Cannot believe what I just saw on BBC1

I'm glad they got the idiot with the firework. If they'd like any suggestions as to what they could do with a firework to show him the error of his ways I can think of several.
 
Have you felt how heavy those batons are?

Yep! PR24 - 24" long black polycarbonate. Not terribly heavy, or I couldn't have walked aroung for 8plus hours a day carrying one without doing myself a damage! Damn awkward at times, though. The Asp is a shorter, thinner, retractable baton. Certainly in our force the only officers to carry an Asp were Plain Clothes officers, as they needed to be a bit more discrete. The PR24 was carried by uniformed officers as it was immediately available without the faff of trying to get an Asp extended, which was an art form! I certainly preferred the PR24, notwithstanding the age-old problem of getting batteries to fit ;)
 
Yep! PR24 - 24" long black polycarbonate. Not terribly heavy, or I couldn't have walked aroung for 8plus hours a day carrying one without doing myself a damage! Damn awkward at times, though. The Asp is a shorter, thinner, retractable baton. Certainly in our force the only officers to carry an Asp were Plain Clothes officers, as they needed to be a bit more discrete. The PR24 was carried by uniformed officers as it was immediately available without the faff of trying to get an Asp extended, which was an art form! I certainly preferred the PR24, notwithstanding the age-old problem of getting batteries to fit ;)

And I remember the days when WPCs had silly 9" wooden truncheons which fitted in their handbags. Yes I've heard all the jokes and more
 
It was a VERY long time ago! Think, Miners' Strike and Life on Mars though, rather than Dixon. Oh, and Molesworth, Newbury Common and associated "female" protestors! Yuk! 20 years later, many things had changed (inc. smart hard hats!) and, unfortunately, many hadn't!
 
And Breathe..what a lot of daft fuss over a horse getting/not getting a wallop for being disobedient.These are tools of the trade..there is`nt time for arguement,they do their job.No doubt said horse will be having an awful lot of firework exposure in a while to brush up its attitude.
 
Thank you for posting this!
You can complain at https://www.avonandsomerset.police.uk/contact/general_enquiries/complaint_form.aspx

I have, that poor horse is doing its job as best it can. To beat i8t with a metal truncheon is unjust. I feel we should call for this officer to be retrained, a vet to asses this horse and the horse be retrained/rehabilitated.

Give me strength
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Thanks to Spudlet et al (who live in the REAL world) for providing some light humour throughout this ridiculousness.
 
QR

Not read all of thread as it is far too long, only read OP and this has probably been said, but, I think the rider rode excellently. The baton was brandished at the crowd and not brought down hard. Those horses are warriors, they need their rider to show conviction. It's the same as me giving my horse a smack when going into something big out hunting. It's me conveying my conviction, when I am in truth a bit scared and cannot rely on my body to do it. Think of the consequences of the horse taking control and bolting through that crowd. The **** who merits your wrath is the one who set a firework off amongst them. I am a student myself but utterly disassociate myself from this bunch of little lord fauntleroys who are using this as an excuse to behave badly, as this is as exciting as their lives will clearly ever get.
 
Not sure if anyone else is watching BBC news but its actually on the news tonight as so many complaints made about it.

I'm not angry at the police officer I think he did the best in a sticky situation but I am fuming at the idiot who threw a firework at a horse :( Why would someone do that?!?
 
Not sure if anyone else is watching BBC news but its actually on the news tonight as so many complaints made about it.

I'm not angry at the police officer I think he did the best in a sticky situation but I am fuming at the idiot who threw a firework at a horse :( Why would someone do that?!?

Think i'll watch that what time? It'll be interesting what sort of comments have been made
 
I dont know what all the fuss is. Police horses are trained for situations like this. If the horse isnt up to the job it gets passed on.
I for one dont class that as a beating, and as for the people that have complained to the police force about this police officer, you obviously have nothing better to do then trying to get a police officer put under investigation.
Not all of us live in some sugar coated world where everything is done gently and slowly, somethings do need a bit of a firm hand. I am not saying that I beat my horse, I dont even ride carrying a whip with her as she is terrified but if she is putting herself in a potentially dangerous situation then yes I would think about think about giving her a couple of whacks!!!!!!!!!!
 
