TRAILERS Safety in Design

Story and Diagrams By Tom Scheve

All horse owners want their horses to be safe when be transported, however, sadly, there are horse trailer designs out there that are dangerous if not used correctly, and some that are just fundamentally dangerous no matter what. HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?

There are several possible reasons why a trailer that would be considered unsafe and possibly dangerous would make it to market: manufacturers and dealers experimenting with designs to possibly standout from competition without consideration for the safety of the horses, horse owners without the knowledge of design and how it can affect the horses safety (and their own), and the acceptance of designs that have been on the market for a awhile that are seemingly popular because they offer convenience over safety (i.e. more horses in a smaller trailer) Regarding convenience over safety the latter, one such trailer is the three-horse slant load bumper pull.

One of the big design concerns with the slant load threehorse bumper pull is that more consideration must be given to tongue weight, especially when more owners want the ability to tow the trailer with an SUV or smaller pickups. Too little tongue weight and the trailer is prone to sway; too much tongue weight will exceed the rating of the framemounted hitch and the tow vehicle’s capacity. There is inherent danger in the design. To prevent over-loading the tongue weight, the designer and builders of a three-horse bumper pull move the axles forward from the rear so that one horse is behind the axles, one horse is over the axles, and one is in front. See above photo.

Three horse bumper pull slant load

THE THREE-HORSE SLANT BUMPER PULL

Adding a third horse to a trailer increases the loaded weight anywhere from eight hundred to fifteen hundred pounds (and can be more). Add the empty weight of a standard three-horse bumper pull (about 3,900 lbs.) to the weight of three one thousand pound horses along with some tack, and the loaded weight will be 7,000 lbs (typical GVWR for a bumper pull). Also, consider has to be given to the fact that that the three thousand pounds of horse weight is “live” weight, which can move and shift at will.

BALANCED

NOTE: Light tongue weights increase the chance of sway. Heavier tongue weights reduce and even eliminate sway. However, if the tongue weight exceeds the maximum rating of a frame-mounted hitch and a tow vehicle’s capability, the vehicle and hitch are at risk, and safety is compromised.

For the trailer to function correctly, each horse should weigh approximately the same (good luck with that). Horses with different weights will affect the tongue weight depending on their weight and the stall it occupies. Unless the horses have significant weight differences, the degree to which the tongue weight is affected is minimal. The real problems arise when putting fewer than three horses in a trailer specifically designed for three. Where do you put them? To carry two horses in the trailer, placing one in the rear behind the axles and one over the axles will significantly decrease the tongue weight and create sway. Placing one horse in the middle stall (over the axles) and one in the front stall, forward of the axles, puts the entire weight of the front horse on tongue, which is likely to overload the hitches and capacities of most SUVs and many trucks. See diagram.

TOO LIGHT - SWAY

HEAVY TONGUE WEIGHT

Contiued...

So the best scenario for carrying two horses in a three-horse slant bumper pull is to load one in the rear stall and one in the front, preferably the heavier one in front.

However, the common practice of many three-horse bumper pull owners when only carrying two horses is to remove one of the dividers to give both horses more room. However, this creates more area for the horses to move around, creating sway and tongue weight issues for most tow vehicles. See above.

When carrying just one horse, never place the horse in the rear stall behind the axles. All the weight behind the axles is sure to cause sway and loss of control. The best placement for one horse is directly over the axles. However, depending on the weight and strength of the tow vehicle, the tongue weight still may not be sufficient to prevent swaying. If the tow vehicle is heavy-duty and the hitch rating is high enough, placing the one horse in the front stall will ensure good tracking and eliminate sway. See above.

In closing, keep in mind that slant load designs have other potential safety related problems: smaller stalls, no individual access to or exits for the horses, and horse balancing issues for the horses from standing at an angle. Combine these potential issues with an improperly loaded trailer, and you’re asking for trouble out on the road.

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