Myra and Michael Tailby awoke Sunday morning to find their horse float and caravan spraypainted in black with the words “move me”, along with squiggly lines and an offensive drawing. 

They called local police at 8.30am and the call was diverted to Tamworth, before being told no-one would be on shift in Gunnedah until 3pm. 

Gunnedah Duty Inspector Paul Johnston said the Sunday morning shift was withdrawn around October  after calls by council early last year to ensure the doors of the Gunnedah station were open between 8am-5pm Monday to Friday. 

It followed concerns by the community that the doors were shut on some occasions. 

“We had to withdraw a shift on Sunday and that was due to operational staffing numbers,” Inspector Johnston said. 

If there was a major incident on a Sunday morning, officers from outer areas or off duty would be recalled.

In two to three weeks however, the Sunday shift is expected to resume with the appointment of two new officers which will bring the station to full strength. 

Police said the reason the job may not have been attended to earlier was because there may have been other higher priority jobs. 

The Tailbys say they will now have to install security cameras around their Marion Street home to deter potential offenders. 

They described the graffiti  attack as a “low act”. 

“Mum and dad have lived in that same house for 50 years and I never thought I’d have to get a new security system and we’re not happy about it,” Mr Tailby said. 

“They’ve worked their guts out.

“For some cowards to do that under the cover of darkness, they’re just low lives.”

Myra said even though the graffiti had been removed, the spraypaint was still slightly visible on the van and float.

She and Michael believed the target was the caravan, but police said it was parked on the street in a legal way.