Warning about scare devices

THE British Horse Society has asked land managers and farmers to consider equestrians by acting responsibly when placing bird-scaring devices on their land.

By The Newsroom

Published 3rd Apr 2009, 11:24 BST

Updated 8th Jun 2018, 04:14 BST

The request follows an increasing number of incidents reported to the society. While recognising the importance of bird scarers in managing arable farms, the BHS has concerns about their use near roads and equestrian rights of way, where they can frighten horses, posing a danger to riders and other users.

The advice of the National Farmers Union is to avoid positioning bird scarers adjacent to rights of way and roads, to maximise the distance of the scarer from these, and to point the scarer away from the path.

BHS Senior Executive for Access, Heather Holmes, said: "If a combination scarecrow can explode and inflate in under a second, and a horse can reach speeds of 0 to 23mph in less than three seconds, imagine the mayhem possible when the two go off together."