The April Search - Why aren't they using horses?

JustAnotherNeddy

JustAnotherNeddy

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To be honest, after feeling the shock of the whole abduction, my next thought was why on earth are people not helping out from horseback? I understand there will be helicopters around and it would be a busy and potentially scary environment for most horses but those who live in or around wales, or with similar terrain elsewhere, who hunt/treck a lot will be the most able to cover un-passable tracks faster than on foot.

If i had a horse that could be ridden, and transport, i'd be straight down there to cover some land that takes them a lot of time on foot with search dogs.

We have a much better vantage point on horses, and in teams of two or three, i think horseback search would be incredibly effective.

Why has it not been done? Or am i just suggesting a ludicrous idea with little understanding of the challenges?

I just feel like a lot of people aren't doing anything at all (me included but i can't change that!), which in some instances is understandable. But if everyone came together and made a big push, chances are she'd be home by now :(
 
JustAnotherNeddy said:
To be honest, after feeling the shock of the whole abduction, my next thought was why on earth are people not helping out from horseback? I understand there will be helicopters around and it would be a busy and potentially scary environment for most horses but those who live in or around wales, or with similar terrain elsewhere, who hunt/treck a lot will be the most able to cover un-passable tracks faster than on foot.

If i had a horse that could be ridden, and transport, i'd be straight down there to cover some land that takes them a lot of time on foot with search dogs.

We have a much better vantage point on horses, and in teams of two or three, i think horseback search would be incredibly effective.

Why has it not been done? Or am i just suggesting a ludicrous idea with little understanding of the challenges?

I just feel like a lot of people aren't doing anything at all (me included but i can't change that!), which in some instances is understandable. But if everyone came together and made a big push, chances are she'd be home by now :(
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From what I have read everyone has come together, all the local have been out looking.

Honestly I think most horses and riders would be more of a hazard than a help. Especially when they have mainly been searching around the town.
 
horses could well trample the evidence. the police are trying to control the local searchers, as they are worried that forensic info is being lost by well - meaning but untrained searchers.
 
shysmum said:
horses could well trample the evidence. the police are trying to control the local searchers, as they are worried that forensic info is being lost by well - meaning but untrained searchers.
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Oh yes, i didn't think of that! I am an idiot.

Would it not be useful to place the equestrian searchers on higher ground, such as the hillsides to have a more detailed look. The only information i've seen/found about the searches is the river searches, the foot searches and the dog searches on the hills.

I just feel so useless sat in Yorkshire and i can't do anything to help. God bless those who are searching in these conditions also. Im hoping April is alive and well, and managed to get away and bunker down somewhere dry till people find her.
 
What a good idea. It wouldn't hurt to suggest it, for now or the future. Not so good in the rocky and shrubby terrain but along bridleways, country lanes and footpaths, perhaps.
 
LIZ66 said:
The police horses are probably out there - they will be trained in what to look for and how to preserve the scene.
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But there aren't many police horses around there any more. The horses i would suggest are seasoned hunters able to deal with difficult terrain, patient and bombroof, then maybe some endurance horses for the upper sections that are able to do long hours and are semi-used to the bad weather.

I don't mean to be right down next to the river where the main search is happening, i mean to sort of work their way in over fields and hedges. The police report said they'd searched 75% of lanes. Now if i was a scared little girl and i'd just tried to escape, i'd go either for under a hedgerow if nowhere else, or into a thicket because she wouldn't know which way to go. This is the hunts area of expertise. I'd be on it in a flash.
 
The police horses usually come in from the city areas. I know when we had a missing teenager near here a few years ago, the police horses came down from Bristol to join the search.

I know you are well meaning, but i think having the local hunt charging around the area could ruin any evidence that may be seen, and would also probably terrify the little girl,

Lets all just hope she is found safe and well soon.
 
Sis and I were talking about something similar to OP's idea yesterday - must be a Yorkshire thing!

As many mounted branches are being disbanded/merged, I can foresee that before long the police will have to ask for mounted volunteers to join in searches. There is a member on here, whose name escapes me, who is a member of a volunteer mounted group who 'patrol' their local area in pairs, just so that the local wrong-doers are aware of a presence. The scheme was publicised in H&H.
 
