The Rig

Well someone asked us about the Rig & what it was like so I thought I would give you a little tour 🙂 As I have said before the trailer is 32′ long in the floor with another 8′ over the gooseneck. All told we are approx. 48′ in length which is nearly as long as a Semi. Turning requires space 🙂 The internal height of the trailer is 6’6″ so good for horses up to approx 16 hands. The trailer is a Featherlite therefore made of Aluminum which is alot lighter than steel but just as sturdy.

SO starting at the front here is the goose-neck section:

Here you can see it from the inside:

In here is where we keep hay, food, folded down dog crates, supplies etc. On some trips this is cleared out for putting small animals or birds.

The smaller section at the front is 7′ x 6′. In this pic you can see that 2 large pigs (these are Red Wattles) fit in comfortably. Great for young horses, miniatures & other smaller animals. This section can actually be divided into 2 with a 4′ high metal gate. We had this fitted for transporting boars but can also be used for dogs etc. We made it so that it is easy to take on & off & when off there are no protruding hinges for animals to catch themselves on – totally smooth. This section has a side door for easy access.

The middle section is the largest – 15′ x 7′. Plenty of room for 3-4 horses/cows etc. As you can see there are solid doors separating the compartments. The animals are very safe & cannot access another compartment/animal. We only put animals in together that are used to being together. We do NOT mix herds EVER! That would be asking for trouble & nasty injuries. On this trip there was just one horse in this section so plenty of space.

The last compartment is 10′ x 7′ – still room for 2 horses/cows etc. The trailer is light & airy. Animals love it because they are able to move around & also see out (if they are tall enough). Being able to move around really helps their muscles not tighten up on the road. Horses tend to stand the whole time whereas smaller animals will lie down. Being able to walk around when we stop really helps them.

Each compartment has water & hay at all times. We use black rubber bowls for water as they tend to stay where they are put & cannot be damaged. Kicking just makes them bounce 🙂 Horses & cows etc are fed hay in Hay Bags which hang from the side of the trailer. (Hay Bags are collapsible bags that have big holes to allow hay to be pulled through – not a good description but hopefully you can figure out what I mean! LOL!.) This way they are not having to bend down to eat. Pigs & smaller animals are fed hay on the floor. If the animals we are hauling are on grain then we will feed that according to the owners instructions. Animals tend not to eat quite as much when traveling but it is there for them when they want it.

For bedding we use mostly wood shavings. Wood shavings soak up urine making for easy clean up. If we can get hold of some, sometimes we will use straw as well.

Once an animal vacates their compartment, we clean it & put down fresh bedding ready for the next occupant. When we come home from a long trip the trailer is cleaned thoroughly ready for the next trip.

Here is the last view of the trailer. Each door opens fully but there is also a sliding door in each big door for easy access. This allows us to get in safely without the animals getting out! When we unload, the full door is opened so they do not have to step over the door. At night, after checking all the animals, we put padlocks on all the external doors so that no one can get in & cause any mischief. We stay in quality hotels & call ahead to make sure that we can actually get into the hotel parking lot. If not, we call another one until we find one that can accommodate us. Once we have a good one, that is marked on the GPS for future reference. We do NOT unload the horses at Horse Motels. Some folks question this but in all honesty we do not think it is necessary. It would cost the owner a lot more money for us to provide this service PLUS it is exposing the horse to yet another set of germs. Who knows who has been in that stall before them? Please do not get me wrong, I am not saying that Horse Motels are bad & unclean, many many folks use them but for us, we do not think it is worth the extra cost & risk involved. Yes there is always a risk of “picking something up” whilst traveling – we, as humans, take the same risk. Whenever we walk into a grocery store we might catch someone’s cold but of course there are ways to reduce that risk – washing hands etc. By providing a clean environment in the trailer & not unloading the horse we believe we are helping to reduce the chance of infection.

Hope this really helps you get the picture 🙂 Now when we share our adventures you can really picture what we are doing.

Take care,

Liz