Loading and transport stress is a significant welfare challenge for competition horses. Anxiety during loading causes accidents, injury, and repeated traumatic experiences that worsen the problem.
Loading anxiety causes acute stress at each transport event and cumulative welfare harm as horses develop increasing fear responses. Horses forced into trailers using whips, ropes, or other coercive methods experience significant fear and can sustain injuries. A welfare-centered approach treats the trailer as an enrichment opportunity rather than a threat - building positive associations through food, allowing horses to investigate at their own pace, and never exceeding the horse's threshold of comfort. This requires more time initially but results in horses that load willingly and travel with lower stress.