Peregrine Falcon
Looking forward to drier days
How worrying for you. I would be making sure there is no access to headcollars etc. A polite notice on the gate saying please do not feed/touch animals and a FB post.
Someone has been in my fields and has ridden my 3 yo
- Thread starter LadyGascoyne
- Start date
stormox
Well-Known Member
Probably kids. When i was a child of about 11 me and my friend were desperate to ride and our parents couldnt afford lessons. We used to clamber on to horses in a field - no tack - no idea who owned them- without our parents knowledge. It never dawned on us we shouldnt. We even gave them names....
GSD Woman
Well-Known Member
This happened to a friend of mine years ago. She hid in the barn and waited for the offenders to show. When they did, she caught one and threatened to shoot the others. They never came back.
MyBoyChe
Well-Known Member
Definitely some sort of cameras...but..could you keep a couple of geese in the field? They are fabulous guard dogs and I wouldnt want to tangle with a gander!! I "believe" they are Ok with their owners but very fierce with strangers
Mrs. Jingle
Well-Known Member
I had this happen many years ago to my oldest donkey, he wasn't even a year old and a local family with 7 children led by the father, thought it was ok to put a bit of old blue rope (yes the tell tale blue rope brigade 
) and spent the afternoon chasing him and hitting him around the field while several of the children whooped and screamed and fell of or stayed on according to their luck.
Another neighbour witnessed this but she was too scared to intervene and who could blame her poor woman. I was so livid that the poor little mite had been so badly abused that I forgot all fear and visited said family and boy did I give them an earful, I am afraid the air was blue, I had the mouth of a pirate, but that was Ok because they understood exactly what I was telling them. It never happened again but he has always been the most fearful of my donkeys and difficult to handle, to this day I do wonder just what long term effect it had on him.
OP I am glad you got back on your youngster and that went well - a very good sign no long term harm has been done - but I share your rage!
) and spent the afternoon chasing him and hitting him around the field while several of the children whooped and screamed and fell of or stayed on according to their luck. Another neighbour witnessed this but she was too scared to intervene and who could blame her poor woman. I was so livid that the poor little mite had been so badly abused that I forgot all fear and visited said family and boy did I give them an earful, I am afraid the air was blue, I had the mouth of a pirate, but that was Ok because they understood exactly what I was telling them. It never happened again but he has always been the most fearful of my donkeys and difficult to handle, to this day I do wonder just what long term effect it had on him.
OP I am glad you got back on your youngster and that went well - a very good sign no long term harm has been done - but I share your rage!
Roasted Chestnuts
Well-Known Member
I’d be buying a couple of these and putting them up.
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/174100695345
Unacceptble you must be fuming
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/174100695345
Unacceptble you must be fuming
Follysmum
Well-Known Member
Gosh I would be absolutely raging ?
Definitely camera of some kind and a massive poster with a Do not touch the horses
Definitely camera of some kind and a massive poster with a Do not touch the horses
cundlegreen
Well-Known Member
There is a free app called Alfred that you can get, and use two mobile phones, one as the camera. You can even talk though the phone which might give the guilty party a nasty fright!
cundlegreen
Well-Known Member
Do what Spike Milligan did, and put up a sign saying "trespassers will be shot". That should do it.https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1080P-Wi...781432?hash=item4da3cfb978:g:CMQAAOSwnAJeALmT
The above camera has an app for your phone so you can detect and pick up live images...aaaand you can then talk through the mic on the camera, real-time, to your intruders “police have been called and are on way”
Thats very cool!
Put up signs, “keep away Dont touch horses/ Contagious Disease Warning”
Peregrine Falcon
Looking forward to drier days
I saw a similar sign but with "survivors will be shot again" at the end!?
canteron
Well-Known Member
If you are worried about liability I would ring the police and ask their advice, get a crime no then put up cctv notices etc - it will show you have taken reasonable steps to deter!
cundlegreen
Well-Known Member
Well, he did shoot someone with an air rifle and got arrested for it, but he got his point across!
LadyGascoyne
Well-Known Member
Thanks everyone, I will definitely be investing in some cameras. I have a great one for the house which has two way audio so I can talk to delivery people when they arrive. I don’t have any WiFi at the yard and mobile coverage is iffy at best. I’ll look into the options and maybe post something separately for recommendations.
