MANE PLAITED - CHIRK WREXHAM

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MAYBE NOTHING, BUT MY HORSES MANE WAS PLAITED TODAY. SHE IS IN A FIELD IN CHIRK, WREXHAM. THE POLICE HAVE BEEN INFORMED AND ARE KEEPING WATCH. THEY HAVE ASKED ME TO NOTIFY OTHER HORSE OWNERS IN THE AREA.
 

HeatherAnn

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What?! A plait?! How could this happen with all of the horrible weather we've been having? Must obviously be those pesky gypsies again...
 

flirtygerty

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Go to bed toots, it will all be just a bad dream
I spent ages getting my two's plaits out today, the mare had them in her mane, tail and feathers.
We live in the wilds of woolies, far to far out to be marked for theft, I love our two but, to be honest, thieves would pass more than one better horse than mine, and mine aren't that easy to catch unless you know how/
Here's a suggestion, when you groom yours every day, spray mane/tail with some form of oil=no plaits

Nite Nite
 

flirtygerty

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My sincere apologies, I have just realised you are new to this site.
Excuse the sarcasm, plaiting posts appear frequently, they are always due to wind, lack of grooming. Thieves don;t give warnings, they turn up with torches and take.
Welcome, we are a nice bunch really
 

hairycob

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Don't worry, honestly. One of mine has these daily - he has even managed it while I have been riding him! As he is the easiest horse in the world to catch & load, & YO is deaf as a post, if it really was thieves doing it he would have been gone months ago.
 

Marydoll

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Try not to worry op, theres lots of these type of things reported on here, ive not seen a follow up yet where a horse has actually been taken.
If it was a definite plait, youve done the right think letting police know, hope it all settles down
 

Tinypony

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Did the police really tell you to make other owners aware? Last time I contacted the police about this they confirmed that there are no recorded thefts of horses following their manes being plaited (or wind tangled). I'm not doubting you, but that would seem to be an over-reaction on the part of the police, and really a bit scaremongering.
 

be positive

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Did the police really tell you to make other owners aware? Last time I contacted the police about this they confirmed that there are no recorded thefts of horses following their manes being plaited (or wind tangled). I'm not doubting you, but that would seem to be an over-reaction on the part of the police, and really a bit scaremongering.

Neighbours of mine had one of their horses manes "plaited", not the coloured cob though which if someone was planning to steal would be the one expected, the police did take it seriously, they were told to let everybody know, more seriously than I did when they went round warning everyone that there were horse thieves in the area.
 

MurphysMinder

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Did the police really tell you to make other owners aware? Last time I contacted the police about this they confirmed that there are no recorded thefts of horses following their manes being plaited (or wind tangled). I'm not doubting you, but that would seem to be an over-reaction on the part of the police, and really a bit scaremongering.

I receive emails from a local police crime awareness thing. On the last one there was a note that there had been several reports of horses with manes plaited, and owners were advised to be vigilant. It had been very windy at the time so I'm afraid I didn't take a lot of notice and was actually quite surprised the police were taking it seriously.

Ets I am not a million miles away from the OP, but I took the police warning as just a matter of them covering their backs.
 
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The plait was real, not caused by wind. My horses don't have wild manes or any feather. The police did take it seriously. Trust me, I know the difference between a knot and a plait!! Won't bother again with Horse and Hound forum though!!!
 

hairycob

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Do you have a photo of the plait that you can post. I ask because, in the past, every time someone has insisted it's a real plait not a wind plait & has posted a pic it has been a wind plait.
 

Clava

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Do you have a photo of the plait that you can post. I ask because, in the past, every time someone has insisted it's a real plait not a wind plait & has posted a pic it has been a wind plait.

Even if it is a real plait, it has been known for kids / girls to put them in, but why a potential thief would I can't imagine.
 

xxMozlarxx

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Neighbours of mine had one of their horses manes "plaited", not the coloured cob though which if someone was planning to steal would be the one expected, the police did take it seriously, they were told to let everybody know, more seriously than I did when they went round warning everyone that there were horse thieves in the area.

Doesn't surprise me, they're not always the brightest bunch..I've had to quote the law on things to them a number of times! :D:)
 

cptrayes

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There was actually a article about this in H&H mag a while ago. people who usually plait one in the horses mane to signify this is the one they are going to steal. Ie. One person marks them, another then comes later and knows which one to take.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-14013511

I think you would struggle to find one case where this actually happened. I believe it's just an urban myth. The wind does the plait, or it's someone's idea of having fun. This report you have pointed to presents no evidence at all, just repeats the story. I think that's because it's untrue.
 

