News - BHS Advises Horse Owners to be Vigilant
BHS Advises Horse Owners to be Vigilant
The BHS is advising horse owners to be vigilant and take the necessary precautions to ensure the safety of their horses and equipment.
There have been many reports over the last few days of stolen horses and people acting suspiciously around horses. Internet forums are abuzz with speculation and text messages reporting incidents have been circulating widely. Such incidents invariably involve photographs being taken of horses in the field and unknown individuals showing an undue interest in particular animals. Whilst such activities in themselves may not appear to be suspicious, the descriptions of vehicles and the people involved are remarkably consistent.
In many cases, the veracity of the reports is hard to confirm and there is no doubt that there are many false rumours circulating. There are no police records for a number of the alleged horse thefts and it appears that at least some of the text messages involved are not genuine. However, there is sufficient consistent and confirmed information to be of concern for all horse owners.
The BHS is advising people not to panic but to remain vigilant and take extra steps to ensure their horses remain safe. There are many simple precautions that can be taken.
Horse owners are advised to ensure their fields and property are secured to make the removal of horses more difficult. Such precautions must be sensible and not put the horses at risk in the event of fire. Tack and other equipment should be locked safely away and, where possible, kept at a separate location to the horses.
Horse owners are advised that it is a good idea to vary the times of their visits to their horse and to have an unpredictable routine. Where possible, owners should work together to keep an eye on one another’s horses and it may be useful to ask friendly local residents to join in.
Freeze-marking and microchipping are both excellent deterrents to horse theft although, as microchips are not externally visible, signs should be displayed to advertise that horses are microchipped. Tack and other equipment can also be chipped or marked to prove ownership.
BHS Welfare Senior executive Lee Hackett said, “We absolutely do not want people to panic or over-react to what are, in many cases, unsubstantiated rumours. However, there are certainly some grounds for concern and horse owners should take this opportunity to review their security measures. If this furore causes horse owners to take more precautions then it will at least have one very positive outcome”.
The BHS advises anybody who observes suspicious activity around horses to note down as much detail as possible and report it to the police. Time, date, vehicle registration details and descriptions of any persons involved are particularly helpful.
BHS Welfare are happy to offer further security advice to anybody who requests it.
For more information please contact Lee Hackett on 01926 707804 or email l.hackett@bhs.org.uk
