The owner of horses who were repeatedly chased by a dog in their field wants other riders to know what is possible under the law, as a control order has been imposed on the dog’s owners.
Devon & Cornwall Police has issued the order, under which the dog must be under control at all times and including a requirement to secure its home property to prevent its escape.
Kirstie McPherson told H&H she was terrified to turn her horses out in the field she rents, after her home-bred two-year-old and his dam both suffered tendon injuries. She also had to send back a pony she had on loan for her autistic son, for fear he might be injured too.
“I’m doing this to highlight to people what steps they can take to protect their animals,” she said. “People should know that this is a crime.”
Kirstie said she first realised there was an issue early this year when her horses went through the electric fence, something they had never done previously. She installed cameras to try to find out what was happening.
“I found my two-year-old looking like he’d broken his leg,” she said. “It was the worst thing you could ever see. I phoned the vet, expecting they would have to put him down, but they said it was a tendon injury and he must have been chased to the point he injured it.
“We put him on box rest and put a rescued Dartmoor we had back out. We didn’t realise until that night, when I saw a dog on the camera chasing him, what had happened.”
Kirstie said she saw the dog jumping into its owners’ garden, so went to speak to them but nothing changed.
“I warned them but a couple of weeks ago, I found my boy’s dam looking like she’d broken her leg,” she said. “The fencing was down and the dog was in the field.
“I posted on local social media asking if anyone had a contact for local police who might go and speak to them, and someone said, ‘Call 101 as it’s a crime now.’”
H&H reported that the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) Act came into effect on 18 March. It gives police more powers to deal with dog attacks on livestock, including horses.
New dog law: more protection for horses
“If the dog’s found in the field again, it’s in breach of the order and the owners can be prosecuted,” Kirstie said. “It’s been an absolute nightmare. But I didn’t realise it was a crime, so I thought it was good to highlight to other people that if their horses are being worried by dogs, things can be done. The police were absolutely brilliant.”
A Devon & Cornwall Police spokesperson told H&H: “The dog control order says that the dog must be under control at all times and there is a requirement to secure its home property to prevent its escape.” Should the order be breached, he added, “action could be taken, including considering prosecution.”
British Horse Society (BHS) safety team manager Des Payne told H&H when the amended legislation was approved that there were still some issues it did not address, such as clarification that it covers horses while being driven or ridden.
“While it’s encouraging to hear that some police are using the additional powers they have available to them, it’s still so early to truly know the impact the bill will have on the equestrian community moving forwards,” he told H&H this week.
“Continuing to log incidents on the BHS Horse i App is vital and I would encourage those who have to use your incident reference number to update us with any outcomes once an investigation is concluded, which will provide us with a valuable insight on how the bill is being enforced.”
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