I’ll also put up a simple no trespassing/ private property / no access sign at the top of the drive and a camera and lock on the gate to the yard so that people get the feeling that it’s private.
The house stands away from the yard so no one is likely to see anything from the house, and an elderly couple live in the house. They have rented the whole yard with the view that they wouldn’t have to be responsible for the land going forward. They are really lovely but I wouldn’t want to worry them.
I would only move as an absolute last resort. The fields border the farm that we are on, and it’s only me at the yard so I manage everything myself. I definitely need to stop anyone coming in but it’s effectively my yard (well, all barring anything requiring planning permission) so I’d hope to make whatever changes are necessary to protect the horses.
I am so bl**dy lucky that the horses are all so straightforward. I can’t bear to think what would have happened if my filly wasn’t such a saint. I just can’t believe people would take such a risk with their children.
I know it’s an assumption but both used were pony height and something about walking them in a 15m circle just screams children to me. I also don’t think they were unaccompanied. I’d expect the riding to be more random- the circle track was really clear in the soft ground.
I’ll also put up a simple no trespassing/ private property / no access sign at the top of the drive and a camera and lock on the gate to the yard so that people get the feeling that it’s private.
The house stands away from the yard so no one is likely to see anything from the house, and an elderly couple live in the house. They have rented the whole yard with the view that they wouldn’t have to be responsible for the land going forward. They are really lovely but I wouldn’t want to worry them.
I would only move as an absolute last resort. The fields border the farm that we are on, and it’s only me at the yard so I manage everything myself. I definitely need to stop anyone coming in but it’s effectively my yard (well, all barring anything requiring planning permission) so I’d hope to make whatever changes are necessary to protect the horses.
I am so bl**dy lucky that the horses are all so straightforward. I can’t bear to think what would have happened if my filly wasn’t such a saint. I just can’t believe people would take such a risk with their children.
I know it’s an assumption but both used were pony height and something about walking them in a 15m circle just screams children to me. I also don’t think they were unaccompanied. I’d expect the riding to be more random- the circle track was really clear in the soft ground.
cauda equina
Well-Known Member
How dare they!
I'm so glad your lovely filly seems to be unscathed
I'm so glad your lovely filly seems to be unscathed
sky1000
Well-Known Member
I love your posts about your beautiful mare and am horrified at what has happened. So glad it hasn't seemed to have caused a problem. Obviously it still might so I do hope you get it sorted. I am pleased people are offering camera suggestions as unfortunately I don't have any practical help to offer.
Winters100
Well-Known Member
Thank goodness they are both OK. But honestly it seems insane to me if, as one of the others wrote, you could be liable in case of an accident. Makes no sense at all. Really it is these sorts of things that make me never want to move back to the UK. Where I am if my dog bites an intruder it is simple - he or she should not have been on my property so it is their fault - and if they kick the dog and cause a vets bill then they are liable, even if the dog was attacking them at the time. If there is a fight with an intruder and he is injured or even killed it is legally not the fault of the householder. For sure I would not be liable if someone trespassed onto my land and got injured riding my horse, and if I caught them doing it I could use any restraint that I deemed necessary to hold them until the police arrived. Seems to work quite well as violent crime is nothing like the levels of the UK.
Good luck with safeguarding your ponies from these complete idiots, but what a shame that you have to spend money on cameras to prevent such absurd behaviour.
Good luck with safeguarding your ponies from these complete idiots, but what a shame that you have to spend money on cameras to prevent such absurd behaviour.
Petalpoos
Well-Known Member
You certainly do not ever have the right to shoot people, but it did make me laugh!
huskydamage
Well-Known Member
That must've been a typo surely? Somehow I don't think 'they were worrying my sheep' would hold up at the murder trial ?
LadyGascoyne
Well-Known Member
Thanks both, she’s so good natured she doesn’t help herself in this regard. I honestly think if someone wanted to steal her, she’d come over and cuddle and probably load herself.
Definitely camera time!
SpottyMare
Well-Known Member
That's outrageous - I'd be completely incandescent. I'm glad they seem ok after the incident.
