POLICE were called out three times on Sunday night after two naughty New Forest ponies learned how to cross a cattle grid.

The structures are in place to prevent the national park's free-roaming horses and cows from getting onto the A31 and injuring either themselves or drivers.

However, the ponies repeatedly crossed the grid in a bid to get to grass bordering the busy dual carriageway.

On the second call, firefighters directed hoses onto the grid to wash out some of the mud in a bid to keep the horses penned in.

But officers were forced to seal off the cattle grid altogether with police tape when called out a third time during the evening.

Officers from the Hants Roads Policing team took to Twitter to tell their followers about the troublesome pair.

A spokesperson said: “These two naughty horses kept us busy in New Forest tonight.

“They have learnt how to walk over cattle grids to access the grass on the verge of the A31.

Ringwood fire assisted us during a second call out to wash out some of the mud in the grid but the third call resulted in a taped barrier!”