Safe Trailers = Safe Trailering
Part II - Interior Stalls
Story & Photos by
Tom Scheve
In the summer issue of Elite Magazine, I mentioned that the word
“safe” had become a “catchphrase” in horse trailer advertising, often
leading to ambiguity and rhetoric rather than hard facts. That article
was the first in a series of articles that focuses on individual areas of
a horse trailer, explaining what makes it safe. As I stated previously, “A
safe trailer has a design with features that naturally reduce and often
eliminate injuries to horses and their handlers.” The question then
becomes, what are those features? Last time I examined what makes a
rear entrance safe. Now I will focus on the stall area.
INTERIOR STALLS
There are three basic premises we use to determine how to improve
stall safety:
1) Comfort levels increase, and stress levels decrease for horses (and
their owners) when the stall environment can adjust for comfort.
2) Stress in horses (and owners) diminishes when the size of the stalls
matches the size and temperament of the horses.
3) How interior dividers, bars, and center posts operate and how quickly
they remove in an emergency reduces and often prevents injury.
TRAINING & Showing
Photo caption
Roof vents direct necessary airflow from above when the
trailer is moving. They adjust the airflow by opening towards
the front or back. Roof vents also prevent heat from building
up, since heat rises. The location should be over the
horses’ heads. With the heat index on the rise, adding one
in the rear of each stall has become popular.
Fans up high near the front of each horse (often added in
the rear as well) increase the movement of the airflow and
are particularly useful when stopped in traffic.
A stall too long, too short, too narrow, too wide, too tall or
too short, can make for an unhappy horse, and an unhappy
horse in a trailer puts the horse and driver in danger.
A horse weighs a lot, and since the cargo is “live” weight,
the weight can and often will shift if it is uncomfortable and
stressed. The stall design and how horses fit in it will make a
difference in stress levels. Before purchasing a trailer, determine
the size of your current and possibly future horses.
Head area length can be too short but not too long. If
horses can effortlessly stretch their necks to balance and to
cough, to expel dust or debris that might lodge in their respiratory
system, they have enough room. Since slant load
trailer stalls are limited in size by the legal width of trailers,
larger horses’ have little to no room to stretch.
ENVIRONMENT
A common question that often pops up is, “Can air conditioning
be in the stall area” The answer is “yes,” but it’s
impractical. To run AC while traveling takes an on-board
generator, which can be a danger in itself. However, there
are other constructions and optional features that will improve
the stall area environment.
A dual wall, rather than a single wall, preferably with insulation
between the walls, lowers the temperature significantly.
The sun heating the outer wall of a single wall trailer
is also heating the interior wall since they are one and the
same.
OUTSIDE
PRE-PAINTED
ALUMINUM
SKIN
DUAL WALL
CONSTRUCTION
INTERIOR
GALVANIZED STEEL
STYROFOAM
INSULATION
Aluminum constructed trailers using unpainted aluminum in
the walls, floor, and roofs promote heat. Aluminum conducts
heat, which is why it makes for good cookware.
Windows and open slatted sides bring necessary airflow
in from the sides. However, open slatted sides are not
adjustable, and bugs, insects, and other road debris can
easily fly into the stall area. Windows with protective bars
and screens along the sides and rear of the trailer are the
best source of ventilation, and the openings can adjust
to handle various weather conditions. Since windows also
provide light and create a sense of “openness,” the more
windows, the better. (see photo, top right)
66 www.EliteEquestrianMagazine.com
STALL SIZE
/www.EliteEquestrianMagazine.com