Horse care tips

Watch carefully for signs of colic after a journey, especially if water was withheld — transport increases the risk.

After a long journey, allow your horse at least 24–48 hours to recover before any strenuous exercise.

Before every journey, check the vehicle's lights, tyres, floor and horse area — even if you've hired the box or are using a transporter.

Make sure your breakdown cover includes recovery for horses, not just the vehicle.

Add up horse, tack, passengers, fuel, water and forage — and the trailer if towing. Many people unknowingly exceed their vehicle's weight limit, which is unsafe and illegal.

Not sure what your loaded horsebox or trailer weighs? Take it to a weighbridge — it's the reliable way to check you're within limits.

Give horses room to balance when travelling: at least 20 cm of space on each side and 75 cm above the withers. Moving partitions may help.

Plan your route, the time of day and good places to stop before you load up.

Have an emergency transport plan: who can take your horse to an equine hospital at short notice, day or night, and are their details in your phone?

Disinfect your trailer or lorry after each use. If you hire one or use a transporter, check it has been cleaned and disinfected before loading.

Practise loading when you're not going anywhere, with time to feed and let your horse relax in the vehicle. Positive practice pays off on travel days.

On journeys, bring feed — and if possible water — from home, drive smoothly, and if you can, let your horse travel with a companion.

Horseboxes and trailers can get very hot inside even when it's below 30°C outside. In hot weather, travel only if you must — early or late in the day, with every vent open.

Horses can lose around 2–3 kg of water an hour when travelling in hot weather. Carry plenty of water and offer it regularly.

Park the lorry or trailer in shade before loading on a hot day, and leave rugs off for the journey.

At shows and clinics, don't let your horse touch noses with unfamiliar horses, and take your own water and buckets. That's how many respiratory infections spread.