Crackdown on horse-related crime

Equine crime costs hundreds of thousands of pounds each year

Horse owners are being urged to mark their property under a crime reduction scheme in Kent.

Mid-Kent officers have launched a "chip your tack" campaign to cut thefts at stables and riding schools.

The property marking scheme involves fitting saddles and bridles with hi-tech microchips, a spokesman said.

Last year, a website was launched in Sussex to tackle horse-related crime. Horses and tack worth hundreds of thousands of pounds are stolen yearly.

On Sunday, horse owners in Sussex appealed after five horses were stolen from a field. Each animal would have been worth up to £2,000.