07/22/2024
Part 2
THE STOLEN SADDLE, PART ii:
HOW TO REPORT IT
Yesterday we talked about how to prevent anyone helping themselves to your saddles and other expensive gear. Today, we’re going to discuss what to do, should it happen.
With urban encroachment into rural areas, the ease with which strangers can gather information about with what, where and when we're going to be at horse events across the country, or away from home... along with the sheer value of quality tack, we need to be paying attention.
Chances are, you, or someone you know, has already been a victim of saddle theft.
After yesterday’s post, you’ll be better prepared. You’ll have ID’d your saddles and other gear with an identifying, permanent mark. You’ll have started a file with a list of each item, what it cost (include receipts, if possible), a written description of the item and then, you’ll have good pictures of each on file.
Immediately after noticing that something is missing, you’ll contact your local law enforcement with the above information.
Have an idea when the saddle went missing, along with descriptions of any suspicious persons or vehicles. See if the police force keeps a database with marked saddles and descriptions. Many do, along with offering marking days, which automatically adds your saddles to the existing database.
Next, realize that identifying your missing saddle, bridles, spurs or tack trunk is only one part of the solution. Now, you have to be able to prove that these items are yours.
The fact that your saddle is unique, or was custom made, may help YOU identify it as uniquely yours but none of this matters if you don’t have proof of ownership. Your pictures will need to be taken from all angles, including your permanent mark, either someplace highly visible or along the saddle's tree.
Micro-chipping can be another means of IDing a saddle but of course, it has to be read by a reader, which isn’t going to be much use if it’s sold via a marketplace ad, or from the trunk of a car at a half-lit swap meet. Where it will come in handy is that if the item is recovered by police, for they will be able to scan the chip and your proof of ownership will be revealed.
It is helpful if you have written down things like damage, prior repairs or other marks from use. Numbers that were stamped into a saddle during its making may not be actual serial numbers; they could be model numbers and aren’t always a reliable form of identification.
After reporting the theft to the local police, contact your insurance carriers through your provincial or state horse councils, if insured, or through your household policy, if your tack is separately insured. Put clear photos and contact info on posters to put up on notice boards at feed rooms, vet clinics and arenas in your area.
Post photos and facts online. Facebook is a brilliant place to get word out because you’re also wanting the net of watchful eyes in the horse business to be opened. You’re wanting to make it difficult for a thief to sell your saddle on.
While there are several things you can do to assist the speedy return of your stolen tack, the best method of defence is always going to be prevention.
Keep your equipment secure at all times. Beware showing sale saddles to prospective buyers in the location where they are usually kept. Often, online ads are an excellent way for prospective thieves to scope the joint and find out the holes in your security.
As we all know, quality tack is incredibly expensive, it’s usually something that we usually don’t plan to replace right away, at least without having the old saddle on hand to sell and refinance the new one. This means that buying and updating the insurance on your tack is a very good idea. The replacement value of saddles, bridles, stirrups, girths, bridles, breast collars and horse clothing can cost a small fortune, especially if they are custom made.
When we combine the cost of tack with all the paraphernalia of horse keeping and stable equipment—which includes the row of trailers and often, trucks, stored at the average boarding barn—we have a huge outlay of unattended assets that is a real lure to prospective thieves.
Our tack collections can take years to accumulate. Our saddles and bridles often hold huge sentimental value, beyond their obvious monetary worth. Custom made stock saddles can have brands incorporated into the carving that will act as both a deterrent to being stolen in the first place—thieves don’t usually pick something that is too unusual to easily sell on, or risk being identified—so it’s something to think about it you are about to order a maker-made custom saddle.
When we think of how carefully many of us have our saddles fitted to our horses, or the value of show-quality, bespoke bridles and bits, we begin to realize that the investment we have in our gear can very easily add up to and exceed the value of the horse!
Being the victim of tack theft, whether in person or through an online scammer, is to put oneself in a very vulnerable state. All the emotions come bubbling to the fore, along with changed plans and the very real possibility that you will not be able to replace these items, ever.
Please feel free to add your story in the comments, why you felt that your saddle or tack was noted in the first place and if you were able to recover the items in the end? There are stories of saddles being returned to their rightful owners, decades after they went missing. There is always hope! But remember...
While we're out there, enjoying our horses and gear, we never know who's watching.
