Saddling at home before trailering

[natisha]

Does anyone else do this? If I'm going for a ride & trailering a short distance I saddle up at home & just put a bridle on after I unload. The stirrups are tied together on top of the saddle. I find it much easier especially with excitable horses. It also drives me crazy when people unload THEN start to groom their horse.
I've never had a mishap but am I asking for trouble as some have suggested? Thanks

[WashingtonBay]

I think the biggest risk is that your saddle will get all scratched up, and I've never liked the prospect of the horse getting snagged on things.

[gabhainn]

I almost always trailer saddled I dont even bother with tieing up the stirrups, now if I am hauling more than an hour away no probably not.......Kevin

[natisha]

Hmmm, two people I respect, two answers :headscratch:

[gabhainn]

I think the difference is in what we do WB rail rides mostly, whereas I work cattle a lot. Working cows you hit the ground running, often before the sun is up, and I just developed the habit of saddling first...Kevin
p.s. thanks for the compliment

[Jump The Moon]

If it's short (like 5mins - just around the corner type thing) I'll trailer him saddled.. he's always been fine like that :) *touch wood* but any distance I'll tack up there :D

[WashingtonBay]

:)

That's right gabhainn... when we're going riding, we're on vacation time, no hurries :D

I also always catch horses and hose them off, they dry in the trailer on the way up, and our saddles and tack and grooming stuff just lives in the trailer all the time. If I had to carry my saddle out to the trailer every time, I could see the appeal of letting the horse do that. :)

[vicklynn]

If I had the space in my trailer, yup, Id do it.
Many people do around here, in stock trailers, or if they are only carrying one in a slant and there is space.

[TheRedHayflinger]

most people around here saddle up at home so they can get to the trails, unload, bridle up and go ride..

[Miracle Whip]

Oh sure. Usually its after a show after the game classes I will throw her in with the saddle on, sometimes I put the saddle on beforehand at home. It just depends how much room I have in the truck that day and how dusty the roads are. I have a livestock trailer and each horse gets half of the trailer, I don't tie the stirrups up at all. I am a bit leery of doing it on the gelding though because he paws and I worry about him scrapeing up a nice saddle. My saddle is 30 + years old though and a light color.

[ImaBronsonBear]

I did it all the time when i went trail riding with my friend in her three horse slant without dividers (there were only two horses in the whole thing). They we fine with it. But when i had my two horse slant with a divider in the middle, i didn't because there really wasn't enough room for the horse+the saddle+the divider. If it was a stock or a slant without dividers or even a 2-horse straight without the divider, i'd do it without a second thought.

[zoel_222]

I wouldn't do it in my trailer because the dividers have bars on them and I'd be scared the saddle horn or stirrup or something would get caught in there and break my saddle.

[Palogal]

No I don't. I don't want my saddle scratched up :) but I don't see a problem with it.

[MontysGirl]

Nope, I would never do it since every place we go to is atleast a 20+ minute ride and i do not want to take the risk of my saddle getting scratched up or if we go into a accident it could hurt the horse more if it the trailer tipped over or something like that.