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cage inside, obscure windows and fit security grilles.


Have your tack marked. Cambridgeshire Countryside Watch embosses each saddle with its own unique code, registered to you, and the phone number for the database which is held at police headquarters. This logo is put under the nearside flap to be seen every time the saddle is used. Anyone can phone the embossed


I regularly walk onto yards where the first things I see are head collars hanging on fencing, rugs laid out to air, doors swinging open and not a soul in sight. This is an invitation to a thief to check out the yard. Once I have found someone, and explained why I am visiting, they are almost invariably friendly and welcoming and, over mugs of tea, we discuss the problems of security.


Very often they have already bought nice new locks. There they are, proudly attached to the tack room door which, unfortunately, is hanging open. At one riding school, where they had suffered a tack theft, they took my advice to improve security and bought a lorry container to store their equipment. Excellent idea, but they sited it in full view of the road, next to the gate and out of view of the office and school. To cap it all, on every occasion that I visited, it was unlocked and yes, they did suffer another theft. On that occasion the tack was recovered as it was offered for sale at the nearest tack shop which had, in fact, sold it in the first place. Good for the owner, unlucky for the thief. At another yard where I had marked the tack and supplied warning signs for inside, stating that all tack was marked, they attached the signs to the outside of the tack room door! Just in case the thief couldn’t find it?


HORSE AND YARD By Ellen Muirhead - Photos by Robert Morris SECURITY


We have all read articles and advice on equine security and it is vital that we do our best to keep our yards and horses safe. Though horse theft is rare it is devastating when it happens. Even tack theft is not that common considering how much of this expensive stuff is left lying about all over the place every day.


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Thieves will prepare in advance for their ‘work’ by observing your habits and timings and deciding what to steal. They may visit your yard and, if approached, claim they are looking for scrap metal or lost dogs. Thieves scan horse ads for sales or loans which can lead them to your yard. They are adept at gaining your confidence. Be suspicious when approached and don’t give them the grand tour before checking everything. Be especially wary when putting a horse out on loan as this method of theft is becoming more common.


So what can you do? First, join a Horse Watch scheme and if there isn’t one locally, consider starting one by going to www.ukhorsewatch.org.uk. They will supply all the information you need about security hardware and systems. They will also keep you up-to-date on any local incidents and issue warnings if there are tack or horse thefts locally. Their regular communications will keep security in the forefront of your mind. Importantly, you and all the other members will be working together to make the area safer for everyone.


Always look around, when arriving or leaving, for unknown vehicles or people and note down registration numbers and descriptions. Take a photo on your mobile phone. Report anything suspicious to your local police; they would rather have a false alarm than a theft to deal with. Remember, your horses will fit into any lorry, even one labelled Furniture Removals, and a Shetland will fit in a Transit. Vary your routine and try to give the impression that someone is about, use your imagination, have a radio playing, move any cars regularly etc.


Show thieves you take security seriously and that your yard won’t be a walk-over. Keep your yard gate closed and lock it when possible. Put up signs stating that it is private property and telling visitors where to go. Use signs showing everything is security marked. Lock all rugs, equipment and wheelbarrows inside the tack/store rooms. I can’t remember how many times the owner’s wheelbarrow was used to steal the tack. Make a list of equipment serial numbers and remember where you put it! Always be vigilant.


Check hedging and fencing regularly as thieves may cut holes in it, but leave it looking intact, ready for the theft later. Notice unusual tyre marks or footprints. Gates should have hinge caps to prevent them being lifted off.


Make your tack room hard to identify and strong enough to support good locks. Fit a simple contact alarm which, when locked, shrieks if the door is opened inappropriately. The roof is often a vulnerable entry point. Fit a security


number to find out if the saddle is stolen. If legitimately sold, the saddle can be re-registered by the original owner to the new owner. Just this autumn two embossed saddles were stolen from a Countryside Watch member and sold in another county for £50 each. The new owner, realising they were worth much more than this, phoned the number on the saddle. She discovered they were stolen and the original owner was reunited with over £1,000 worth of tack. Recovery of tack, or any property, in this way can often provide the police with information and evidence for a prosecution. Don’t let thieves get away with stealing your stuff. Get it marked.


