Qs for those who keep horses at home

[el_Snowflakes]

Aside from padlocking gates & tackrooms etc, how do you ensure your horses are safe & secure when you are away from home (ie. at work) Also, who oversees your horses when/if you are on holiday?

Thanks

 

[Suechoccy]

Phone numbers written on gate so if any neighbour/passerby spots something amiss, they can call me.
Horsesitters for when I'm away or horses go and stay in a friend's field. Horsesitters may be professional (esp in winter) or may be rota of friends with horses at home and then I horsesit for them. (These are all horses which live out, so very easy to do and have favours done. If they were stabled then it would defo be a professional horsesitter because of amount of time involved.)

 

[rara007]

CCTV on the main gate and a bit down the road, motion sensor alarm system across the whole yard, live in house sitters and the normal groom

 

[jam14]

Just moved mine home a few months ago and it is something I worry about when we are at work all day. I have two neighbours that have my numbers but they are not right beside me to notice things easily. I plan to give my number to another neighbour who is up a lane opposite but has horses in a field directly opposite and walks dogs past daily.

I dont have cctv but it is something I plan in the future. Can I ask how much it cost and what type you use?

Also someone once told me putting signs up attracts attention according to a policeman??!!

 

[AngieandBen]

Tbh I'm rarely out for more than a few hours, never had any problems. Horses are at the back of the house, you can't see them from the road. The gate is not padlocked, never has been. All tack rooms/rug rooms are locked tho!

I have a friend come and do them for me which is rare as I don;t go away much.

My JR is a very good guard

 

[JillA]

I am lucky, I am overlooked on 3 sides. I did have a padlock hasp cut through several years ago but they left without taking anything - immediate neighbours have a dog who must have barked. Doesn't help I know but I also have a question for those with their own yards (sorry for hijacking).
I have always felt I couldn't stable horses at night for a few nights and then turn out again when the weather improves but now I am feeling they need to be in while this weather lasts but the prospect of having horses stabled until April is really daunting. Does anyone else mix and match?

 

[CarolineJ]

I work from home, which helps I have a couple of friends who'll come and check them and feed them for me if I'm away for a day or two (they live out 24/7, so can get away with just mucking out the field shelters for a weekend), but if we go for a proper holiday, I pay for a local lady who has an equine services business (horse sitting, clipping, show prep, grooming etc. etc.) to look after them - £15 a day for one visit, £20 for two.

 

[TelH]

I work from home and don't go on holiday

 

[Sukistokes2]

Horses are at my parents house, my parents are usually home, there are locks on the gates and tack room. There are also two large leonburger dogs loose all day. If I go away in the summer or when the horses are out then my Dad will look after for me, but that would only be an option for a couple of days at the most. I rarely go anywhere longer, if I did I have a lady who is a freelance groom who would care for them and would also do sick cover.
Are you asking is it hard being on a yard, on your own, without the support of others on the yard, yes sometimes it is. However after all this time, over thirty years, I really do not think about it. Is it lonely? Sometimes, however when I needed a school and support in the summer I went to another yard for a few weeks, great fun but I was glad to get home and so was Moses. You build up a network to help and build up friends in the area and also find people like my groom, Helen, who is a total star, o help out. I will miss having my own yard when my parents sell up in a few years but my OH will never move from town, he worries about his paper and getting to the golf club.

 

[Asha]

My hubby and I both work from home most of the time. Plus we have cctv, and all gates get locked.
But the best bit is our neighbours. If they see anything out of the ordinary they are straight out.they can see two of our fields and love watching them.

We don't do many holidays, but when we do I have a friend who comes round

So my advice, make friend with your neighbours

 

[Red-1]

For many years OH and I had opposite shifts. It was quite bizarre as one would go to work and say "see you tomorrow" if it were a night shift, but then we would work out that actually it would be the day after, or even the day after that before we would meet again. Or at least we may meet in bed, but coming in at 3am, when the other was up at 4.30am meant creeping in and the other creeping out, so it was not like e talked.

Not always good for us but great for the horses and dogs!

Also my mother lives at the other side of the yard and is retired. Also neighbours can come and fetch in if one of us is delayed at work.

Now we are all retired, and I only work part time at a school it is even easier.

It is also a safe part of the world, very rural and there are only 3 roads into the village. The farmer opposite keeps an eye out for us too.

Holdiays... well we have had 3 nights in Venice, but no other holiday together for decades. I trip off to America to visit friends, or he may go off on a Rugby trip.

Edited to add ...Oh, and it is all locked, alarmed, and one of the dogs is a GSD who would protect his lair!

