A friend has a big QH mare that was notorious for not loading. Rearing and flipping over. I applied this method with her. Only slight pressure when she looked away. Admittedly it took awhile to just stand there relaxed and let her think. Shocked me when she just stepped on trailer! She got lots of praise and I led her back off trailer. Did same thing every day for a week. She loads like a champ now as long as you don't pull on her.
Wow, Warwick! I've got to say you have changed and I think that has deepened your understanding and appreciation of the techniques you're teaching. I'm still blown away! Horse floats in NZ have ramps with rails that go behind a horses bum and often a chest bar and closure at the front so one cannot get in front of the horse. It's hard to explain but a person can't stand at the front like you were to get the horse on the float and the room inside is much smaller than the trailers you use. I don't know if I'm explaining it very well. I was wondering what a person can do if they can't stand in front of the horse like you were? Thanks for your kind attention.
haha, what a description! i love it. i often hear people outright say they have a "problem horse" and i cant help but feel like it does the horse injustice- they are horses with problems. identifying them as the problem will only help behavioral patterns manifest, its time to break the cycle.
@@dennisharvey4499 amen. I was about to say the same thing. Rarely are horses the problem. Too many people set the horse up for failure. The words horse trainer should be replaced with people trainer specializing on the subject of horses xp
The older I get, the more subtle my cues are for my horses and the better their responses become. My aim for each horse is to no more than think what I want and get it.
@sidilicious3823 yeah, it's a thing. As we visualize a change in pace or speed our bodies unconsciously prepare for it and the horse, if trained subtly, picks up on that as a cue. The mistake we often make is thinking ahead to a transition coming up and the horse works off our subconscious cue!🤣 Then we have to correct the horse for anticipating but really the horse was present and it is us that's ahead of the moment!! 🤣 Staying totally present in the moment takes a lot of practice!!
I have been following Warwick and listening to podcasts for almost a year. The information is mind-blowing, profound and life changing for me and my horses. Best thing is I see the results.
I watched this video before asking my mustang to load into a trailer. I had never loaded a horse into a trailer and to my knowledge, he had only been “forced” to load before. I wasn’t sure this was a good idea but, I really want my boy’s days of being scared into doing things to be over. And I have found with him it is easy to break his trust. So… it freakin worked! Seriously. It took. An 1.25 hours on day one and 40ish minutes day two. He walked in by HIS OWN CHOICE! We kept our trust, our bond, and did what we wanted to do. So happy to have this video. Also ordered the book. Thank you, thank you.
Patience and kindness will take you farther than you ever imagined. Just put yourself in their hoof prints, would you enjoy learning from a partner you can trust or be forced to learn by an impatient human? I know what I would want. You’re doing great, keep steady!
Warwick I always find it interesting when people say that they have changed their mind lately in relation to handing horses etc and the reason I find that interesting as they were usually the people who had really strong opinions on how I was handling my horse as it didn’t align with theirs and now we’ll look who’s handling horses like me now!! 🤩🤩🤩👏👏👏🇦🇺🇦🇺
Excellent! Can't wait to try this with my youngster who had a "rough" loading when she came off her home farm basically unhandled at 3yo. ("She'll tell you when she's ready to be handled" taken to the extreme...) Have done the ground work, but the principle of "the wrong thing," and what it actually is makes this seem easy. I can do that! And that gives me the confidence I need to try with my super perceptive mare! Thanks!!
Hi Warwick! Thank you for sharing your knowledge 👍🏻 I have been following your chanel since 2013 and really enjoy watching your videos. Whenever I practice to load my 23 year old arabian horse into the trailer (After a few days of practice) he goes inside quite confident. However everytime we actually drive somewhere (Last Time unfortunately for medical reasons to the vet) he gets really nervous while driving and afterwars does not want to load anymore. Would you suggest to keep practicing on the loading Part and try to get it as perfect as possible or would you try to to work directly on the driving part? I would love to know about your experiences concerning this topic. Thank you very much and greetings from Germany!
