Now It Is The Horse's Idea To Load In The Trailer
Now that I have some basic communication and the horse is looking toward the trailer or into it, it is time to think about loading the horse in the trailer.
At this point, it's good to mentally visualize that the horse is already in the trailer. If the horse was in the trailer would you do things to encourage him to move or would you pet him and let him rest? Of course you would make it as comfortable as you could so he would do it again. It's the same when your horse is looking at the trailer and might even be quite aways from it. Pet your horse, let him rest and then unload him so to speak. Lead him away or back him up a little. Get his mind somewhere besides the trailer and even pet him some more, then see how soon you can get him to look at or in the trailer again. If you keep repeating this, he will eventually load.
If the horse puts a foot in and gets scared and backs away, pet him and ask again. It may take a while to get him to look at the trailer again, but let him rest and start over and over. He will put his foot in again and probably won't be as afraid the second time.
If he gets both front feet in, don't ask for more. Again pet him and allow him to rest. Back him out, give another rest and start again.
It is so tempting to try and pressure the horse when he is looking in the trailer or when he is part way in, but if you will encourage these thoughts and then take him away and start over, you won't have to pressure him. He will go in on his own and that feels really good to both of you!
A final thought. Whenever I've seen Bryan Neubert do a demonstration of any kind he always says, "This is going to get worse before it gets better." This is so true, the horse is overcoming fear and you are building a new way to communicate with him. There is no reason to be frustrated or upset because he digresses at times. This is how we all learn. Keep working until you get a positive change. If you or the horse are getting uptight, STOP. Start again when you are both in a better frame of mind.
