Travelling alone with two horses (or more): safety first

Setting off alone with several horses is entirely doable, provided you have anticipated everything: if something goes wrong, you will have only one pair of hands.

Loading: the riskiest moment

• Load the easiest horse first: it reassures the others.
• Never wrap the lead rope around your hand. A horse that backs up can drag you with it.
• You tie up after closing the breast bar, and untie before opening it. A tied horse that backs into thin air is a guaranteed accident.

Balancing the trailer

• The heaviest horse on the driver's side: the road is cambered, so it rides better.
• Two badly distributed horses throw the whole rig off balance, especially in the bends.

Alone with the unexpected

• Have a plan: the number of a vet along the route, a breakdown service, and someone close who knows your itinerary and your arrival time.
• Hi-vis jacket and warning triangle within reach: if you stop, you must be seen.

Well-being, multiplied

More horses means more heat, more humidity and more shared stress: ventilate. And avoid putting side by side two horses that hate each other in the field, they will travel tense.

Travelling alone is not travelling without a safety net. A charged phone, a shared route, tidy handling at loading, and you drive with an easy mind.