Protecting horses against thieves - bring them in? or leave them out?

arwenplusone

arwenplusone

Well-Known Member
Joined
25 January 2007
Messages
6,160
Location
York
www.freewebs.com
which is the best option?
On BBC North Yorkshire they are advising to keep horses stabled to be secure. IMO they are better in the field as can give thieves the runaround?

what do you think? Can you tell I am fretting.
blush.gif
 
don't think you are fretting more than anyone else at the mo, i agree to leave them in field as it is more open,and will be seen. mine are out at night and in all day.
 
I'm fretting too as it seems they've been up here and taken there snaps (none taken yet though)
I'm leaving mine in the field as
A. She wont catch for men
B. Her muzzle may put them off (I hope!)

Though If there are any thefts I will probably take her in.
 
i think if you have secure fencing and can lock gates then thye would have a job getting them out the field however you can also usually lock a stable door. so i dunno lol. we were lucky at my old yard where none of the fields could be accessed from roads (you had to go through the yard) and there was a big gate at the top of the drive that was locked at night.
 
whatever you do
no horses are safe
whether in field or stables if they want to get something there go to all lenghts to get it
even if you have them freezemarked ive heard they can cut it out as well as microchips
so i would just carry on what your doing and keep a extra eye out
even if you ask other people in your area even make posts up and put them up in your area so that people are awhere of theses people
 
I was pondering this yesterday as my boy is great to catch! Even in the dark or if the herd got spooked, once he'd calmed down I'm pretty sure he'd be easily caught. He is anyone's for a bucket of feed, sadly I'm sure someone who knew what they were doing would have no problem catching him.
frown.gif
 
It's so sad that it has come to this, people practically having to chain down everything they own to protect it. My horses are kept on my parents small holding. Luckily the only entrance to the fields is via the farmyard carpark which has a padlocked gate, and being right by the house and covered in gravel we would hopefully hear anyone in there. I have even padlocked interjoining field gates just as an extra measure. A couple of weeks ago I got all three horses freezemarked and havemoved my trailer out of the drive, in to a field behind a secure gate.
 
It is really worrying. My yard is very private and completely invisible to the road at the moment but as from Monday we are having a new entrance made from the road and will then have to take security very seriously. It worries me sick, my mare is so friendly and easy.
 
The best security for your horse is to have it clearly Freezemarked on it's shoulderand also microchipped as a second precaution.

Also take photos of your horse (Winter and Summer) from all 4 sides and keep them at hand so that you can Email them to the appropriate organisations in the event of your horse being stolen.

My experience is that stolen horses can be moved many hundreds of miles in a very short period of time.

The best chance of having a stolen horse recovered is if it is freezemarked. Micro-chipping of horses is almost a waste of time because there are so many different systems on the market and the scanner of one system does not recognise other systems.

Always ensure that gates have their hinges reveres so that they can not be simply lifted off their hinges. Any locks should be within a metal box so that they can not be bolt cutted through.
 
I keep mine out and we have 2 padlocked gates but it doesn't stop thieves getting in if they really want stuff as we've been broken into before several times. We don't live on site so it can be rather worrying but what can you do!

I have a particularly suspicious pony who is 'herd leader' so i would think he would alert the rest and once they're running you'd be hard pressed to catch them and I don't think a thief would be going out of his way to do it. Plus mine buggers off even when you've got him and can be nifty with his feet in the process if giddy.

Think we just have to hope people notice any suspicious goings on, we have people park on the lane our field is off for ahem 'romantic meetings' so, although they are irritating maybe they would actually be uselful in deterring theives!
grin.gif


Personally and sadly i think these thefts go on all the time but especially leading up to Appleby Fair it seems to be worse each year.
 
Ive been following the stress you guys have been going through in the UK with the recent thefts and my heart goes out to all of you
frown.gif


In reality, I dont think theyre safer in either option unless you have an absolute die-hard impossible to catch type. Outside they're often more on display and the majority of horses are easy to catch. Locking fields and so on isn't going to help against professional thieves.

