At first blush, a discussion of trailer safety and emergencies seems quite uncomplicated and straightforward. However, it really isn’t all that simple because there are so many facets involved in traveling down the highways and byways safely while pulling a trailer with a horse or horses aboard.

For example, while good equipment in proper working order is imperative, there is also the matter of how that equipment is used. You can have the most modern, best maintained equipment in the world, but if you drive in an unsafe manner, it is all for naught.

Trailer safety involves so much more than just the unit being towed. It involves you as the driver, along with passengers in your vehicle, the horse being hauled, and other motorists on the highway.

The path to proper trailer safety begins when you decide that a trailer is needed and you set forth to purchase one. The decisions made from this point on will have a direct bearing on safety. Usually, for the first-time horse owner, a trailer purchase comes in the wake of buying a horse for yourself or a family member. Buying the horse is usually the cheapest part