Another thing that can help if you have following issue. I've got one that jumps into and out of trailer. She would slip on the rubber floor both ways. Yes it's bumpy. I even put sawdust and even cat litter down on dry floor. Still slipped and she became hard to load and unload. Then my husband sprayed grit spray on back half of trailer floor. Once she realized no slip she loads well again. When the grit spray starts to smooth out, I spray more on.
Ordered your book for me and my friend in another province. I hope to read it and discuss with her long-distance! Thank you for sharing your videos and wisdom!!
Let’s face it, the main issue is TIME. I want that my horse goes on the trailer right now, because someone is waiting for me (for whatever reasons). That will never happen unless you spend a lot of time on trailer training. Go to the trailer every day. Take a break. Relax. Then open the door. Then ask for the head into the trailer. One hoof into the trailer. Both into the trailer. Give lots of praises and a treat. Proceed in tiny steps. My mustang had a trailer backed into her corral. Her hay was in the trailer. She learned right from the start that a trailer is something great.
Works great! My problem with a current green horse is keeping him IN the trailer! This method has worked perfectly to get him to load no problem. Move the back doors to latch him in and he blows out backwards. I’m having so much trouble finding the solution to this issue and figuring out how to make the wrong thing hard besides just repeating that outside the trailer is the hard thing and inside the trailer is the easy thing. 2 weeks of schooling and patience and we aren’t making any progress. We load just fine 😂
I'd be very interested in hearing how you might approach a horse who will load, but is very anxious in the trailer when it's moving. In the context of moving down the road there is no human in there with them and they are in a confined space so I haven't had much luck managing or relieving the anxiety of my horse in that situation. Would love to see a video about this topic!
@@WarwickSchiller It doesn't seem to be separation related, as she will work herself into a lather even when being trailered with her pasture mates. She loads well, but as soon as I shut the door, the pawing and anxiety starts.
But what do you do when the horse backs away? How much pressure do you use to get the horse in the door of the trailer? And when the horse is backing up to you hold pressure on the rope and wait for a step or what?
I’ve never had a problem with my horses loading except for one day my older mare just decided, “nope I’m not doing it.” And my younger horse had an accident in a trailer so she’s scared of it. They will both go near the trailer and look inside, but they just stand there and refuse to load. Even with food, they won’t get in. Idk what to do anymore.
all good, still have not solved my horse arriving washed out at our destination. He loads like a good boy, he stands in the trailer when we arrive if I want, unloads and goes to work in a new location. He is stressed to leave alone from his barn. Any ideas to help him?
My horse happily walks in but any unfamiliar noises he's off 😢I've tried for years. I have been too scared to close him in because I know hel be afraid apart from once recently, and he was sweating and shaking when he came out. It was just a short journey 😢
As someone who does positive reinforcement/clicker training I actually really liked your perception of "do the wrong thing hard and the right thing easy". I haven't done much trailer training with my horse due to not having a trailer to practice with. He's an anxious arab but he is okay with getting on the trailer and right in, it's just when we have to put the bum bars across and put the door up is when he freaks out and rushes out.. Like he is claustrophobic. Any tips for that?
Commenting mainly so as to be aware of any responses. My only thought is maybe it's not claustrophobia (is he okay in other small spaces like a stall?) but some other issue, like the bar touching his butt in that situation. Can you touch him with the bar (or something similar) in other situations like in a stall or round pen or whatever? Does it make a noise that might be anxiety producing? I hope someone else comments.
@@randomvielleuse527 I don't have stalls, but he has been under an open shelter which he's fine with unless it rains (too noisy on the roof). I've worked with getting him desensitised to something touching his butt, but he's the type of horse where he's always on high alert. I think it also might come down to not enough experience as I don't have a trailer to practice with. I don't think it's the noise too much, he's fine and settles once he's in. It's just the putting the bum bar across and ramp up that's the worry for him.
