Horse Trailering Anxiety and How to Get Over It!

Does your horse seem to sweat a lot while riding in your horse trailer, even if it’s not that hot outside?

If so, it might be that your horse isn’t just overheated, but is experiencing trailering anxiety. Profuse sweating can be a sign that your horse feels uncomfortable while traveling. In addition, some horses may even experience muscle tremors.

However, after unloading from the trailer, the anxious horse typically recovers from these symptoms and is fine to continue about his business.

Unfortunately, there are many causes of trailering anxiety, so pinpointing your horse’s trigger may take some detective work and experimenting.

Suggestions to Relieve Your Horse's Anxiety

If you suspect your horse suffers from anxiety, here are some things you can do to try to figure out the cause. For example:

Load your horse in a different area or in a different stall in the trailer. If he’s associating a particular place in the trailer with a bad experience, this may help to break that association.
Add bedding to the trailer floor if you normally don’t. This may help stifle noise and/or vibrations.
Do any latches, pins, or parts inside the trailer rattle or make noise? Try taping them to help silence the noise.
Load and haul your horse in a different trailer.
Haul your horse in a trailer that allows him to move around freely.
Travel different routes and observe your horse’s response. Does he deal better with highway driving versus winding roads with frequent stops and turns?
Install a video camera in your trailer so you can observe your horse while in motion or have someone travel with him in the trailer to watch (just be sure to check your state laws first regarding this practice.)
Make sure the horse trailer is well ventilated with all windows and vents open (as long as outside temperatures allow this.)
Check all ball joints and suspension parts as well as the trailer’s hitch and receiver. Any excess movement or sway could be distressing to him.

For a horse that you’ll be hauling a lot, it’s worth the trouble to find out what’s causing his anxiety. A stressed horse trapped in a trailer can develop ways to deal with his tension (like suddenly refusing to load). Nipping this problem in the bud will give you and your horse one less thing to worry about when you’re both out on the road.