 

[Evie91]

I work long hours ( compressed hours) four days a week. Husbands day varies, he leaves before me but back earlier, works from home sometimes - so pops in and out.
Tack is locked.TBF i once discussed with a police woman who said if people really want to take your stuff they will, a padlock won't stop them, they will just cause more damage.
We do have a dog and dog walker who comes week days, she varies the time to fit in with her day,she likes the horses so notices them but doesn't look specifically at them.
I have someone who brings in for me Monday to Thursday - she has been an absolute God send, don't know what I'd do without her now. She also looks after them when I'm away on hols. She has her own yard so is very experienced.

I have a neighbour who over looks one of my paddocks but is completely non horsey, so doubt would notice anything, but they do have my number.
It was a huge worry when I bought them home - that they wouldn't be seen for hours ( part livery yards, paddocks could be seen from yard, staff there all day etc) had gotten so used to that and really appreciated it.
Then again, some people on 24/7 turn out only go up once or twice a day. People who rent fields for this purpose probably don't go up much more often.
I always worry someone would try and steal them - as spring/ summer paddock is on a road. Thing is old girl is retired and arthritic and companion pony is a monkey so just hope they would bring them back!!!

 

[Maryann]

I have 6 stables not all of which are currently occupied and the general idea is that one person does mornings and another does evening depending on work commitments. We also buy feed together. We find that we cannot afford to fall out over details. For holidays I would get a horse sitter if they were in and not if they were out. Security however is a bit of a worry as I do not have a proper plan apart from coming and going at different times.

 

[Nudibranch]

Tack is padlocked in the shed but not field gates, etc. Mine aren't visible from any main roads but are from the house, and the farmer who grazes his sheep is round twice a day as well. JillA yes I mix and match mine...mostly out 24 - 7 but will come in overnight now and again. They're quite happy with that! A horsey neighbour horse sits for holidays...the dogs are a bigger problem tbh.

 

[Evie91]

Just reading about poor pont stolen in Leic. Gate post pulled out, gate taken off, stable door removed, pony taken but his friend left behind.
Pony is fifteen and has chronic laminits. Some really unscrupulous people around. Hope they get him back.

 

[Polos Mum]

Tack in the house, and nothing of value left lying around. My OH is home most of the time with the kids and we have fab neighbours on all sides and local farmers who are always up and down who'd spot something major. Next door is dog kennels so always someone on site, top of road is massive livery yard so again someone always around. Gates onto the road are permanently locked (massive motorbike chains and silly size padlocks and we never use them so can spot if a car pulls in)
I work on the 2 gates from horse to road theory so we have a main gate into the drive (bit of a pain in the rain but if they got out of the field in some way I'd be really grateful for it)

Holidays we have professional house sitters £35 a night to do horses, dogs, pigs etc - really good value and insured trustworthy. I've also used one of the staff from the next door livery yard who was ace.

I wouldn't change it for the world even though I ride 1/4 as much as when I was on full livery !! But then 1 cost me £100 a week (a decade ago!) and now 4 cost considerably less than £100 a month !!

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

I work from home and don't go on holiday

Ditto this.

One field is overlooked directly by a house, so that's kind of reassuring and would hopefully be a deterrent.

The rest of the place is protected by a professionally-installed alarm system. This was after a spate of thefts from similar properties to ours locally a few years ago.

At night if the horses are in they're protected on all sides by a beam thing which activates the system if someone crosses it.

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

I have always felt I couldn't stable horses at night for a few nights and then turn out again when the weather improves but now I am feeling they need to be in while this weather lasts but the prospect of having horses stabled until April is really daunting. Does anyone else mix and match?

My yard is 3.5 miles from home.
I do a mix & match often with mine, all dependant on weather. Currently they are stabled at night, but up till last weekend, CF was brought into a small paddock that has a large shelter in so he could come & go at will for 3 or 4 nights a week, whilst Tiny Fuzzy was stabled for the good of her figure overnight. (CF was stabled oveernight on the nights when I have to go to work the next morning, as I hate poo-picking in the dark at 6am & would rather muck out instead)
Now that my yard mate doesn't need to shut her pony in 24/7 I can go back to doing this as pony can go out in daytime now & therefore have her own smaller stable back. I usually aim to get mine out 24/7 by the end of Feb, but all down to ground conditions/weather really

Re security, I have notices in the yard with contact details, inc location for fire/police etc, neighbours keep an eye open too when passing. Tack, hats & decent boots are kept at home, tho an old bridle kept at yard for emergencies. Main gate has welded hinges, tho if a thief is going to enter, not much will stop them.
I also have large notices which say along the lines of: 'all horses & ponies are freezemarked & identi-chipped, no saddlery kept here. Horsebox has tracker & alarms operating'.
I pay someone to do mine when on hols once a year & a friend does TF when I take CF to RC camp

 

[kassieg]

my yard is not at my house but I rent it. It is down a long drive with 2 houses who both have CCTV which covers my yard also. My tack is locked away and my yard is locked & my exit gate is locked.

