To prepare Ferriana, I let her work a little in the round pen to get her jollies out so she would be a little tired and also ready to think about the task at hand. To prepare the trailer, I opened up all the windows and doors, as well as all the dividers to make the trailer look as big, bright, and inviting as possible.
One of the things I like about this trailer is that I can walk a horse in the back, and out the front. This is really nice for horses who are nervous about getting in, because they can see they have two ways out: front and back. I led Ferriana up to the back of the trailer, and she immediately knew what I wanted, and she started pawing at the ground. This was a good sign, because horses paw when they want to go forward but don't think they can (think pawing at gates, while tied up, etc). This meant she wanted to go forwards into the trailer, she just wasn't sure she could.
With a little encouragement from me, Ferriana put her front feet into the trailer. We paused for snacks and I gave her several horse cookies as a reward for putting her front feet in. I kept the lead rope loose while she backed out. Then she put her front feet in again. Cookies, then backed out again. I affectionately call this stage The Hokey Pony, as she puts her left foot in, she takes her left foot out, she puts her left foot in, and she shakes it all about.
I like to let the horses think about this part for a few reasons. I don't want her hurrying in scared, and knowing she can back out helps to alleviate that concern. I also want the horse to realize she can back and step down out of the trailer while unloading, and she is more likely to do this calmly if she realizes it's safe while it's her idea as part of the loading process.
Once she was calmly putting her front feet in reliably, I stopped giving her cookies for it. This meant she had to figure out what was required of her to transform me into a vending machine again. It wasn't long at all before Ferriana was putting her hind feet in as well, and once that happened I marched her forwards and straight out the front, praising her all the while.
The front stall has a ramp leading out of it, and the first time through Ferriana jumped down. Over the course of the next six or seven trips in the back and out the front she realized it wasn't a big deal, and she would walk calmly down the ramp. She also would pause in the middle of the trailer when I asked. When she paused she got to eat a little mouthful of grain from the rubber pan in the trailer, so that's always a nice perk.
Once Ferriana was walking in the back, pausing as long as I asked her to, and calmly walking out the front, I changed it again. I led her in the back, paused, and asked her to back out. This really gave her a brain cramp, since she felt she had just mastered the "in the back, out the front" routine and now I was changing the rules on her. I had to close the first divider so it didn't look to her like the front was an exit anymore, and then she backed out nicely.
We went in the back and out the back a few times, then once more in the back and out the front. At this point she was looking like her brain was full so I gave her a few cookies, and put her away to think about the whole experience. Knowing this horse, she'll think on it all night, and tomorrow when we try it she'll be loading like an old pro.
The tricky thing with Ferriana is to find the sweet spot for her mentally. She needs to be pushed to do the right thing, without pushing her so hard that she fights. That's a very fine line with this mare. Introducing a new thing can be stressful for her, but she'll be interested as long as it's not presented in a combative way. Push her too hard and she'll retaliate.
On the other hand, if I don't keep it interesting enough for her, she'll get bored and misbehave because she thinks what I'm doing is stupid. It's a very specific skill to be able to read her behavior and determine why she's acting as she is: bored or over-stimulated? Depending on the cause of the misbehavior it needs be addressed in very different ways. Imagine a scared horse being punished for being scared, or a bored horse misbehaving who is then patted and told she is a good girl. You see the dilemma.
This all fits with her breeding - she is hot and intelligent from her Hanoverian side, and strong and stubborn from her Dutch Warmblood side. If the hot, smarts, and strength can be harnessed for good instead of evil this type of horse makes an incredible upper level competitor. If not handled correctly, this type of horse can be extremely dangerous. So far she and I are getting along well, so I have some high hopes for her future as an athlete!
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