Posts Tagged ‘horse transportation’

Has anyone ever imported a horse from the UK to the USA (Los Angeles)? Just wondering roughly how much it would cost. Also, if going through a shipping agent, do they sort out all the paperwork for you?

Did the horse trailer — often called a “horsebox” in Europe — play any role in the Old West? Were horses often transported rather than ridden, and if so, what was the most common way?

I suspect that transporting a herd of horses or any group of horses without riders was generally done by railroad, once the railroad had moved into the West to any extent. And I also suspect that, prior to widespread presence and use of the railroad, most horses were simply herded by riders on horseback as were cattle. (They called them “cowboys,” but obviously, they road horses.)

But in doing some research for a different article horse transports or horseboxes, and I actually couldn’t find any definitive information about when the horse trailer (or horsebox) was “invented” or first came into wide use.

One article in Wikipedia suggested the horsebox or horse trailer was developed during the 1800s by town and village fire departments who would use horse drawn ambulance wagons to actually transport injured but “salvageable” horses back from fire scenes to get them to the town veterinarian for speedy care.

I also discovered that “mass transport” of horses in Europe via boat can be traced in artwork back to the Romans and in tapestries of scenes from the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.

But what about the horsebox or trailer? Such vehicles range today in form and function from simple wagons to elaborate stables-on-wheels, often built to accommodate more than one horse as well as having “living quarters” of a sort for people who tend the horses. It almost seems silly to call such rolling homes boxes or trailers, doesn’t it?

However, did such horse transport methods play a role in life in the Old West? It would be hard to think of a vehicle from the 1800s and early 1900s that would have pulled anything equivalent to these trailers — except, perhaps, for the fire ambulances suggested above.

Whatever term you use for horse transportation, certainly today’s horse owners, whether they own horses as pets, for show, or for work, find a good horsebox or horse trailer indispensable.

Would it be legitimate to call various forms of railroad boxcars of the Old West the forerunners of today’s horse transports crowding the highways and roads of today’s modern West (and East, too, for that matter)?

If you have information about the invention and development of the horse trailer or horsebox, I invite you to leave a comment at my website listed below and enlighten other readers!

Gary Speer writes about life in the Old West and the roles horses and other animals — in addition to people, of course! — played in everyday life during those times. You can find tales and tall tales about that life at his website at http://www.lifeintheoldwest.com.

Author: Gary Speer
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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An expensive horse deserves to be in a healthy environment…always…even in transport.Health of your horse depends not on pounds of weight but overall resistance to disease.Even when the owner keeps an animal up to date on vaccinations and preventitive medicine, when in transportation, horses are subject to acauiring an infection or a disease. 

Cleaning a horse trailer after transportation to and from horse shows, rodeos, or training events can pose interesting problems for the horse owner.  Even when a horse is healthy, the interior of the trailer should be as clean and disinfected as possible to prevent diseases and pathogens from being transported from an arena stall back to the farm.Even when carefully cleaned and disinfected, urine and feces collect and build up in the closed environment of a trailer.You can make a difference.  Just as one would keep the truck clean and odorless, they keep the horse trailer free from odors, free from urine/fecal buildup, by choosing a safe, reliable product that deodorizes and disinfects simply and easily after every trailer use.  Nok-Out, (http://www.nokout.com)  is such a product.Nok-Out is a true deodorizer that is safe to use on any hard or porous surface. It is EPA Registered to destroy pathogens of importance, but it totally harmless to you and your pets. Nok-Ou is biodegradable.  Nok-Out is a safe, non-toxic product, EPA Registered to destroy odors, and disinfect on contact when it is sprayed on the source of the contamination.  Nok-Out is fragrance free, non-cationic (doesn’t react to other metals, plastics or hard surfaces).Nok-Out is a true deodorizer that is safe to use on any hard or porous surface. It is EPA Registered to destroy pathogens of importance, but it totally harmless to you and your pets. Nok-Ou is biodegradable.Application of Nok-Out is very easy.Spray and walk away? Nahyyy. Really? That easy!Scientific data, replicated and proven demonstrates that bacteria, mold, mildew and viruses are eliminated when applied as directed.  The result?  A clean trailer.Healthy horses.  Safer transportation…immediately.

Your horses have excellent health.  They are fully protected by regular vaccinations, and preventitive injections.  You feed them with the best products available.  At over 1000 pounds each, one might think that your horse can fend off bacteria, viruses mold and fungus infestation.   And generally, this is a truism of good animal health.  But, during transportation, a very important issue for maintaining the good health of your expensive animal is the cleanliness of the Horse Trailer.  During transport, a build up of urine and feces, along with poor air circulation in the trailer, provides a perfect source for bacteria and viruses to grow and expand.  Below are some thoughts regarding this issue.

Cleaning a horse trailer after transportation to and from horse shows, rodeos, or training events can pose interesting problems for the horse owner.  Even when a horse is healthy, the interior of the trailer should be as clean and disinfected as possible to prevent diseases and pathogens from being transported from an arena stall back to the farm.  When not carefully cleaned and treated/disinfected, odors and pathogens of significance collect and build up in the closed environment of a trailer, even on short trips.  Smart horse owners recognize that intense urine odor is uncomfortable for their animals, and, over time can affect the health and well being of their expensive horses. Just as one would keep their truck clean and odor-free, a person will also keep the horse trailer free of odors, free from urine/fecal buildup, by choosing a safe, reliable product that deodorizes and disinfects simply and easily after every trailer use.  Nok-Out, is such a product. It will do this job, and has no lethal side effects as do many chemical cleaners. Nok-Out is a safe, non-toxic product, EPA Registered to destroy odors, and disinfect on contact.  Nok-Out is fragrance free, non-cationic (doesn’t react to other metals, plastics or hard surfaces).  It poses no harm when sprayed around humans and animals.  Nok-Out is easy to apply.  Simply Spray and walk away.  Bacteria, mold, mildew, viruses are eliminated when applied as directed. The result is  good news for the horse and owner;  a clean trailer and healthy horses.  This is what you will have when you apply Nok-Out; immediate, safe transportation for animals.  Your horses will thank you too.  Find Nok-Out online at http://www.nokout.com.