Any Police Officers on here?

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SillySausage

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2018 has been the culmination of two very testing years... A major relationship break down, being betrayed by some (what I thought were) close friends, losing my 15 year old dog, losing my rental home, having a house purchase fall through and being made redundant.... so I'm grabbing life by the proverbials and making major life changes!

I nearly joined the Police from school, and then from Uni, but always chickened out. With my situation I've decided now is the time at approaching 30 to apply... My only horse is currently retired and living with a friend.

Anyway, the point of my long rambling thread is to see if anyone else on here is in the Police? If so, do you have horses? Can you fit them in to your routine? I'm just hoping this isn't me losing sight of horses forever!!

I also have a dog who many people have told me I will have to rehome... I have absolutely no plans to do so! I have friends who are willing to have him and thought I would look in to 'doggy daycare' - any experiences on this front for single people also gratefully received.... :)
 
I am not, and never have been, a serving police officer, but I did work for the Constabulary in a civilian capacity for 22 years, some of which was in the Recruiting Department.

I would say that IF you join the police, or any of the "blue light" emergency services, then you need to know WHY you are wanting to make that choice (you will certainly need to explain to the interviewing panel as to what your reasons for choosing this career are...... and a lot more besides!!).

It might be good also, for you to do a "life skills inventory" i.e. what life experiences & skills can you offer? Are you a good "peacemaker"?? Are you the sort of person people search out to seek advice from? How do you cope in a crisis/when the pressure's on?? If asked to describe something that you project-managed and which went well, what was it? And if you had to do the same task again, would you do it differently, and if so, why? Also the die-hard question of what do you perceive as your weaknesses?

Have you got experience of a mediator/advisory role (gained through your employment/life to date, which you can demonstrate? Have you got experience of dealing with people who are undergoing a crisis? etc etc.

All these questions are what you will be required to demonstrate during your selection process! As well as being able to pass the physical fitness test (start preparing for this NOW!!).

People used to ring up the Recruiting Dept and ask what was the "best career choice" as a good prep for going into the police (especially proud parents ringing up on behalf of their school-leaving youngsters!). The advice, every time, was to go and work in a bar/pub/nightclub. A lot of parents in particular thought that something like for e.g. a social work qualification, or social studies degree would be the ideal choice. Nope!! Plain simple bar-work: such as learning how to deal with customers who've had too much to drink and/or refusing entry as necessary! and being tactful and polite with it.

Re. animals: horses/dogs etc. My feeling is that you will need to be totally able to commit 101% to your police career, and even though you may have friends or people you know to dog-sit for you, bear in mind that you will be working shifts and/or have to stay on duty for longer periods of time if something crops up, so you will certainly need to have good pals to look after your dog who won't baulk at the unexpected! Ditto horse. You may be better advised to consider professional dog-care from the word go, as you may well find that friends/associates just might not be able to cope with the unpredictability of your shift-patterns. Sorry, not trying to put a downer on you, but just being realistic.
 
I agree with Mijodhs on many points.

When I joined the Police I actually sold my horse, it was all consuming. My dog stayed with mum, as I could not have managed one, when I moved out.

After 5 years horseless I was married to Mr Red, and we got and managed horses, dogs etc as we deliberately had opposite shifts. So, no days off together, no shifts the same. We could sometimes not see each other for 3 days - but the animals were sorted. I mean, we may have been in the same house at some stage, but if I got in at 1am from a 2- midnight shift, and he was getting up for 4am to start at 6am, then by the time he was home i had gone to work...well, we did not really speak!

We still had to have non-police cover for animals, that I could call at the drop of a hat, as if there were a major 'thing' happen then we would both have to go. For instance, disorder at the local jail, we were both 'engaged' on our phones as we tried to call each other to tell each other that we would not be coming home!

You can't guarantee that you will ever get off on time. I would sometimes maybe get 1 day off in a month. No, that was not supposed to happen, yes it did happen. Shifts could change by 8 hours for the next day (e.g. something comes in for the evening, like a demo, and you were expecting to be on 7am-3pm, now nope, you are on evenings!). I have done several 16 hour shifts.

I have entered events expecting to finish at 6pm on the day before, and ended up getting up and going after just 2 hours sleep, because of a last minute shift change. One time a colleague did the same, we were a catalogue of disasters from forgetting stuff through being tired (course and jacket!). I would pack the lorry on a Thursday night for a Sunday event, horse had a day off Friday and a quick long rein / lunge round when I got home on Saturday and we were good to go.

In 2012 we have leave banned for most of the year. Firstly for the Olympics, then for some IT rollout where training had to be organised. No. Leave. At. All. You could have a special application if there were a wedding or something, but certainly competing was not going to be one of the exceptions.

