Trespassers AGAIN

MrA

Well-Known Member
Feb 8, 2012
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I am so cross this morning. 3 days ago I came down the yard in the evening to find someone has obviously been in my field during the day. My ragfork had been thrown in the bushes (after they did God knows what with it) there was bottles and a shoe in Ales hay feeder, presumably thrown in as I don't think anyone would survive going in with him that he didn't know! Worst of all they had tried to kill my solar panel by putting it into Ales water. Those things survive anything haha it still works.

This morning I've arrived to a burst water pipe, 2 broken golf clubs and my wheelbarrow and fork been moved/ messed with.

I work really hard for all these items so it really upsets me when things like this happen. Guarenteed its only kids and I reckon the guy who owns the land will go round and have a word with their dads. Have a word is putting it lightly he's not someone I would want to get on the wrong side of.

That will hopefully put a stop to it but it's just not great.
 
I’d be bloody furious, a bit worried and a little bit scared. I hope the YO can have a word or three with the parents, although to be fair I doubt the parents will do anything.
 
That is soul destroying. Why do they do it. I know its every generation of kids and has happened for years but we dont seem to be able to stop it. There supposed to teach kindness and respect in schools but it never seems to get through.

The kids and young adults go into our farm yard. I usually know as they leave shed doors open or the hurdle that i have as a gate into the yard wide open. They regularly open the cellar door which isnt locked on the house and go in and pull stuff around in there, pull things out and chuck it down the garden. Our empty cottage they have smashed i think every window on now. The front door was smashed in yonks ago so we left it open so they can just walk in, yet they still insisted on smashing the remaining windows it had, ripping the blinds down. The farmhouse has had most of the windows on that done.
 
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Are you on a livery yard of sorts, what about the other horses?
This happened to me years ago and yes it was kids.
I would tell the police, you've probably cleared everything up now, but take photos next time- hoping there isn't. Did you keep the shoe?
The police here were very good, it's still criminal damage. And the parents had no idea what the children were up to.
 
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If the land owner having a word doesn't do any good then I'm another who'd report to the police. And put big signs up saying police have been informed and trap cameras are now in place so please smile for your mugshot! They won't know if there really are cameras. I hope they word with their parents is enough to stop them though.
 
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Thanks for all the replies and advice everyone. I just really want my own land one day. Can have a huge prickly boundary hedge and mind my own business.

I do feel sorry for the kids in some respects, many of them are raised in a way that I wouldn't wish upon any child. You see all the yard where I am are surrounded by gypsy camps. The local council want to make more land available to them. As with everyone you get the good and you get the bad. I cycle past one older lady from them most mornings out picking up litter off the road and she makes my heart smile.

As for sorting it our yard owner is also a gypsy, one of the good ones, very well respected and powerful around here. Some of his land is rented out to some of them to keep their horses on and he also rents his land for their businesses.

The problem with getting the police involved is things usually escalate round here. We did at my old yard and then suddenly our hay was being set fire to which I don't think is a coincidence. Not how the world should work but it is how it is.

Hopefully they won't bother coming into the fields again once he's spoken to them!
 
That is soul destroying. Why do they do it. I know its every generation of kids and has happened for years but we dont seem to be able to stop it. There supposed to teach kindness and respect in schools but it never seems to get through.

The kids and young adults go into our farm yard. I usually know as they leave shed doors open or the hurdle that i have as a gate into the yard wide open. They regularly open the cellar door which isnt locked on the house and go in and pull stuff around in there, pull things out and chuck it down the garden. Our empty cottage they have smashed i think every window on now. The front door was smashed in yonks ago so we left it open so they can just walk in, yet they still insisted on smashing the remaining windows it had, ripping the blinds down. The farmhouse has had most of the windows on that done.

That's bloody awful! I'd be really upset about that. Shame you don't have some big dogs on chains outside the cottage............................. :mad: :mad:
 
I actually ended up moving from where I was because it wasn't a one off.
Regardless of who you are and where you are from, there is no excuse for bad manners.
 
Sadly there's really no where else I can go to, not that I could still visit daily and that would suit Ale. They are bored and angry children being set a very poor example by the adults in their lives. Well the kids we have had trouble with before were maybe these ones had no excuse though! I remember getting up there before and there was a boy about 15 wandering round there crying, one of the farriers came out and had a really long chat with him and it was heartwarming really, I don't think any adult males had ever really just talked to him before.
 
I feel for you, it’s so frustrating, but you’re probably in a good position to get it dealt with, with you YO being in the know.

I had a hell of a job (not even with gypsy kids) as the police just said trespass is a civil not criminal matter, in the end how I got them to act was using my trail camera to get pictures then emailed the local police to ask if I was breaking any laws by putting the pictures I had on social media to ‘name and shame’, they quickly asked to see the pictures and offered to talk to the parents about it.
 
I am really sorry to read all this, i feel very lucky in comparison.....yes we had a nightmare at our last place but that was our bastard builder and neighbour taking revenge. But so far we don't have any issues with folks coming onto our land.
 
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Absolutely gutted. Last night someone came into the field with Ale, disconnected his battery and then opened the gate into his rested field. He's a big as a house this morning and I just feel like crying. I've tied the gate shut in the hope it would slow them down but feeling pretty unsafe up here now. Also none of the other fields targeted so what have I done. Just hoping ale doesn't colic or anything :(
 
Absolutely gutted. Last night someone came into the field with Ale, disconnected his battery and then opened the gate into his rested field. He's a big as a house this morning and I just feel like crying. I've tied the gate shut in the hope it would slow them down but feeling pretty unsafe up here now. Also none of the other fields targeted so what have I done. Just hoping ale doesn't colic or anything :(
This is so sad and annoying, can you move away from there as clearly it is becoming untenable.
 
Oh that's awful. And dangerous and spiteful. Can you padlock the gates? All our internal gates are padlocked, as well as the main gate. It just makes it, hopefully, too much effort for people to cause mischief.
 
What is the field owner saying now it is getting out of hand given he has 'influence'. I can see no point in going to the police who wont take on gypsies anyway and it may lead to an escalation unless the gypsy elders are willing to exert control and influence over their community and in some cases send them packing. Perhaps have a word with Robert Lee of the Gypsy Council
 
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Oh the little s#!ts! :mad:

I use fence tape connectors instead of handles on my front paddock, so they’re live whenever the fence is on to stop anyone opening them, it means I have to turn the fence off to go though there but I’d rather that then ponies being let out. I’ve also rigged hidden gates in the past so there was no obvious handle at all to attract attention.

Could you get one of those security boxes for your energiser/battery That the box goes live when you lock it with the key? Just in case you’re interested https://www.electric-fence.co.uk/voss-farming-anti-theft-box-safebox-incl-mounting-post.html there’s probably cheaper ones out there, I just remembered seeing these when ordering fence stuff the other week.
 
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