Horse truck
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The horse transporter is usually a truck approved as a special motor vehicle with a body that is specially intended for horse transport and often has a living compartment. Because it is registered as a special vehicle, it is exempt from the Sunday driving ban.
Types / equipment
Horse compartment
There are horse transporters for two to nine horses. There are different ways of setting up the horses. With larger vans, the horses are usually at an angle to the direction of travel (diagonally). The individual places are separated by foldable and movable partitions made of rustproof material and possibly by head grids. Variants in which three horses stand next to each other in or against the direction of travel are also common. There are combinations for four-horse trucks up to 7.5 tons: three horses stand in or backwards to the direction of travel, a fourth at right angles to the direction of travel in front or 4 horses diagonally.
The loading ramps (loading flaps) are either at the rear or on the side of the vehicle on the passenger side. The ramps are secured by side rails as they are steeper and wider than the ramp on horse trailers. The loading flaps on the horse transporter are locked with truck snap locks and can be locked. The floor in the horse compartment is made of non-slip rubber and sealed waterproof so that no horse urine gets between the floor and the body.
In the horse compartment, ventilation ensures that the moisture excreted by the horses can escape. Roof flaps, windows or valves are common for this. Larger vans are often equipped with electro-mechanical ventilation devices.
For use in extreme climatic conditions, trucks are also equipped with appropriate air conditioning systems.
Living compartment
Horse transporters are available with or without a separate living area. The sleeping or living compartments, which are similar in their equipment to mobile homes , limit the number of horses that can be transported, especially in the weight classes up to 3.5 and 7.5 tonnes permissible total weight.
The living spaces of modern large vans are often very individually and luxuriously furnished. Quite a few have a laterally extendable bay window (so-called pop-out), a roof that can be extended upwards (so-called pop-up or push-up), a fully equipped kitchen, a tiled bathroom (some with underfloor heating) and a living room with leather seating, flat-screen TV and stereo system including Dolby Surround system.
Additional equipment
Saddle and feed chambers as well as saddle cabinets with winches or lifting devices complete the equipment. As a rule, these are located in the stowage areas under the loading area. Most of the vans have tanks for drinking water to better feed the horses. Vans that are used by coach drivers have built a parking space for carriages instead of the living area.
Weight classes
Horse transporter, there are two to nine horses, each with very different structures and substantially in four weight: up to 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle weight (movable with a driving of class B or the old class 3) (, up to 7.5 tons license class C1 or the old class 3), 12 to 18 tons and up to a maximum of 26 tons (both drivable with the driving license class C or the old class 2).
See also
literature
- Loading horses and transporting them safely - tips from the ADAC safety trainer. DVD - Dogtale
- Martin Haller: Transporting horses safely . Leopold Stocker Verlag; Practice book
