The British Horse Society is advising horse owners to be vigilant and take the necessary precautions to ensure the safety of their horses and equipment.

The BHS has received many reports over the last few days of stolen horses and people acting suspiciously around them. Internet forums are buzzing with speculation and text messages reporting incidents have been circulating widely.

These incidents usually involve photographs being taken of horses in fields with unknown individuals showing a high level of interest in particular animals. While such activities in isolation may not appear suspicious, the descriptions of the vehicles and of the people involved are remarkably consistent.

In many cases, the reliability of the reports is hard to confirm and there is no doubt that many false rumours are circulating. There are no police records for a number of the alleged horse thefts and it appears that at least some of the text messages involved are not genuine. However, there is sufficient, consistent and confirmed information to cause concern to all horse owners.

The BHS is advising people not to panic but to remain vigilant and take extra steps to ensure their horses remain safe. There are many simple precautions that can be taken.

Horse owners are advised to ensure their fields and property are secured to make the removal of horses as difficult as possible. Such precautions must be sensible and not put horses at risk in the event of fire. Tack and other equipment should be locked safely away and, where possible, kept at a separate location to the horses.

Horse owners are advised that it is a good idea to vary the times of their visits to their horse and to have an unpredictable routine. Where possible, owners should work together to keep an eye on one another's horses and it may be useful to ask friendly local residents to join in.

Freeze-marking and microchipping are both excellent deterrents to horse theft although, as microchips are not externally visible, signs should be displayed to advertise that horses are microchipped. Tack and other equipment can also be chipped or marked to prove ownership.

BHS Welfare Senior Executive Lee Hackett said: "We absolutely do not want people to panic or over-react to what are, in many cases, unsubstantiated rumours. However, there are certainly some grounds for concern and horse owners should take this opportunity to review their security measures. If this furore causes horse owners to take more precautions then it will at least have one very positive outcome".

The BHS advises anyone who observes suspicious activity around horses to note down as much detail as possible and report it to the police. Time, date, vehicle registration details and descriptions of any persons involved are particularly helpful.

BHS Welfare will be happy to offer further security advice to anyone who requests it.

For further information please contact: Lee Hackett Senior Executive Welfare, The British Horse Society, 01926 707804 or email l.hackett@bhs.org.uk