Re: tying in a trailer

[Chris Paus <paus@micoks.net>]

Well, looks like I started another round of flames...

I used to always tie the horses in the trailer until watching a John Lyons
video which explained the reasons not to. It seemed  logical to me at the
time!

chris and *

At 02:43 PM 3/21/98 -0500, Linda S. Flemmer wrote:
>Chris Paus wrote:
>> 
>> I've always preferred not to tie in a trailer in case of a wreck. I'd hate
>> for my horse's neck to be snapped or for him to be unable to escape because
>> he's tied in. 
>
>Why would you want him to get free after a trailer wreck along a ROAD? 
>I'd like to release him under controllable circumstances
>
>I hate to be morbid about this, but we asked a large animal emergency
>rescue-trained squad's opinion about what we could do to best protect or
>later help our horses after a wreck when trailering.  We were told to:
>
>1)  NEVER get in a wreck!!!
>2)  Tie the horses so they are not thrown out, hit by trailer or other
>cars, etc.
>3)  Inspect all of the trailer regularly for safety (goes back to #1 -
>no wrecks!)
>4)  For first aid/after wreck care...  Bring a gun.
>
>They said that they could count on one hand the number of horses who
>could have been helped with first aid at an owner's disposal.  They were
>also called occasionally for horses who were "stuck" in the trailer. 
>They were usually untied in the box and got themselves wedged, or they
>tried to turn around to back out.
>
>When we trailer, we tie loosely, offer free choice hay, water every 2-3
>hours, and try to keep trips to 8 hours or less per day when practical. 
>We trailer alot to get to endurance rides in our area (NE), and we've
>never yet had an accident - I hope that it stays that way.
>
>Linda Flemmer
>Blue Wolf Ranch
>Bruceton Mills, WV
>
>