Yes this is now on the news as "animal cruelty"
The PC did exactly the right thing IMO, an individual very experienced and trained in this area.
There are more improtant things in life to worry about than reporting a PC for doing what he felt was best in the situation he was in!
I would of liked to see how some you (bunny brushers) would of acted in that situation. I'm sure a smooth and pat would of got you quite far down that road, at speed while taking out a few ground officers at the same time.
Honestly get a grip.
Rolls eyes....
 
from BBC website today:

Sgt Kerry Williams, from the force's mounted section, said the horses were startled when the firework was thrown.

She said: "A number of comments have been received from members of the public claiming that a mounted officer had 'beaten' their horse. This was not the case.

"The mounted officers follow strict training protocol in calming and controlling their horses in potentially volatile situations.

"One officer used a baton to gain control of his horse which had been spooked by fireworks or firecrackers, and actually struck the horse on a padded covering on their hind quarters."

She added: "We would never advocate the use of baton by an officer to strike a horse.

"However, in this set of circumstances, in a contained environment, the officer concerned had to make a snap decision to get the horse under control, for the sake of the public safety and that of the nearby foot officers.
 
I don't care if this has already been posted: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-11839891

(My opinion about using a carrot stick - it's a schooling whip with a bit of rope on the end. If you were to take that near my first pony, who was quite difficult with a lot of things, he would go for you! And after seeing the video of Parelli at Festival of the Horse this year - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gf7w_1ifus -, I have decided that there is nothing natural or horsemanship about the way that they handled that horse. Monty Roberts FTW!)
 
The horse involved is called Brunell.....no doubt named after Isamdard Kingdom..

he has been checked out by a vet....and infact was out on Patrol today..none the worse for his "beating"...

people this day and age, have far too much time on their hands to actually complain about a trivial matter..why not campaign for tougher action against the morons who violently demontrated, and threw an offensive weapon yesterday...no wonder this country is on its knees...:mad:
 
The horse involved is called Brunell.....no doubt named after Isamdard Kingdom..

he has been checked out by a vet....and infact was out on Patrol today..none the worse for his "beating"...

people this day and age, have far too much time on their hands to actually complain about a trivial matter..why not campaign for tougher action against the morons who violently demontrated, and threw an offensive weapon yesterday...no wonder this country is on its knees...:mad:

Couldn't agree more, hope the PO involved doesn't get too much grief from the people who think the horse was "beaten".
 
people this day and age, have far too much time on their hands to actually complain about a trivial matter..why not campaign for tougher action against the morons who violently demontrated, and threw an offensive weapon yesterday...no wonder this country is on its knees...:mad:

Agreed. I actually cannot believe that some people ACTUALLY made a formal complaint about this!!!!!!

I watched it on the tv, I did not think the horse was beaten, if the horse WAS actually hit...then it was a few blows on a padded blanket ffs. I would like to have seen what a lot of people who have complained do in that situation. I think the rider handled it very well considering a firework was going off at the poor horses feet!

I just can't get my head around the fact that people are outraged at a horse supposedly being beaten...which just isn't true....rather than the fact that some idiot threw a firework at a horse!!! Also even if the horse was hit a few times with a batton on a padded blanket, I am sure the rider would have rather have done that than have the horse bulldoze over a few protesters and police officers that were standing there. The rider made a quick decision for the safety of everyone around.

I actually feel so sorry and embarrassed for them having to issue an explanation to the ridiculous complaints made.

I have seen worse at the local pony club!

Nuff said.
 
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Agreed. I actually cannot believe that some people ACTUALLY made a formal complaint about this!!!!!!

I watched it on the tv, I did not think the horse was hit, if the horse WAS actually hit...then it was a soft blow on a padded blanket ffs. I would like to have seen what a lot of people who have complained do in that situation. I think the rider handled it very well considering a firework was going off at the poor horses feet!

I just can't get my head around the fact that people are outraged at a horse supposedly being beaten...which just isn't true....rather than the fact that some idiot threw a firework at a horse!!!

I actually feel so sorry and embarrassed for them having to issue an explanation to the ridiculous complaints made.

I have seen worse at the local pony club!

Nuff said.

^ I second that
 
i bet the shoe would have been on the other foot if the headlines read...

POLICE HORSE GOES ON RAMPAGE THROUGH CROWD AFTER SPOOKING AT FIREWORK

i can see the do-gooders comments now....tossers :mad:
 
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