The Horse:Your Guide To Equine Health Care provides monthly equine health care information to horse owners, breeders, veterinarians, barn/farm managers, trainer/riding instructors, and others involved in the hands-on care of the horse.
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52 TheHorse.com THE HORSE December 2017 FARM & BARN PAT RAIA TheHorse.com/FarmandBarn J ust before Hurricane Irma swept across Florida in the first weeks of September, Kim Rogers Smith packed up her family, hitched up her trailer, and loaded her horse, Cosmo, for the long drive from Sarasota to their evacuation destination in Tennessee. In the midst of the already stress-inducing bumper-to- bumper traffic, a rear tire on her trailer blew. "Fortunately, we were only 200 yards from a rest area," she says. After unloading her horse, Rogers Smith's husband jacked up the trailer and changed the tire. They headed back into traffic and drove to the nearest tire store to replace the spare. That done, they eventually arrived in Tennessee. But on the trip home, the tread stripped away from the other rear tire. "It was a nightmare, and I can't believe it happened," Rogers Smith says of their trying journey across state lines. "Es- pecially since I inspected every safety feature of that trailer before we even started the trip. Having an accident with the trailer is my biggest fear." Incidents involving tire and wheel failure and faulty trailer floors are among the most common causes of horse trailer- related accidents, says Mark Buchert, DVM, of Performance Equine Vets, in Aiken, South Carolina. Yet many owners spend more time teaching their horses to load into their trailers than they do mak- ing sure the trailer itself is safe. "As a result, horses can be at risk every time they step onto a trailer," Buchert says. He believes the only way owners can reduce that risk is to have their trail- ers inspected thoroughly at least once a year—more often if the trailer is used frequently throughout the show or trail riding season. Annual safety inspections might be performed by the trailer's manu- facturer as part of a regular maintenance plan, or by a specialist who services all types of trailers. "Either way, the inspections need to be done by a professional," Buchert says. Here are some trailer tips that should always be on your must-do list. 1. A Safe Place to Stand No matter who conducts the inspec- tion, Buchert says it should begin with a careful examination of the trailer's floor. "Remember, in most trailers that floor has to support two horses—a total of 2,200 pounds," he says, on average. "Ac- cidents involving faulty trailer floors are commonplace." In fact, poor trailer floor integrity had fatal consequences for a group of Utah horses traveling home from a daylong trail ride this past September. By the time Utah Highway Patrol troopers reached the driver, the trailer's entire floor had separated from the transport box, severely injuring all seven animals. They were subsequently euthanized at the scene. In their investigation the Utah Highway Patrol questioned the trailer's condition. Buchert says he's not surprised at this case's grim outcome. Horses that fall though a trailer floor usually suffer devastating injuries to their skin, legs, and joints. "I've seen three of these accidents in the past six months, and they are always Precious Cargo ISTOCK.COM 7 steps toward a safer trailer-hauling experience From annual safety inspections to cautious driving, you can help make your horses' journeys safer.