horses and bees dont mix

[user 6228]

Horses -dangerous things that wreck footpaths . More dangerous and do more damage to green lanes than motorbikes. (20 times more dangerous)
Dolphins - pack hunting killers
Bee - vegetarian insect that stings if threatened

 

[Beeconcerned]

Looking back at post #18, The original story was first revealed in the email from 'Keith Obbard from High Weald Beekeepers' who states that the beekeeper, who was also owner of the deceased horses, was "one of their new members". Was this a mistake? If so, I can't see how it could happen?
Re-reading the email, it seems that all that is missing is 'send this to everyone you know at the end...
Curiouser and curiouser...

Fishy and porkies? There are lots of things that don't add up in this. I wonder how many stings it takes to kill a horse and would a horse think of jumping into a pond or river to avoid bees and why would they drown if they did?

 

[region2]

No lake or drowning involved - just died of stings!

R2

 

[Der Alte Fritz]

Fishy and porkies? There are lots of things that don't add up in this. I wonder how many stings it takes to kill a horse and would a horse think of jumping into a pond or river to avoid bees and why would they drown if they did?

Well it would take one sting to kill the horse that died of anaphalatyic shock, the other horse died of heart failure so it received the same sort of number of stings as would kill a human, say 100, (in veterinary terms horses have quite sensitive systems and react quite badly to poisons, even such things as nettles).
As for the other two drowning in the lake, when horses panic they run as fast as they can in the other direction and being flight animals they run as far and as fast as they can not caring what is in the way. They will smash through fences, get entangled in barbed wire fences and rip themselves to shred or even jump in a lake, be unable to climb out and then drown from exhaustion.

There is nothing fishy or lies being told at all. But it is a common story being told down here in East Sussex where it happened and there might be people who read this forum who know the people involved. Which is why it deserves to be treated with some sensitivity, after all she was a beekeeper and if nothing else she did lose a number of her hives.

But you are missing the point. This story is very bad news for beekeepers, it is terrible press coverage and the general public will be taking away the thoughts 1)Bees are dangerous 2) Bees can kill something large the size of a horse 3) Bees should not be allowed near horses, or in gardens, or near people or near anything....

As I pointed out in the press links the Mirror and Mail are linking this story with another one called "Swarm of bees attacks shop!". In reality this story is about a swarm that attached itself to a shop window, no one was harmed, swarm collected, hack gets his photo. Bad news for bees though in the public eye.

But here is another story from last weeks local paper "Three youths in Court after fire bombing hives." Apparently one of them got stung so the three thugs returned with petrol bombs and threw them at the hives. Community services orders all round. Bad luck for the beek to lose his hives.

I just hope that this horse story does not result in some beeks a) losing their hives to local mindless thuggery or b) beeks being told to move their hives to "safer" locations or c)new beeks being discouraged from starting due to killer bee stories.

 

[Der Alte Fritz]

And here are some quotes from Horse keeper forums. :

Re: Four Horses Die After Being Attacked by Bees
Postby bascar » Tue Jun 28, 2011 1:47 pm
jebus. I was vaguely thinking just yesterday what would it take to have bees/hives/honey. That's answered that.

I wonder if the colony was taken over by Africanized bees? Apparantly, they are much more aggressive than normal bees.
A colony was just found in our town and our local beekeepers are very scared.

This happened to 2 horses in southern California couple years ago. They were african bees, not the honey bee variety. They went after the 2 horses specifically at a boarding stable and stung them until they went into shock and died. SAD SAD SAD must be scary & sickening to witness.

http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/menif ... 981cf.html

 

[DanBee]

when horses panic they run as fast as they can in the other direction and being flight animals they run as far and as fast as they can not caring what is in the way. They will smash through fences, get entangled in barbed wire fences and rip themselves to shred or even jump in a lake, be unable to climb out and then drown from exhaustion.

And they let these animals loose on the highways? What are they thinking!