You can practice this without a float. I'm sure Warwick would suggest you work first with a rope, making sure you can touch her all over her body with that rope. The rope is the bum bar in this instance. Next, try working your horse near a solid fence or gate. Get her walking between you and the fence, then gradually make the space smaller. I believe Parelli calls this the Squeeze game. You might be able to find some videos here on how to do it. Then, when you feel ready, hire a float and work on it there. Get her onto the float and use your rope as the bum bar. Move it over her hindquarters until she's calm with that, then introduce the bum bar, but gradually. Start with just picking it up/swinging it over, then putting it down/swinging it away. Do this enough times that she is bored. Then, the one time you *do* actually do it up, she will not care. But you have to get her okay with everything else first. Tiny steps. It's the same principles, really, just presented in a different situation.
I had an Arab mare, when I got her I was afraid to ride without a saddle and bridle, because she didn't listen and just rushed off, slinging her head up when I shortened the reins. (I knew her previous owner and knew how she had treated her,so I knew why) I used Heimer calming herb mix on her, and it really helped removing the edge, so it was easier to get through to her. In the end I had my 9 year old niece ride her in a halter alone. And she even walked loose on the trail with me. Arabs are often believed to be really stressed out, but by my experience, they're just very talkative, or their language is loud, compared to other horses. As soon as we started to listen to each other, everything changed. I know some horses don't like the narrow space in a trailer, because it affects their ability to spread their legs and stabilize. So it might not be the bar, but the middle wall being pushed in place. Just keep doing things, so he eventually learns that no matter what it is, wait and see, because it doesn't hurt him.
@@poniesatemypencils This is a very useful description of your horse! Consider watching Schiller’s videos on relationship building and especially ground work to aim for more relaxation for your horse. If he’s always on high alert he’s likely not getting adequate rest or REM sleep which can both enhance sensitivity to stressors and impact his ability to learn comfortably. It might take a while especially for an already high energy breed like an Arab but, unless there is a genetic component, he can learn to find enough safety to get properly regulated in terms of his fight/flight reactions. ❤️
Of course you need a better plan than simply closing bars and ramp, if your horse is claustrophobic. And perhaps you will need the help of a good trainer who works in a way similar to Warwick - patient, connected, with a minimum of pressure. But ultimately it can be truly life-saving to get your horse to accept trailering. I was very glad that I had put some effort into this training when many years ago my old horse had a bad colic and it was possible to load him in the trailer in the middle of the night without fuss and drive him to a clinic in time. Thank you very much, Warwick, for teaching all of us out here that there are much kinder (and more effective) ways of getting horses to do what we want / need them to do than the ones we were taught in my youth, which implied too much pressure and did not allow the horse to be heard at all. I will definitively look for your book!
@@xxlpony831 I've tried different, humane methods for about a year now and I've recently booked zoom lessons with miri Hackett who follows Warwick Schiller, I just wish Warwick did zoom lessons too, I've been a avid follower of his for years, simply amazing ❤️
@@kirsty-vg3xk good idea on trainer zoom. I've had horses like yours. Get on trailer and immediately freak and fly out. A few things that worked for me was having feed already in trailer for them and they knew it was in there. If you can feed your horse in trailer for a few days that can help. I do that with babies Another thing that can help is a stock trailer without slants and with a cut gate in the middle. Horse goes in trailer shut cut gate and leave him loose. It's like a stall.
I love the bumper sticker! Thanks for making it so gentle on the horse. You are such a patient fellow.
A friend has a big QH mare that was notorious for not loading. Rearing and flipping over.
I applied this method with her. Only slight pressure when she looked away. Admittedly it took awhile to just stand there relaxed and let her think. Shocked me when she just stepped on trailer!
She got lots of praise and I led her back off trailer. Did same thing every day for a week.
She loads like a champ now as long as you don't pull on her.
Great work Tracy!
Wow, Warwick! I've got to say you have changed and I think that has deepened your understanding and appreciation of the techniques you're teaching. I'm still blown away! Horse floats in NZ have ramps with rails that go behind a horses bum and often a chest bar and closure at the front so one cannot get in front of the horse. It's hard to explain but a person can't stand at the front like you were to get the horse on the float and the room inside is much smaller than the trailers you use. I don't know if I'm explaining it very well. I was wondering what a person can do if they can't stand in front of the horse like you were? Thanks for your kind attention.