Having said that, I did manage dogs and horses at home, did get all of the horses out at BE and BD, and BS too - even if it was on a ticket. I also taught privately, running an equine confidence coaching business. It was hard but rewarding, just frustrating when the job takes over your life. Bonus was that a couple of times they ended up owing me several months of leave, that I could take in a big block.

Mine were at home though, I guess it would be easier on livery - just call and have it done!

TBH, it is a vocation, not a job. I am not sorry that I did it, but then I was lucky to be on the old pension scheme, so could retire at a reasonable age. The new pension scheme does not make it so easy, or it will often be impossible, to do the job until retirement.

The money is OK. The job is stressful. You will get injured.

PS. I was told the same a Mijodhs said about preparation. I did loads of people interaction jobs. I was a shop assistant, bank clerk, riding instructor, driver for the motor auction, vets assistant.... I did shift work and lone working, team working and manual working. That helped loads when it came to actually doing the job. The people who came straight from school or uni tended to be a bit of a bus crash, as they were not experienced in dealing with a wide range of people/experiences. They also tended to think that a degree would mean something, which it did not, they still had to mop the puke and make tea! There was some talk of making a degree compulsory, but I don't think all services have taken this up.
 
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Not in the police myself but a lady from previous yard was and she managed the majority of days by herself all be it up at ridiculous o'clock in the morning and the same at night. The days she couldn't get up a friend did her horse "full livery" for her. She has two aswell- so double time!

I think it would depend on your circumstances and set up. I now have my boys at home- two good doers- and I could easily manage them round any job as my husband will care to basic needs. However without him or my dad at my previous yard I would have really struggled with my shifts etc as they were on 24/7 in the winter.
Personally if my circumstances will different and I did not have the luxury of having my boys at home or having a supportive network I would really consider full livery with a single horse- of course if I could afford it.

We spend too much time stressing in our lives about things! The hobby we have has to be enjoyed and not constantly be put under pressure by shifts and time constraints.

Good luck OP with whatever you choose :)
 
I think regardless of your career choice you will always struggle with free time when it comes to having a horse and a dog. A very good friend of mine is in the Met (my husband is also a Sargent in the Met but is none horsey) and her work/ life balance would mean she wouldnt have a dog. A horse on the right yard on the right livery package, yes but a dog when you have to do earlies, lates and nights? not a chance!

We didnt get a dog for many years because of our working hours. So from me being surrounded by these coppers, horse yes, dog no!
 
Re the doggy question; I'm not in the police but I do work "weird" hours and am often away from home overnight once a week. I have dog, my partner looks after her at weekends but we book daycare / overnights for her in the week. It is expensive and requires a lot of organisation & planning in advance but do-able. Not sure whether it would work if my shifts changed at short notice though. Try the "DogBuddy" app to find local sitters & make sure you check them out thoroughly and find someone you trust so you aren't worried about him/her whilst you are at work.
 
One of my liveries starts her training at the end of this month, she has been working for the police in a civilian role on shifts for the past 2 years and has had a horse all the time.
I am very flexible with my livery so she has full while on days but goes onto part or DIY for lates/ nights so she is still able to care for her and ride as much as possible but with the back up when required, she did move to a different yard nearer work but came back because the mare was not getting turned out last winter, you do need a yard you can trust, that is flexible, not many will do what I do but I have known her for a long while and she is no trouble to fit in with.
During training it is 9-5 Mon-Fri so riding will be limited to weekends, possibly Fri pm as it is over an hour away, after that I expect her to fit in what she can much as before, horse will live out as much as possible so she wont care but next winter will probably be the time it starts to become more tricky depending on where she is based.

I think the dog will require more thought than a horse and may prove just as expensive if it ends up in day care.
 
I'm not in the police but my other half is. Maybe he's lucky or maybe it depends on the department or force you're in ( I think Red was in the Met, my OH is a fairly small force but one that has many big events due to several high profile venues being in the area) but I don't really recognise Red's description - or I do but her description seems a bit more extreme than my OH's experience. My OH works a pattern of 2 x early shifts (7am-5pm) 2 x lates (3pm-11pm or 4pm -3am if it's a Fri/Sat) and 2 x nights (10pm-7am) then has 4 days off. He's on a specialist team that do warrant raids amongst other things so his shifts do occasionally change to start very early but rarely at short notice, he normally knows at least a week in advance. He does end up staying on now and again. Just before Christmas he went to work at 3pm and came home at 6 am the following morning but this is a very extreme example. I'd say an hour or two late maybe once per set of shifts is the norm. He's had days or even weeks when leave has been banned but never a whole year. He's also been part of some amazing events across the UK which he's loved. He's on a 4 week course that's Monday to Friday at the moment and he hates the hours - he hates travelling in rush hour and only getting 2 days off at a time so there are benefits to the shift work!