LIZ66 said:
The police horses usually come in from the city areas. I know when we had a missing teenager near here a few years ago, the police horses came down from Bristol to join the search.

I know you are well meaning, but i think having the local hunt charging around the area could ruin any evidence that may be seen, and would also probably terrify the little girl,

Lets all just hope she is found safe and well soon.
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No i didn't mean the whole hunt! I mean in groups of two or three that know the land like the back of their hand. Yes the police horses are drafted in, and therefore the officers will be working from a map/GPS. The hunt masters and hound walkers will know the areas so much more.

Anyway, clearly was a silly idea. Apologies!
 
I can't imagine horses would be quicker than dogs. They cover a huge area quickly and a variety of terrain. Horseback searching would involve human eyes and ears as horses aren't trained to hunt whereas dogs can use their far more sensitive sense of smell too and are actually trained to hunt.
 
armchair_rider said:
Maybe also because horses are noisier than walkers/dogs and might drown out cries for help?
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Good point, also did not think about that one!

I can't imagine horses would be quicker than dogs. They cover a huge area quickly and a variety of terrain.
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It was the speed of the handlers that i was thinking about. Surely with all the rain, most/some footprints will be gone now and scents will have disappeared for the most part.

Never mind, another idea into the toilet! :)
Still fingers crossed for the search teams.
 
Because there aren't any in the area... At all. Perhaps one or two privately owned but none of any capacity I know of one person that had a horse and one gypsy that stopped of twice a year to tether his cob... Other than a riding school that closed down over 20 years ago locally because the owner did a moonlight flit with the horses he loaned... No other horses I know of. It isn't horsey country there. Just the odd person with a horse
 
JustAnotherNeddy said:
It was the speed of the handlers that i was thinking about. Surely with all the rain, most/some footprints will be gone now and scents will have disappeared for the most part.
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If you watch search and rescue dogs in action the dogs run on and search a wide area around the path the handler takes, so they cover the area much quicker than a man. They are excellent in all terrain and search in pretty appalling conditions, often finding people lost even after fresh snowfall.

If you are interested in their capabilities go out with your local bloodhound hunt and see them hunting the scent of a man with no artifical aids. Then think that the search and rescue dogs used by the mountain rescue etc also use sight and sound and are familiar with the terrain and incredibly nimble and quick and are handled by people who are familiar with the land and spend hours and hours a week training in the area. It is quite amazing what they do, and they are volunteers!

If you want to do something to feel useful then you could try supporting the mountain rescue who normally lead searches in open country. They are an amazing bunch of people and dogs who put themselves at great risk to save people who have got into trouble in the countryside, up mountains, on cliffs and in caves and caverns.
 
Kat said:
If you want to do something to feel useful then you could try supporting the mountain rescue who normally lead searches in open country. They are an amazing bunch of people and dogs who put themselves at great risk to save people who have got into trouble in the countryside, up mountains, on cliffs and in caves and caverns.
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How would i go about and do this? I would like to do something, whether related to April or not, as i am sure this kind of thing is probably going to be on the increase with the way society is going.
 
Look up your local branch and drop them a line, many of them have facebook pages etc. They are entirely voluntary and funded by charity so they always need help, if you don't have the skills to be a member of the search and rescue team they are bound to need help with admin and fund raising etc. They also sometimes need fake victims to practice carrying them down mountains etc.
 
JustAnotherNeddy said:
How would i go about and do this? I would like to do something, whether related to April or not, as i am sure this kind of thing is probably going to be on the increase with the way society is going.
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There is a lot you can do, the Leisure centre and the briefing room in Celtica will need support, lots of people are there, needing hot drinks and food, you could volunteer to support at either of these helping feed the searchers.
 
It's not riding country tbh. On one side the mountain, where you would be scrambling up steep hills fit only for sheep, on the other side the sea. the estuary there is wild & very tidal, the roads are narrow with high banks & hedges, it's crisscrossed with streams & brooks & marshy. Very beautiful, but a terrible environment to find a lost child.
 
A friend of mine has already offered to go up (along with many others from our area) to search on horseback, ive no idea whether the offer was declined or not though.
 
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