Inside you tend to be able to go more out on the security. My last yard had 12 foot gates which were locked at night. Yes, the determined theif could undoubtedly get through them but at the same time, would have made rather a lot of noise (of course, unless you or someone else are living on site, this might not help). Our stable blocks were then alarmed. You can, of course, alarm the individual stables but we never did this. The doors to get in and out of the blocks were alarmed instead (but we were using american barn type internal stabling).

We also had webcams up. Not purely for security, as they were used to keep an eye on horses during the night and hopefully catch early health problems, but there was undoubtedly, a degree of peace of mind. Again, the problem with this is that either you need to live on site or have a YO willing to accommodate that :/

Easier smaller solutions I guess are freezemarking and microchipping. Mark rugs if they have them on, remove headcollars if they're out. (In all honesty though, if someone wants to take a horse, theyre going to take a headcollar with them).

Check on them as frequently as possible and vary the times of day that you do so incase anyone is trying to build up a pattern of your routine. Again, pretty fruitless when most thefts are overnight though :/
 
Do what we did - moved in - had security fencing installed around the yard itself - horses are stabled at night (and that's our choice not for security) but we have 2-3 guard dogs who live out in the yard permanently and even if you did get in - you certainly wouldn't get out!! Can sleep soundly at night now and if one of the dogs bark - I switch on the CCTV to see what's happening. Our neighbours don't mind any barking at night time either - because if one of our dogs start, it starts off next doors, who then starts off next door but one and so it goes on. Our road has many horses and stables in it.
 
I think they're going to be safer in to be honest. If thier out and good atbeing caught is it really likely thier going to give a thief' the run around'. Horses wont be able to tell a normal person from a thief or realise that something odd is going on.
If the stables are attached to a house your more likely to be able to hear any tampering with gates/stables and vehicles. Also if you have some cash to splash you can put cctv in stables so even if the horse are taken it'll be easier to find/prosecute if you have an image of the thief.
 
I'm moving my loan mare next weekend, and hubby has created 2 internal stables inside the barn next to the house for her and the companion pony. The OH's rottie sleeps out in the barn at nights anyway, so having to enter via the drive and coming up next to the house, with the security lights, dogs barking and a snarling rottie the other side of the door is the best I can do...I wouldn't fancy being on the wrong side of Riggs anyway lol
 
Well, many years ago (can't recall the circumstances) but we allowed a friend to take our donkey for a walk or something, maybe let the kids ride him i don't remember. Anyway, the guy went to retrieve said donkey from the slimming paddock he was in but donkeys best buddy (big 15.2hh) actually went for the man as he did not know him. He chased him off and wouldn't let him near his donkey pal! It was pretty funny at the time but i think the man was rather scared. Shame we don't have that 'guard' horse and donkey combo now - if anyone dared to touch donkey (who wasn't recognised someone they knew) there was hell to pay!
grin.gif
 
ive got a pony who will attack men he doesnt know so good luck to them, they are also very difficult to load unless you know their tricks and all in a field to which the only access is through the gate next to the house.
 
Personally, I would NEVER padlock a stable door - far too dangerous should a fire break out or something.
I think horses will be safer out than in, and non of these flashing rugs to alert someone to where horsey is!
As Peter Natt, Freezemarking on the shoulder is the very best choice.

I'm in two minds about security lighting though. Supposedly the lights scare off intruders, but in some cases I feel they may use the light to their advantage, showing them things they need to see. I suppose it depends on how near to houses?
 
Daisy is out because she is hard to catch in summer, if you don't know her she tries to kick you. My theory has always been that as with anything else thieves are opportunists and are going to take the horses that are most obvious when they drive around an area scoping it out and who have the least precautions. D is freezemarked, lives in a field that you can't see from any road and you would have to take her out right past the windows of the house to get her out. If they are really determined to get a specific horse then I reckon you are unlikely to stop them short of camping out in the stable yourself but you do need to think about whether you are advertising your horse
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top