load equalizing trailer hitch if a bumper pull. The sway-bars are a huge aid in trailer control, making truck weight on both ends even out. Sure don’t want a light front end to steer with! Plus helps stabilize the rig with wind gusts as semis pass you.
Husband added our ramp, he is really handy. He used Merhow springs, ordered thru our local trailer dealer. Ramp is 4ft long to ground, hung off the back edge of trailer. Folds up over the wide door, clips up with spring loaded pins. Springs help some, but any ramp is heavy. We still prefer having the ramp, has come in extremely handy for many other uses, like loading the tractor! Our little Ford 8N fits right inside the trailer. Having a stock trailer comes in very handy for many purposes you would never expect. We put plywood sides under the slats, have mats. Reduces the trailer noise quite a bit for the horses. Make sure your mats can’t work out under the back door, to get lost. We had that happen to a friend, she had just purchased them. She didn’t even make it home with them!! We have pretty cheap trailer, so wood covers a lot of rough spots in the welding, smooth inside for horses. Painted it a light inside color, horses love to get inside.
We feel the horses ride better in the “hammock” area between the truck and trailer axles. Some is the larger stalls, they can step forward or back, not rubbing on the sides. We have thick floor mats under them, with sawdust or shavings, ALWAYS. Mats are very slippery once horse relieves himself, without bedding to absorb. They seem less tired upon arrival riding suspended, even on longer trips…
Realistically, you should consider where to put a winch. At your size, the weight of cart, angle of height you will raise cart to load, I would bet you can’t get a wood cart loaded alone. I had a REALLY hard time loading our wooden Roadcart into the trailer alone. I am taller than you, have pretty good muscles, no past injuries. Luckily I had a kid home, 3yr old who put blocks behind wheel on ramp. So I could catch my breath,move back to get another grip and HAUL on cart again, move a couple inches. Took forever, even with extra power of being angry!! Just was too even a balance, my weight against the cart and ramp angle. Somehow I haven’t had to load alone again, because I probably would have to get very creative about it. Roadcart is our lightest vehicle, the others would be impossible. We do have a winch in the bigger trailer, saves on all our bodies! But I wouldn’t be taking that trailer by myself, too big.
Keep us posted and keep asking questions as they arise.
Further to this comment by Goodhors and other folk mentioning they like their horses to ride over the wheels;
I am also researching how I shall get to drives and shows and whatnot and am trying to decide what is safer/more comfy for the horse and also safer for me as the truck driver! I had decided to buy a gooseneck trailer with a side ramp and plan to have my very chunky little 15.1hh mare ride loose up front with access via a wide side ramp (+ escape door on the other side too).Then a solid partition and the rear 9’ or so for carriage/cart and hay, tack trunk etc. etc. And more storage in the nose behind an expanded metal screen (so mare doesn’t chew her way through her harness whilst en route!:lol:)
So when I presented this idea to my engineer DH we got in to quite the discussion as to the physics of the whole thing. At first he thought I should have the mare ride over the axles. But on further thought he decided the mare (non static weight) would be better riding up front, “hammock-like” between the rear axle of the truck and the trailer’s axle (so long as tongue weight doesn’t get too high). He thought the ride would be a little softer for her and there would be less risk of the more heavily weighted rear end of the trailer acting as a sling shot should we have to brake really hard.
With the side ramp I could load my cart or carriage and other stuff in the back the night before, and the mare up the side ramp the morning of travel.
Please would those folk who prefer to ride the horse over the axle/in back offer to me their thoughts and let me know if I am making an unwise decision for the good of my chunky little mare :). Am I missing something important??
Cheers!
I’m one that loads my horse in the front, cart in the back. I feel the weight is better hauled in the hammock area, especially with a goosneck since the hitch weight is over the wheels of the truck. Not sure about a bumper pull but I would think it would be the same as long as you are within the load range of your vehicle and have a good hitch.
And if you are hauling a horse alone with out the cart, do you haul the horse up front or still in the back? Most horses I see in stock trailers are loaded in the front compartment.
Now I can see the point of loading cart first to have easier access to horse. But most average sized horses can be unloaded through the escape door on a stock in an emergency.
I still think your best bet is a stock with the horse in front, cart loaded in back. You can make or buy some ramps to help load the cart into the trailer. Easier than loading into the back of the truck.
I have an Eazy Ryder cart and they are VERY smooth riding carts. And the shafts are very easy to remove and put back on. I get everything adjusted right with my shafts, then use a sharpie or marker pen of some kind and mark the right adjustment for the shafts. Super easy to put back on in the right spot that way. Then you don’t have to mess with putting the shafts out the back of the trailer.