You would probably need to have your horse on full livery or at the very least an understanding assisted DIY yard (BP's arrangement sounds ideal) that can pick up anything that needs doing at short notice. You would miss a lot of competitions etc that happen at weekends but you would also be able to do things on weekdays (especially if you do anything affiliated - BE and BD have lots of midweek events) so it's swings and roundabouts.
 
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Sorry probably didn't make my horse situation entirely clear, she is retired and with a friend who does everything for her! It's not will I be able to continue with that horse, but is this the end for me with horses for the foreseeable future!
 
Red-1 said:
The money is OK. The job is stressful. You will get injured.

PS. I was told the same a Mijodhs said about preparation. I did loads of people interaction jobs. I was a shop assistant, bank clerk, riding instructor, driver for the motor auction, vets assistant.... I did shift work and lone working, team working and manual working. That helped loads when it came to actually doing the job. The people who came straight from school or uni tended to be a bit of a bus crash, as they were not experienced in dealing with a wide range of people/experiences. They also tended to think that a degree would mean something, which it did not, they still had to mop the puke and make tea! There was some talk of making a degree compulsory, but I don't think all services have taken this up.
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Gosh you've put a completely different perspective on that to everyone else I have spoken to (I know several people in the neighbouring force)... I'm struggling to see the positive points from your post :oops:
 
annagain said:
I'm not in the police but my other half is. Maybe he's lucky or maybe it depends on the department or force you're in ( I think Red was in the Met, my OH is a fairly small force but one that has many big events due to several high profile venues being in the area) but I don't really recognise Red's description - or I do but her description seems a bit more extreme than my OH's experience. My OH works a pattern of 2 x early shifts (7am-5pm) 2 x lates (3pm-11pm or 4pm -3am if it's a Fri/Sat) and 2 x nights (10pm-7am) then has 4 days off. He's on a specialist team that do warrant raids amongst other things so his shifts do occasionally change to start very early but rarely at short notice, he normally knows at least a week in advance. He does end up staying on now and again. Just before Christmas he went to work at 3pm and came home at 6 am the following morning but this is a very extreme example. I'd say an hour or two late maybe once per set of shifts is the norm. He's had days or even weeks when leave has been banned but never a whole year. He's also been part of some amazing events across the UK which he's loved. He's on a 4 week course that's Monday to Friday at the moment and he hates the hours - he hates travelling in rush hour and only getting 2 days off at a time so there are benefits to the shift work!

You would probably need to have your horse on full livery or at the very least an understanding assisted DIY yard (BP's arrangement sounds ideal) that can pick up anything that needs doing at short notice. You would miss a lot of competitions etc that happen at weekends but you would also be able to do things on weekdays (especially if you do anything affiliated - BE and BD have lots of midweek events) so it's swings and roundabouts.
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Thank you. This is a very small Force I have applied to. I am happy to do shift work, and I honestly have a long list of people who would bite my arm off to look after my dog, so I am positive I will make it work with him.

My horse is retired and living away so no problem with her - just wondering if I will ever have chance of another in the future!! :D
 
I have 2 on DIY and I don't have kids and still struggle to fit everything in. One is in full work the other does light hacking. I find I cope better with shift work I cannot do 9-5. The only issue I have is being on a livery yard when the 'bring in- winter' regime is imposed. If I can't get help I end up turning out bring in at all sorts of times and with this job your end time can be anything, no guarantees you will go home on time. It is hard at times but I get on alright because I just absolutely love riding and owning horses. I have a dog too but my partner helps me out with him thankfully. I have more time to ride in the week but I end up rinsing all my annual leave booking weekend days off for comps and drag hunting.
 
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I’m a serving police officer, working on traffic. I have 3 ponies at home that I do county/national showing with.

I find shift work (2 days, 2 lates, 2 nights, 4 off) really good for managing them. The only thing it can have an influence on is my leave for big shows at weekends but with 28 days leave a year plus a 6 on 4 off pattern I don’t find it a huge drain.

I actually resigned from the police with 8 years service and went into a normal Monday-Friday job and a year later rejoined the police again as it’s just didn’t work with the horses. Our performance was clearly deteriorating.

Don’t get me wrong, if I’m late off and have to get up a few hours sleep then I sometimes think I’m mad, but it’s worth it for the rest of the time when I get so much time to ride and enjoy them.

There is also 2 emergency services equestrian champs now - Blue Lights Horse Show and Forces Equine which are fantastic to mix the horses with work and my force are really supportive of this. There is also the services jumping at Royal Windsor.

It’s a lifestyle, but I love it most of time. I’ve been so lucky to having attended major events, escorted the tour of Britain and generally met some wonderful, inspirational people every day.
 
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