Speaking of liability - I didn't think it was true that someone would automatically be liable should their horse hurt someone when that someone was trespassing, so did a quick search. I know it's only H&C tv (it was a very quick search as it's bedtime!), but the key bit is:
The owner of the horse will be able to escape liability under the Animals Act 1971, if they can establish either that the injured party caused the injury by their own acts, or voluntarily assumed the risk of the injury.
It's also referring to those injured who have permission to be around your horse - joyriding trespassers would be guilty of both the above as you wouldn't have had a chance to warn them that randomly sitting on a lightly backed 3 yr old wasn't in anyone's best interests...
I like the 'trespassers will be shot and survivors will be shot again' sign idea But signage making it obvious that the horses aren't playthings for randomers, plus cameras does seem to be the way to go.
https://horseandcountry.tv/responsible-horse-injures-someone/
Speaking of liability - I didn't think it was true that someone would automatically be liable should their horse hurt someone when that someone was trespassing, so did a quick search. I know it's only H&C tv (it was a very quick search as it's bedtime!), but the key bit is:
The owner of the horse will be able to escape liability under the Animals Act 1971, if they can establish either that the injured party caused the injury by their own acts, or voluntarily assumed the risk of the injury.
It's also referring to those injured who have permission to be around your horse - joyriding trespassers would be guilty of both the above as you wouldn't have had a chance to warn them that randomly sitting on a lightly backed 3 yr old wasn't in anyone's best interests...
I like the 'trespassers will be shot and survivors will be shot again' sign idea
But signage making it obvious that the horses aren't playthings for randomers, plus cameras does seem to be the way to go.https://horseandcountry.tv/responsible-horse-injures-someone/
ycbm
Einstein would be proud of my Insanity...
There hasn't, sadly, been any crime committed so you would have trouble getting a crime number. I doubt a track in the grass will count as criminal damage, the horse isn't hurt, nothing has been stolen and trespass is a civil offence.
.
meleeka
Well-Known Member
I’d get a wildlife camera which aren’t very expensive and a couple of dummy cctvs attaches to the shed. Then put up plenty of signs. I have a A3 Sized one on my gate from the local Horsewartch saying “You are being watched”, along with the usual CCTV and “Do not feed the ponies” sign. My guess is that will put them off.
rabatsa
Confuddled
Padlocks on the field gates so that they cannot get into the summer grass and another on the shed. Publicise on the local facebook page as a reminder to parents to keep an eye on what their children are getting up to.
holeymoley
Well-Known Member
Perhaps I’m a bit drastic but I’d be off pronto.
Very gallous of them.
Very gallous of them.
The Trooper
Well-Known Member
Electrify the gates?
dorsetladette
Well-Known Member
when you put something on facebook mention that the little darlings will of come home with dirty bums from there adventures.
While your organising camera's can you vary your routine slightly so you are going up a little earlier/later even different times of the day especially at weekends. Us horsey people are creatures of habit and people get to know your movements easily.
While your organising camera's can you vary your routine slightly so you are going up a little earlier/later even different times of the day especially at weekends. Us horsey people are creatures of habit and people get to know your movements easily.
HorseyTee
Well-Known Member
Gosh I am angry for you.
The cheek of some people.
Good luck to anyone who ever tried this with my welshie. They wouldn't be walking away unscathed.
Do you know anybody with a not so sociable pony who'd be happy to lend you them?
The cheek of some people.
Good luck to anyone who ever tried this with my welshie. They wouldn't be walking away unscathed.
Do you know anybody with a not so sociable pony who'd be happy to lend you them?
Ddraig_wen
Well-Known Member
I had this with my ID mare in the summer. Clear patch on her back from a large backside or a saddle. Field is nowhere near any tack and isn't visible from the road so someone must have brought their own stuff with them. But someone took it upon themselves to ride her. She's been out of work for a couple of years having foals. Thank god she's kind.
Goldenstar
Well-Known Member
You have to be negligent to be liable .
i don’t think anyone would be able to prove that in law .
lock the head collars away .
and I would buy a motion activated wildlife camera to try a film who ever it is coming in .
i don’t think anyone would be able to prove that in law .
lock the head collars away .
and I would buy a motion activated wildlife camera to try a film who ever it is coming in .
ester
Not slacking multitasking
I think that’s been disproved (in cases where someone else has let horses out and there has been an rat strict liability has applied)