Northamptonshire Police say they are stepping up patrols in rural areas after a number of houses were targeted by burglars over the weekend.
Businesses and homes across the county have also fallen victim to thieves, with two quad bikes and a Landrover Defender taken from a farm in Higham Ferrers near Wellingborough, and a number of catalytic converters have been stolen from the Kislingbury area in the past week.
Police are asking residents to take precautions to help prevent crime.
These include: Getting tack, saddles and accessories marked so they are identifiable and less attractive to thieves.
Ensure valuable tack and saddlery is stored in a secure and locked location, and if it is valuable, consider taking it home to store.
When leaving your yard, double-check it is firmly locked.
If possible, install crime prevention products like CCTV and alarms.
Never reveal details of where you keep your horse and saddlery if approached by a stranger.
Use freeze-marking or hoof-branding to make horses and ponies identifiable. In July 2009 legislation was introduced to make microchipping compulsory for all foals born after this date.
Older horses do not have to be microchipped but this doesn’t prevent you from doing this so ask your vet for more details. Once the microchip is registered, the Police, RSPCA, Council Inspectors, vets or any other persons who may check for a microchip can consult the databases to find its owner.
For future reference, take photographs of your horses and expensive equipment. This will make it easier to make a positive identification if they are stolen.
Make sure you report any suspicious activity to police on 101. Always call 999 to report a crime in progress.
If you do witness any suspicious activity, make a note of vehicle registration numbers, makes and models and pass them to a police officer.
The next tack marking event is on Wednesday, 12 November, when the Daventry Rural Safer Community Team will be at H O E Country Feeds Limited at Swan Farm Buildings, Charwelton Road, Preston Capes. It will run from 9am to 5pm. Officers will be doing tack marking and giving out catalytic converter marking kits and general crime prevention advice.