I pretty much know my lack of knowledge is the problem and am thankful for your help ❤
haha, what a description! i love it. i often hear people outright say they have a "problem horse" and i cant help but feel like it does the horse injustice- they are horses with problems. identifying them as the problem will only help behavioral patterns manifest, its time to break the cycle.
the main problem a horse has is the human
@@dennisharvey4499 amen. I was about to say the same thing. Rarely are horses the problem. Too many people set the horse up for failure. The words horse trainer should be replaced with people trainer specializing on the subject of horses xp
The older I get, the more subtle my cues are for my horses and the better their responses become. My aim for each horse is to no more than think what I want and get it.
I love it. That reminds me of times my horse would do things I had been thinking but hadn’t ask for yet. It can be done!
@sidilicious3823 yeah, it's a thing. As we visualize a change in pace or speed our bodies unconsciously prepare for it and the horse, if trained subtly, picks up on that as a cue. The mistake we often make is thinking ahead to a transition coming up and the horse works off our subconscious cue!🤣 Then we have to correct the horse for anticipating but really the horse was present and it is us that's ahead of the moment!! 🤣 Staying totally present in the moment takes a lot of practice!!
I have been following Warwick and listening to podcasts for almost a year. The information is mind-blowing, profound and life changing for me and my horses. Best thing is I see the results.
Warwick, you have great decernment, not only about the horse, but you have excellent decernment about people.
I watched this video before asking my mustang to load into a trailer. I had never loaded a horse into a trailer and to my knowledge, he had only been “forced” to load before. I wasn’t sure this was a good idea but, I really want my boy’s days of being scared into doing things to be over. And I have found with him it is easy to break his trust. So… it freakin worked! Seriously. It took. An 1.25 hours on day one and 40ish minutes day two. He walked in by HIS OWN CHOICE! We kept our trust, our bond, and did what we wanted to do. So happy to have this video. Also ordered the book. Thank you, thank you.
Patience and kindness will take you farther than you ever imagined. Just put yourself in their hoof prints, would you enjoy learning from a partner you can trust or be forced to learn by an impatient human? I know what I would want. You’re doing great, keep steady!
Thats really cool. I like the subtletie and the horses energy stays down the whole time.
Warwick I always find it interesting when people say that they have changed their mind lately in relation to handing horses etc and the reason I find that interesting as they were usually the people who had really strong opinions on how I was handling my horse as it didn’t align with theirs and now we’ll look who’s handling horses like me now!! 🤩🤩🤩👏👏👏🇦🇺🇦🇺
So excited to buy your book soon!!!! I didn't know you had a book. This'll be gold on paper!
That's a very cool and very subtle way to use that principle. Thank you for showing it.
אן כמוך אלוף
Excellent! Can't wait to try this with my youngster who had a "rough" loading when she came off her home farm basically unhandled at 3yo. ("She'll tell you when she's ready to be handled" taken to the extreme...) Have done the ground work, but the principle of "the wrong thing," and what it actually is makes this seem easy. I can do that! And that gives me the confidence I need to try with my super perceptive mare! Thanks!!
Love it! Bought your book…. Put it on myself improvement shelf….. it applies to your whole life
Great advice, so simple and kind
Hi Warwick! Thank you for sharing your knowledge 👍🏻 I have been following your chanel since 2013 and really enjoy watching your videos. Whenever I practice to load my 23 year old arabian horse into the trailer (After a few days of practice) he goes inside quite confident. However everytime we actually drive somewhere (Last Time unfortunately for medical reasons to the vet) he gets really nervous while driving and afterwars does not want to load anymore. Would you suggest to keep practicing on the loading Part and try to get it as perfect as possible or would you try to to work directly on the driving part? I would love to know about your experiences concerning this topic.
Thank you very much and greetings from Germany!
