Freeze marking!!.

[3CVA]

Really stupid question but who does it and does anyone know roughly how much a horse it is?. I have 3 horses all microchipped but would like to take extra preventions from theives !!

 

[Izzwizz]

Freezemark do it and it cost us £40 per horse when we had it done on our yard as a group booking.

 

[Birker2020]

Really stupid question but who does it and does anyone know roughly how much a horse it is?. I have 3 horses all microchipped but would like to take extra preventions from theives !!

These are the two main companies who specialise in freezemarking. I have to say I think its a brilliant idea, and have had each of my six horses freezemarked within a fortnight of owning them. A microchip is not a visible deterrent and horses are much less likely to be stolen if they have a freezemark.

http://www.farmkey.co.uk/farmkey/
http://www.freezemark.biz/

I would recommend that you book an appointment asap as horse theft is apparently on the increase. Make sure you put a few pound aside for some signs to buy off them, so that you can put them up around the perimeter of the yard warning theives that the horses are freezemarked.

Finally I would strongly recommend that you get every turnout rug painted with your horses freezemark number as there was a case a few years back where a freezemarked horse was stolen out of a field as it had a rug on hiding its mark. When it got to its destination the theives took its rug off realised it was marked and tried to gouge the mark out with a knife. Not sure if this is true or just an urban myth, but it would make sense to mark your rugs in any case as this in itself will raise awareness that you have done all you can to protect your horse.

To be honest i really don't understand people's motivation for not having it done. I did a poll on here about why people wouldn't have their horses freezemarked and the majority of people who wouldn't said they wouldn't because they thought it would spoil the look of their horse.

My answer to that would be I wonder how pretty their horse would look if it was stolen and sent for slaughterr and was sitting on a meat hook in an abbatoir?

 

[flaxen]

I will never have another horse freezemarked ever!

My jumping pony who was a sensitive skinned chestnut arab with a flaxen mane and tail was done by farmkey before we got her. They ballsed it up big time, they burnt her back under her saddle panel so badly that she had no hair regrowth at all, you couldnt even read what it was supposed to be and she had to wear rugs all year round as if the sun got on it for even 10 mins its burnt and blistered so badly you couldnt even touch her back, and all this by soo called experts.

I am lucky that I keep my horses at home and to get them out you have to go past our guard/ farm dogs and my horses are extremily funny about being handled by other people, they are all microchipped and stand out in a crowd.

 

[3CVA]

Hmmm now im 50/50, my coloured is very sensitive skined, unless shes covered up she burns! I also have an Exmoor and an Arab x Welsh who is also quite whimpyy! Anyone else got any bad points ?

 

[katie_southwest]

I had my mare done a couple of months ago, and Im glad I did.
I had it done on a black bit (shes piebald) so the hair grows back white.
I could of had a bald mark on her white shoulder but she had very pink skin and I was advised by the farmkey lady that they dont like to do bald marks unless really necessary.
Gives me peace of mind that if she was ever stolen (god forbid) it would give me that extra bit of help to find/identify her.
Im all for it

 

[3CVA]

My Arab x Welsh is a grey well hes completley white now even though hes not ridden due to a leg injury atm im worried how he'd be with it. Hes a whimp to put it nicely lol. Anyone have a experiences with a grey who doesn't have any dark patches ?


Thank you for all replies .

 

[Meowy Catkin]

Anyone have a experiences with a grey who doesn't have any dark patches ?
.

Greys can be bald marked on the shoulder. I have known many greys that have had this done and none have had any problems with this. They often need the patch clipping in the winter so that the mark is easily readable.

Hmmm now im 50/50, my coloured is very sensitive skined, unless shes covered up she burns! I also have an Exmoor and an Arab x Welsh who is also quite whimpyy! Anyone else got any bad points ?

Tell them that. My anglo-arab mare is very fine-skinned. I told the Farmkey lady this and we decided that it would be best to mark her on her shoulder and she also held the markers on my horse's skin for the shortest time that they use. She's not had any trouble with her mark.

I will never have another horse freezemarked ever!

My jumping pony who was a sensitive skinned chestnut arab with a flaxen mane and tail was done by farmkey before we got her. They ballsed it up big time, they burnt her back under her saddle panel so badly that she had no hair regrowth at all, you couldnt even read what it was supposed to be and she had to wear rugs all year round as if the sun got on it for even 10 mins its burnt and blistered so badly you couldnt even touch her back, and all this by soo called experts.
.

It really sounds like this horse should never have been marked on her saddle patch. If she'd also had the length of time that the markers were held on her shortened (to take into account her fine skin) then there shouldn't have been a problem.