Shane Rose

Michelle Strapp - Eventing/Dressage

As with most things horse related I feel that when travelling your horse, it is best to start with the KISS principle. That is, 'Keep It Safe & Simple' unless there is a specific reason to do otherwise. The two most important factors to consider in dressing your horse to travel are firstly safety and secondly comfort.

From a safety consideration I prefer a set of strong flexible, close fitting, travel boots that on the front legs cover from the coronet band to knee height. Ideally these front boots, while not restricting the horse's movement of the knee will be taller in the front to offer some protection to the horses knees should he/she trip while loading, travelling or unloading from the truck or float. The back boots should stretch from the coronet band to hock height. Ideally they will offer some protection to the hock area without strapping tightly around the front of the hock as this can provoke unnecessary kicking and risk damage to the back legs.

If you are concerned about your horse's reaction to hock protection when travelling in a truck, I have had success with a simple chaff sack of hay or straw hanging at a height covering from the top of the tail down to hock. This allows some horses to rest back without risking "capped hocks" - particularly on long trips.

Finally a set of bell boots on the front legs can help prevent the horse (or the neighbouring horse) from stepping on the coronet band and doing some nasty damage.

I prefer to apply an elastic tail bandage to the dock area of the tail although it takes some practice to get the tension tight enough to keep the bandage on yet not restrict blood circulation throughout the tail. By turning a small piece of tail hair upward when the bandage is partially applied it can help to stop the bandage from slipping when travelling. REMEMBER to remove the bandage when arriving at your destination as damage can be done if it is left on too long.

To secure the horse once in the float or truck, I like a strong headstall that can be easily released either from the headpiece or the noseband and a strong and long lead rope attached to some hay bile twine. All this is important should you find yourself in a situation where the horse is either down or partially down or tangled in the float or truck. This situation will usually include some panicking from the horse and it will be important to have several avenues to release the horse's head and help relieve the restriction allowing some movement for recovery. The hay bail twine can be easily cut or the headstall released from several points. The longer lead rope can be helpful to minimise the chance of loosing the horse either when loading or unloading or even controlling the horse in a drama situation as described above.
From a comfort perspective it is important to know the horse you are dealing with. If the horse is inclined to be an anxious traveller and sweat in transit a cotton sheet and hood or even a sweat rug will suffice. It is important that whatever rug arrangement you choose allowing for weather and the individual horse's temperament, the rug has leg straps to prevent it slipping to the side when pressed up against the horse next to it. Alternatively, although not my choice, a well fitted roller may help keep the rugs straight. Remember not to underestimate how stuffy and lacking in air circulation it can be in any form of horse transport.

Finally, a couple of points in travelling my horses that I like to take care of is that the floor of the transport will not get slippery should the horse urinate when travelling. I will usually have a layer of old straw, hay or sawdust on the floor to take up the urine and help prevent slipping. When floating (as opposed to trucking) it has been a long time practice of mine to remove the divider completely. I have personally found that my horse (or horses if floating 2 at a time) is happier being less restricted and finding their own space. I have never had a horse be happier with the divider than without but there are many instances where the opposite is true. Michelle Strapp

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Naomi Strong - Dressage

The seasoned traveller has neoprene bell boots all round and full length shipping boots for complete leg protection. I have an angle load float so I don't seem to have a problem with horses leaning on the tail gate, so they do not have tail guards or bandages. If the weather is warm, which is quite often in Queensland they will travel with no rug or hood on. I find it is better that they are a bit cooler rather than hot.

On the cool days they may have a light cooler rug or cotton rug. I travel with all the vents open in the float no matter the weather as adequate airflow is a priority. A soft cotton headstall and lead rope is all they have on too travel. I have tried some of the padded halters but find they sweat underneath them and some appear to cause poll pressure if not custom made.

On less experienced horses and the youngsters I am careful about what boots they start off with. Bell boots all round are a necessity as it so easy for them to stand on themselves when in a confined space and loading and unloading. Unless they are really comfortable with the tall shipping boots on in a yard I don't use them. I prefer a shorter set or even their wool paddock boots. I find that quite often there is enough for them to acclimatise too without adding "extras" which may frighten or annoy them in transit, especially if they slip or dislodge. Naomi Strong

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Sam Bartlett - Dressage

I believe when you are travelling your horses there are four areas to take into consideration when it comes to what they should wear.

1. What type of vehicle they are being transported in
Most of today's new floats and trucks are quite enclosed so we need to make sure that vents and windows are open to allow airflow to circulate particularly when it's going to be hot. The other consideration is whether they will be traveling alone or with another horse. Obviously, two horses will create more heat and therefore there will need to be airflow circulating throughout the vehicle.

2. The outside temperature
If the temperature is going to be above 25 degrees then personally I don't put any rugs on my horses as my float is well sealed with good airflow - so the horses just have travelling boots and a tail wrap. However, if the temperature is between 18 and 25 degrees they will have a cotton sheet and if it's18 degrees or below they will have a woollen rug on. I prefer the natural fibres of pure cotton and wool close to my horses' skin as they are breathable. Again, having more than one horse on the float means that you will have a higher temp inside the truck or float and therefore you need to adjust your horse's rugs accordingly bearing this in mind.

If you are traveling a nervy horse then you may need to try different ways of transporting e.g. storm cover up or down, filling in front window, divider in or out, left or right side of the float, these horses tend to be a bit hotter so wont need to many rugs if any.

3. How long are they going to be travelling
You also need to take into account how long the horse are going to be travelling for and how much access you will have to the horse during the journey. For instance, if the horse is on an overseas trip on an aeroplane then you will have limited access to be able to change rugs. Therefore a cotton sheet would be better. However, even travelling from Melbourne to Sydney can present several types of weather conditions that you need to cater for without stopping too often to change rugs.

4. The health, condition and the nature of the horse that is being traveled
Last but not least, hopefully we are travelling a healthy horse, but if we do have to travel an unwell horse then we need to rug according to the temp of the horse and bearing in mind any advice given by the vet. It is always a good idea to travel with a thermometer so as you can monitor the temperature of the horse while it is in transit.

Remember - don't over rug it is always better to be a little cooler than too hot. A logical way to think of it is if you start driving in a T-shirt then your horse will only need a cotton or vice versa.

Happy travelling,
Samantha Bartlett

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