Another thing that can help if you have following issue. I've got one that jumps into and out of trailer. She would slip on the rubber floor both ways. Yes it's bumpy. I even put sawdust and even cat litter down on dry floor. Still slipped and she became hard to load and unload.
Then my husband sprayed grit spray on back half of trailer floor. Once she realized no slip she loads well again. When the grit spray starts to smooth out, I spray more on.
Ordered your book for me and my friend in another province. I hope to read it and discuss with her long-distance! Thank you for sharing your videos and wisdom!!
2nd! Me and my mom LOVE your channel!!!
Thank you Warwick
Thank you!
Love this!!!
Let’s face it, the main issue is TIME.
I want that my horse goes on the trailer right now, because someone is waiting for me (for whatever reasons).
That will never happen unless you spend a lot of time on trailer training.
Go to the trailer every day. Take a break. Relax.
Then open the door.
Then ask for the head into the trailer.
One hoof into the trailer. Both into the trailer.
Give lots of praises and a treat.
Proceed in tiny steps.
My mustang had a trailer backed into her corral. Her hay was in the trailer.
She learned right from the start that a trailer is something great.
Absolutely adore you❤
Works great! My problem with a current green horse is keeping him IN the trailer! This method has worked perfectly to get him to load no problem. Move the back doors to latch him in and he blows out backwards. I’m having so much trouble finding the solution to this issue and figuring out how to make the wrong thing hard besides just repeating that outside the trailer is the hard thing and inside the trailer is the easy thing. 2 weeks of schooling and patience and we aren’t making any progress. We load just fine 😂
I'd be very interested in hearing how you might approach a horse who will load, but is very anxious in the trailer when it's moving. In the context of moving down the road there is no human in there with them and they are in a confined space so I haven't had much luck managing or relieving the anxiety of my horse in that situation. Would love to see a video about this topic!
How is the horse if you tie him in a stall and keave? Just trying to figire out is it a trailer problem or a separation problem
@@WarwickSchiller It doesn't seem to be separation related, as she will work herself into a lather even when being trailered with her pasture mates. She loads well, but as soon as I shut the door, the pawing and anxiety starts.
But what do you do when the horse backs away? How much pressure do you use to get the horse in the door of the trailer? And when the horse is backing up to you hold pressure on the rope and wait for a step or what?
Ordered your book.
This exactly worked for me loading a very young nervous horse in less than 5 minutes.
I love the bumper sticker! Is there a place I can purchase it?
the horse looks very relaxed
I’ve never had a problem with my horses loading except for one day my older mare just decided, “nope I’m not doing it.” And my younger horse had an accident in a trailer so she’s scared of it. They will both go near the trailer and look inside, but they just stand there and refuse to load. Even with food, they won’t get in. Idk what to do anymore.
all good, still have not solved my horse arriving washed out at our destination. He loads like a good boy, he stands in the trailer when we arrive if I want, unloads and goes to work in a new location. He is stressed to leave alone from his barn. Any ideas to help him?
My horse happily walks in but any unfamiliar noises he's off 😢I've tried for years. I have been too scared to close him in because I know hel be afraid apart from once recently, and he was sweating and shaking when he came out. It was just a short journey 😢
As someone who does positive reinforcement/clicker training I actually really liked your perception of "do the wrong thing hard and the right thing easy".
I haven't done much trailer training with my horse due to not having a trailer to practice with. He's an anxious arab but he is okay with getting on the trailer and right in, it's just when we have to put the bum bars across and put the door up is when he freaks out and rushes out.. Like he is claustrophobic. Any tips for that?
Commenting mainly so as to be aware of any responses. My only thought is maybe it's not claustrophobia (is he okay in other small spaces like a stall?) but some other issue, like the bar touching his butt in that situation. Can you touch him with the bar (or something similar) in other situations like in a stall or round pen or whatever? Does it make a noise that might be anxiety producing? I hope someone else comments.
