Warnings have been sent out to horse owners in Cornwall after a pony was 'tagged' last week.
Abbie Rowe went to collect her daughter's pony from a field belonging to the Lower Bussow Livery Farm near St Ives last Tuesday as the pony was being sold. But she noticed the mane had been plaited with an intricate design.
Mrs Rowe said: "I immediately panicked because I knew such signs are used by horse thieves to mark out specific animals that can then be stolen. I called the police and, with the owner of the livery farm, we quickly moved all 11 horses in that field to two other fields close to his house.
"My daughter's pony was an easy target – Draco is very small and could even be taken away in a van."
Since then, with the help of the Horsewatch scheme, laminated signs have been put up around the farm urging owners to be vigilant and take precautions for their animals' safety, while extra chains and bolts have been purchased to make the fields and paddocks more secure.
Before the incident, two women, one in her late 40s and the other in her late 50s, had been seen on two occasions in the field containing the horses.
PC Darren Saint stressed that no criminal act had taken place, but urged anyone who saw anything suspicious, to contact police on 101.