I'm up there twice a day and the owners of the house it is attached to work shifts plus have a gardner so there is always someone around who has my number should something go wrong even if they are useless with horses haha

 

[Solstar]

CCTV everywhere, access is restricted at one end of the yard with electric gates only operable from inside the house, other access is across the front of the house. My horses are hidden from the road as are around the back of the house. Tack is in an internal tack room. Big dog and a crazy cockerel do the rest!

 

[Enfys]

Oh God. I don't do a thing security wise, we don't even lock our house doors, ever !
My gates on to the road are tied up with old leadlines, tack is in the house.

I do, however, have two extremely vigilant watch dogs who are very vocal, I can tell the difference between a "there's someone walking a dog down the lane" bark to a "Let's sing the song of our people" bay back at the coyotes to a "Hey! Hey! 'ware intruder" bark.

I live on a very quiet country road, so everyone notices strange vehicles, there isn't a THING that goes unnoticed, I had logs delivered the other day and someone commented on that even.

Horse rustling is not a common thing where I live, my horses are not unusual enough to swipe for their looks - yet in the UK I would have them stashed away under lock and key.

My neighbours have a busy yard directly across the road, we have phone numbers for emergencies/loose horses (although it is quicker just to catch horses and put them back than phone)

Holidays, I would hire my daughter, an animal sitter, or the neighbours.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

Tack is kept in the house since a neighbour had her stolen from her tackroom. Horses behind 2 gates, fields with no road-side borders, surrounded by other fields. 2 big Rottweilers behind the locked yard gate.

Sister and I rarely go away together, if we do (HOYS etc) a friend looks after the animals. We live in a very horsey/farm-y hamlet so every-one is very aware of where all the animals should be and any unusual vehicular movement.

 

[indiat]

I am really worried about this. We have just put an offer in on a house in Nantwich and this is the only downside to the property, the land has road access, albeit on a very quiet country lane. How tempting are native ponies to thieves? Would freeze marking them help? We both work from home and I can check on them frequently. Having said that, the field they are in now has road access, is out of sight of the yard and has a PROW going through it, gates unlocked and in six years we have had no problems (apart from someone trying to feed my greedy Highland a ham sandwich!). All tack and equipment will be kept at the house under lock and key and we are installing BIG gates. Also have two very load Manchester terriers! I would prefer the ponies to be out of sight from the road but this house is perfect in every other way and is the only one we have found that offers location, off-road riding, and the land we need.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

No cctv, no locks on gates and no dogs, but the blimmin' ponies are still here.

 

[Polos Mum]

How tempting are native ponies to thieves? .

I think real genuine theft is pretty rare in the horse world, there was something written recently by the NFU and it was something like 400 horses in 10 years and a good number of those were 'stolen' on loan - which is very different to someone taking a gate off a field and helping themselves.
If you then cross off those that stray and end up lost and the Shetland tiny ponies who can go easily in a transit then you're really looking at a handful a year.

No comfort at all if it is yours but statistically very unlikely so I spend my energy worrying about other things!

Realistically for most of our beloved happy hackers it's a lot of effort to steal, then you can't advertise widely to sell and you've no competition record or good photos so what's a no passport no comp history horse worth these days £2-3k maybe and you've got to look after it for a while before you can word of mouth find a buyer - maybe a nicely marked stallion you could get value out of if you had the mares but again they aren't common

 

[GinaGeo]

We live up a long single track driveway, with four neighbours dotted along it who notice everything. There's only one way in and one way out, which would deter most people! The tack, hay and machinery are all locked away. The horses aren't, but the house overlooks all the land.

 

[indiat]

Thank you, Polos Mum! I already feel better.

 

[MotherOfChickens]

I think your tack and trailers are more at risk than horses tbh. Not much horse theft up here but a few tack room break ins in those places closer to Glasgow/Edinburgh.

saddles are kept in the house, horses are either out front of house or at grazing round about-the farmers I rent from have emergency numbers and one paddock in a village has my number on the gate. I do padlock the remote fields just to stop numpties opening them but I don't when they are at home. We have no close neighbours.

we don't go on holiday but there is a local pet/horse sitter.

 

[JillA]

There's only one way in and one way out, which would deter most people!

I rented a house in a similar situation and an ex policeman told me it was the criminals worst nightmare, having to exit the way they came in.
I do think the more security you have the more it screams "something worth protecting here" and the more damage is done getting to it.

 

[Polos Mum]

I do think the more security you have the more it screams "something worth protecting here" and the more damage is done getting to it.

there is something in that - there was a really sad case last year where 3/4 horses burned to death because their barn caught fire when thieves cut through the metal door protecting a quad bike
I am sure unmentionables have been wondering round the place and had a good look at grim looking rugs and old grooming kit and left it all well alone - if we had a big protected tack room on the yard I suspect they;d be in it all the time !!