@@randomvielleuse527 I don't have stalls, but he has been under an open shelter which he's fine with unless it rains (too noisy on the roof). I've worked with getting him desensitised to something touching his butt, but he's the type of horse where he's always on high alert. I think it also might come down to not enough experience as I don't have a trailer to practice with. I don't think it's the noise too much, he's fine and settles once he's in. It's just the putting the bum bar across and ramp up that's the worry for him.
You can practice this without a float. I'm sure Warwick would suggest you work first with a rope, making sure you can touch her all over her body with that rope. The rope is the bum bar in this instance. Next, try working your horse near a solid fence or gate. Get her walking between you and the fence, then gradually make the space smaller. I believe Parelli calls this the Squeeze game. You might be able to find some videos here on how to do it. Then, when you feel ready, hire a float and work on it there. Get her onto the float and use your rope as the bum bar. Move it over her hindquarters until she's calm with that, then introduce the bum bar, but gradually. Start with just picking it up/swinging it over, then putting it down/swinging it away. Do this enough times that she is bored. Then, the one time you *do* actually do it up, she will not care. But you have to get her okay with everything else first. Tiny steps. It's the same principles, really, just presented in a different situation.
I had an Arab mare, when I got her I was afraid to ride without a saddle and bridle, because she didn't listen and just rushed off, slinging her head up when I shortened the reins. (I knew her previous owner and knew how she had treated her,so I knew why) I used Heimer calming herb mix on her, and it really helped removing the edge, so it was easier to get through to her.
In the end I had my 9 year old niece ride her in a halter alone.
And she even walked loose on the trail with me.
Arabs are often believed to be really stressed out, but by my experience, they're just very talkative, or their language is loud, compared to other horses.
As soon as we started to listen to each other, everything changed.
I know some horses don't like the narrow space in a trailer, because it affects their ability to spread their legs and stabilize.
So it might not be the bar, but the middle wall being pushed in place.
Just keep doing things, so he eventually learns that no matter what it is, wait and see, because it doesn't hurt him.
@@poniesatemypencils This is a very useful description of your horse! Consider watching Schiller’s videos on relationship building and especially ground work to aim for more relaxation for your horse. If he’s always on high alert he’s likely not getting adequate rest or REM sleep which can both enhance sensitivity to stressors and impact his ability to learn comfortably. It might take a while especially for an already high energy breed like an Arab but, unless there is a genetic component, he can learn to find enough safety to get properly regulated in terms of his fight/flight reactions. ❤️
My horse will go in but won't stay in 😩 I refuse to trap him though ❤️
Of course you need a better plan than simply closing bars and ramp, if your horse is claustrophobic. And perhaps you will need the help of a good trainer who works in a way similar to Warwick - patient, connected, with a minimum of pressure. But ultimately it can be truly life-saving to get your horse to accept trailering. I was very glad that I had put some effort into this training when many years ago my old horse had a bad colic and it was possible to load him in the trailer in the middle of the night without fuss and drive him to a clinic in time.
Thank you very much, Warwick, for teaching all of us out here that there are much kinder (and more effective) ways of getting horses to do what we want / need them to do than the ones we were taught in my youth, which implied too much pressure and did not allow the horse to be heard at all. I will definitively look for your book!
@@xxlpony831 I've tried different, humane methods for about a year now and I've recently booked zoom lessons with miri Hackett who follows Warwick Schiller, I just wish Warwick did zoom lessons too, I've been a avid follower of his for years, simply amazing ❤️
@@kirsty-vg3xk good idea on trainer zoom. I've had horses like yours. Get on trailer and immediately freak and fly out.
A few things that worked for me was having feed already in trailer for them and they knew it was in there.
If you can feed your horse in trailer for a few days that can help. I do that with babies
Another thing that can help is a stock trailer without slants and with a cut gate in the middle. Horse goes in trailer shut cut gate and leave him loose. It's like a stall.
@@tracyjohnson5023 I think he'd be way better if I could turn him loose and hom turn round like in a stable!
I’ve been doing this for about 20 minutes twice a day with the addition of treats when she steps forward and still won’t get on 😅