It is a sad story and clearly the lack of facts lets it down. Like any tale it is growing in the retelling. Beekeepers will spot the errors (as with "swarm attacks shop") but what really concerns me is that the BBKA have let themselves be quoted as saying "bees and horses don't mix" That one comment could do so much damage for beekeeping. Compare with the reasoned quote from the vet in the Horse & Hound article mentioned earlier:

An incident like this is incredibly rare. I've never encountered anything like it, despite being a beekeeper myself," she said. "Readers should not be alarmed as individual stings are unlikely to cause major problems. In this case, the huge numbers of angry dangerousbees would have triggered a 'fight or flight' reaction.

 

[viridens]

 

[Nellie]

Valid points Der Alte Fritz. None of which were being discussed.

I actually agree with Dan that the most unfortunate element of the press coverage is the "bees and horses don't mix" quote from the BBKA.

Lazy, inaccurate reporting in the national press [about bees] is nothing new. Most journalists, let alone members of the public, couldn't tell a bee from a wasp so I'm not surprised they write the tripe they do and in this case the BBKA have given them a nice snappy soundbite to conclude to end the story with. (I've not actually read a lot of the linked stories, I didn't want the mrs to find links to the Daily Mail in my browser history.)

Stories about "killer" swarms are nothing new but most people I encounter, and I deliver talks in the local area to non Beekeepers, have a healthy scepticism for "facts" like these so in general I do think that it'll blow over but I think that quote will keep coming back.

 

[Dishmop]

Google shows Hunters Farm as a house.

 

[greatbritishhoney]

I have the greatest sympathy with the owner of the horses/bees, but can't for the life of me work out why they would have agreed to talk to the press about this.
When their story starts with "we can only guess at what happened....", it's no surprise that this story will get retold with the blanks being filled in.
Very bad news for beekeeping. And, dare I say it, I predicted the press backlash just a week or so ago. Let's hope it's a flurry of scare stories that go unnoticed.

 

[Dishmop]

No lake or drowning involved - just died of stings!

R2

have you been reading something different from us?

 

[viridens]

have you been reading something different from us?

Maybe region2 was referring to the High Weald Beekeepers' version of events.
You know, the one where the beekeeper/horse owner is a new member?

 

[Dishmop]

Ah. Then I apologise.

Getting confused. Did the bees knock the horses over and push them into the pond? and were there any ducks in the pond at the time who could give evidence.

 

[DanBee]

Getting confused. Did the bees knock the horses over and push them into the pond? and were there any ducks in the pond at the time who could give evidence.

Nobody would believe anything the ducks said. They're all quackers...


















I'll go and stand in the naughty corner with Nellie...

 

[sandysman]

Swallow thread

I'm still willing to be shot down, but not without a proper confirmed source for this 'news'.

You might be shot down if you are the swallow subject of the thread above!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[sandysman]

Swallow thread

You might be if you follow the thread above!!!!!!!!!!

I'm still willing to be shot down, but not without a proper confirmed source for this 'news'.

 

[buzzerB]

comment withdrawn as it appears to have been posted in wrong slot - pardon

 

[buzzerB]

Horses -dangerous things that wreck footpaths . More dangerous and do more damage to green lanes than motorbikes. (20 times more dangerous)
Dolphins - pack hunting killers
Bee - vegetarian insect that stings if threatened

Whearas the Human animal is always completely blameless and innocent of anything - ask any human.

Just wondering if the incident occured at night. It would account for bees behaviour and horses extreme fear??

 

[mbc]

Horses -dangerous things that wreck footpaths . More dangerous and do more damage to green lanes than motorbikes. (20 times more dangerous)
Dolphins - pack hunting killers
Bee - vegetarian insect that stings if threatened

How many vegetarians routinely eat their diploid half brothers ?( and occasionally their sisters ?)

 

[victor meldrew]

A sense of proportion is needed here
Bees can sting ! Horses panic !
Incidents of the one being killed by t'other are as rare as rocking horse manure !
Care must be taken when siting beehives (common sense applies).
Horses are dangerous animals in that once a horse decides (out of fear or whatever else) to bolt then no paltry human being can stop it . I've witnessed on more than one occasion, horses being spooked by passing traffic and the (often young female ) rider having no control over the situation ! Frightens me to death !
Horses should be handled with respect to their enormous power and not ridden in inappropriate places, likewise bees should be situated with due regard to other creatures , particularly when confined with no chance to run !
The mending of fences is to be achieved by a mutual understanding of live stock in general and I'm including the human kind
VM