Hedgewitch13

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Yes like they would warn the owners with a plait... sheesh... All urban myths.
Funny how they don't plait the expensive competition horses that are worth something!
 

igglepop

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I always assumed it was a thing thief is did before we grew aware. I have now heard of ketchup and other similar things. Will admit to having a panic and finding a beautiful plat in my horses mane 3 days in a row last summer, all done in the day. Staked out the field next day and screamed at the kids i found playing with him on the fourth day. I think people on here sometimes fail to understand the worry when people find a plat. To be honest anything that makes people more vigilant must be a good thing.
 

Queenofdiamonds

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If it is a proper plait a more likely explanation is children. We frequently had plaits left by passing children. They were just stroking and playing with the mane, Did no harm.
 
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I'm sure that there are some very cleaver people out there who wouldn't worry about a plait. I explained to the police that it could be the kids but the horse is only two and not to happy to stand around. But............however cleaver YOU are, and however stupid you THINK I am, if there is a one in a million chance that this report would make someone check on their horses and stop a precious/loved horse going missing, or worse............then I would do he same again,
 

Tinseltoes

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My sincere apologies, I have just realised you are new to this site.
Excuse the sarcasm, plaiting posts appear frequently, they are always due to wind, lack of grooming. Thieves don;t give warnings, they turn up with torches and take.
Welcome, we are a nice bunch really

You are right. My coloured cobblet has been gone 6 weeks now and is goodness knows where.
This plait thing is a MYTH. Try spraying mane and tale to stop tangles.

Oh and welcome to the group!!!!!
 

Queenofdiamonds

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I'm sure that there are some very cleaver people out there who wouldn't worry about a plait. I explained to the police that it could be the kids but the horse is only two and not to happy to stand around. But............however cleaver YOU are, and however stupid you THINK I am, if there is a one in a million chance that this report would make someone check on their horses and stop a precious/loved horse going missing, or worse............then I would do he same again,

Eh? I didn't say anything about clever or stupid? I just said it's more likely children. You'd be surprised how differently a horse behaves over a fence and when their owner isn't around!

My horse changes for the worse in an instant in front of other people. Its shocking to watch!

One of the mares the children used to plait over the fence was the same mare that dragged me down a field and kicked a stone into my eye and blacked it for me, and ran headlong into a bus with my friend on board!
 

loisb501

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A horse at my yard was plaited last year, about a week after an unknown male was up with a young girl who was asking scripted questions. The yard i am on is private, no shop and out of the way so not really any reason for people to come up.

The horse in questions owner stayed at the yard over the next few nights and low and behold, along came a torch up the driveway and a trailer parked at the bottom, the owner managed to scare off whoever it was but by the time the police arrived the trailer was gone.

Just shows it does happen and there is nothing wrong with being vigilant, as im sure if at that time a picture was posted of said plait it mat well have been dismissed as a wind plait and if she had chances are her horse would have been taken that night.
 

flirtygerty

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If strangers are asking questions about your horse, then a plait appeared I might worry.
To the person whose coloured is missing/stolen, sincerely sorry to hear that, you must be frantic, but did you find a plaited mane?
This subject has been done to death, move on
12 hours of hell at work, sorry if this feels snappy
 

jj1966

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I found a plait in one of my mares last week, its wasnt due to heading shaking/ wind or anything of the like, it was 3 definate sections plaited together of a very thin stip of mane, not really noticable at a glance.
This is a way of marking a horse, they also cut sections of tail to mark if not plaiting. They will break twigs. leave little piles stones, or markers of some kind for other to follow the signals at gate entrances and roads, they have a code all of there own when its to do with theft of horses.
I found parallel sticks twice in one of my mares stables over a period of a week 2 years ago, and had the police involved. And again this last week they have been informed of my recent find.
locally a spate of 3 or 4 horses were found with sections of tails cut in december, it happens all over the country and its not something to take lightly.
One marks suitable horses and another takes them, the crime prevention told me that the marker doesnt return they work in teams, they even have the cheek to nick trailers to put them in if you havent locked them up.
Move your horses around paddocks, put up signs marking that the horses are microchipped etc and just be very aware of your surrounding all the time especially if someone has been around, and keep the police informed.
Horses are stolen all the time take a look on the police/Horse Watch site.
 

hairycob

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If someone is behaving suspiciously around your yard it is far, far more likely that they are after tack, quads, energisors etc. All easy things to shove in the back of a car/van & sell on with no bother - they don't even have to feed them & no chance of making a commotion trying to catch/load them.
If you look at the stats for stolen horses there are very few that are stolen that are not stolen on loan or as part of a "domestic" and those that do get stolen are mostly in a few quite narrow categories. If anybody can quote a crime number for a horse that has been stolen after plaiting I would be very surprised - it's always "my neighbours cousins aunts best friend" whose horse was allegedly stolen after plaiting and the horse from Surrey/Hampshire/Dorset/Yorkshire etc that was allegedly dumped at Holyhead never existed. Tack/rugs/equipment etc on the other hand go walkies every single day all over the country.
 
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