Get the Edge in an Emergency:
Despite your best planning and procedures, things can go wrong when trailering horses. They are large, strong animals with the uncanny ability to go from passive to panic in a heartbeat. Many situations are aggravated (sometimes to the point of sever injury) because the horse has become tangled up in a lead-line, rope, hay net, or gotten its halter caught. These situations can develop and escalate quickly, too often with bad results. Have you ever seen a horse panic when its leg or head gets caught in a lead-line? Sound familiar? Frightening isn't it?! One emergency item you (and your trailer) should never be without is a good pocket knife. We're not talking about a cute little Swiss Army Knife™ or a wimpy multi-blade "jack knife"... I mean a strong, locking blade folding knife with a blade at least 3-˝ ~ 4" long. The current generation of folding pocket knives is the best there has ever been. Recent advances in metallurgy and production techniques are yielding knives that are strong, safe, and hold an edge like a diamond... yet are priced very reasonably. For working around heavy ropes and/or strapping (e.g., lead-lines, halters, head-stalls, etc.), I recommend a knife with a partially serrated blade. These knives have approximately 40~50% of their cutting-edge serrated (usually the portion nearest the handle) and the front is the traditional "smooth" edge. The new generation of locking mechanisms (e.g., the Walker Liner Lock®) is much stronger than the old lock-back designs... reducing the risk of the blade collapsing on your hand. Most of the newer knives have pocket-clips which allow the knife to be carried in your pocket and remain instantly accessible. Every rider in our family carries such a knife, plus we strongly recommend attaching one to the inside of the trailer near the head area. Find a place (maybe on the front wall) where the horses can't reach, and duck-tape, Velcro, or otherwise secure a knife in place for an emergency. It is cheap insurance against a major disaster! Horse-Cents, LLC carries a full line of quality knives, such as Gerber and CRKT.
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