Other marking schemes involve stamping your saddle with your postcode, micro-chipping and using a DNA solution such as Smartwater. You can etch or engrave onto the stirrup bar, especially useful for synthetic saddles. Bridles and driving harness can be stamped with a postcode but ensure this is not done on weight-bearing areas.


Paint your postcode boldly onto grooming kits, rugs and wheel- barrows. Thieves hate being caught with identifiable property. Smartwater, UV pens, micro-chips, permanent markers, etching and engraving are all useful.


Store lorries and horseboxes out of sight, preferably inside a barn with something parked in front. Use a floor anchor, wheel clamp and/or hitch lock and post. Give them a personalised paint job. A


couple of years ago a horse box was stolen in Cambridgeshire. The owner had painted a gold stripe horizontally round the middle and we issued a description at about 9am. Within an hour we heard from a member that it was parked in a copse outside St. Neots. She had thought someone had parked up for a ride until she got the message and remembered the distinctive gold stripe. The box was recovered by lunchtime. Thieves often park up stolen equipment for a couple of days to see if it has a tracker, which gives a couple of days to find it before it disappears. Put a postcode strip on the roof, readable from a thousand feet by helicopter. Fit good locks and never leave tack inside.


There are two schools of thought on lighting. Many people advocate dusk-to-dawn lighting believing this will deter thieves who will not want to be seen. Motion activated lighting will only come on when someone is about. Think carefully before deciding what suits you and your yard. If there is anyone near enough and interested enough to notice and respond to motion activated lighting then it may be the right choice for you. With dusk-to-dawn lighting your yard will always be ablaze and no one will think it unusual even at three in the morning. Think carefully before spending a lot of money on CCTV and get expert advice about positioning and lighting or your intruders may be mere silhouettes on the security tape.


Thieves may approach horses beforehand to see how easily they can be caught. Women or children (looking more innocent) may give titbits, possibly drugged, in advance. Be alert to behaviour changes in your horse such as lethargy or increased drinking. Never leave head collars on horses or fences.


Help police officers, who may not know a gelding from a set of stirrup leathers, by taking good photographs of both sides of your horse including the head. Also photograph both the front, full face and the tail end. Do this in summer and winter coat. Write a good description with all distinguishing marks, Horse Watch groups provide handy forms for this, ready to give to police officers if necessary. Consider freeze-branding, micro- chipping and hoof-marking. Paint rugs with a freeze-mark number, this may prevent your horse being stolen as thieves might think it’s branded under the rug. Fortunately I’ve never had anything stolen but that doesn’t mean my relationship with horses has been incident-free. A particularly


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naughty chestnut mare with Laminitis cost me quite a lot when my neighbour said I could put her in their concrete yard, bounded by their house, for some grass- free exercise. She chewed their large, solid oak front door. Now, if she had strayed, the insurance company would have paid but as we had knowingly, and stupidly, put her in the yard they wouldn’t. With hindsight, I wouldn’t have done it but we can all be wise after the event. Don’t make a mistake with your security and regret it afterwards.


Where to find information on security equipment mentioned within this article


huntingdon@cambscw.org.uk Cambridgeshire Countryside Watch www.ukhorsewatch.org.uk Horse Watch Schemes www.stolenhorseregister.com 0870 870 7107 – info@farmkey.co.uk www.nedonline.co.uk National database of horse passports + Lost/stolen horses www.farmkey.co.uk Freeze marking www.stolenhorseregister.com Stolen Horses www.equinesecurity.co.uk Tack safes and security equipment www.bulldogsecure.com Saddle and trailer security equipment www.immobilise.com Your own property database, searchable by police www.securedbydesign.com British standard for security hardware www.datatag.co.uk Security systems for machinery and trailers www.cesarscheme.org Security systems for machinery and trailers The Ifor Williams Trailers’ database of owners/stolen trailers 01490 412626


Biography - Ellen Muirhead I am a freelance writer working for a number of publications and can provide both written and fully illustrated articles through my work with a photographer. Although now living in Cambridge (with allotments) I spent 25 years in the village of Longstowe where I kept horses, geese, chickens and numerous pets.


I have worked for Cambridgeshire Countryside Watch, since 2001 advising members on rural security and working closely with the police and NFU to support rural members. I have written many articles on


the problems of rural crime for local newspapers and Countryside Watch magazine.


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