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Old September 21, 2020, 09:28 PM   #51
stephen426
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@Tactical Jackelope,

Better to let your dogs roam free. Only a very determined intruder will mess with a dog. Most bad guys will just move on to another house where they don’t risk getting bit.
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Old September 22, 2020, 12:04 PM   #52
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Dogs are the best. My brother once lived on top of a hill and was walking down to pickup his children being dropped off by the bus. Suddenly as the bus left a car he never saw before pulled up next to his kids. His dog took off and stood between the car and the kids. Then, there was time when a friend was being watched by his grandmother when he was young. There was a knock on the door. As the grandmother opened the door, a man forced his way in grabbing the old woman by the throat. The dog leaped up and grabbed the assailant by the throat without breaking the skin and held him until the police came. Lastly, I grew up in Berkeley as the neighborhood was changing for the worse. My two brothers were beat up often. I was only in kindergarten and some neighborhood boys would pick me up by the legs like an animal and frisked my for money. I'd run into the back yard for safety when I could. Those kids hated the dog. They threw broken class and and poison into the yard to try and kill it. We eventually moved.
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Old September 22, 2020, 11:03 PM   #53
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Feel very safe. Cellular Alarm service calls police in two minutes, police arrive in four. Glock 19 with 7 mags in living area. 1911, 45AR, and 12ga in bedroom. If I'm reloading or fishing tackle maintenance in basement - safe always open and a plethora of pistol, revolver, AR, and shotgun available.
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Old September 23, 2020, 09:56 AM   #54
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Guns and ammo I see as pretty much worthless for making a home or house safe unless someone is home to use them. What makes a home safe? A good security system which is well backed up. Sensors for things like smoke, fire, gas, flood, intrusion and about anything else you can think of. While securing weapons and all valuables in a safe doesn't hurt. Good systems have backup with an emphasis on backup power. Who and how a security system notifies is a user preference. Personally I am good with police and fire and of course myself (family). I like dogs also, have one who would welcome anyone and another who actually does his job of barking (big dog) and intimidating through a window well. Charlotte the female golden will welcome anyone.

I guess some of this also comes down to how safe do you feel in your home? Then what can you do to make your home safer and not just from intruders.

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Old September 23, 2020, 01:01 PM   #55
BJung
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You should consider this.

My cousin lives in the Oakland Hills which was considered a safe area because mostly white collar middle class families lived there compared to East Oakland. But, it has gotten worse.

My cousin is a pharmacist and returned home one night. Three men were waiting for him in his house. I won't mention race because that's not PC. They beat the heck out of him and ransacked his house and got his atm password. My cousin was hospitalized and the three mean got away. I think they didn't return because - it is assumed - one of the cased the house by driving by. My brother happened to be there helping clean up, stared at the guy, showed him two fingers shaped like a gun, and the person just drove off. Later, there were two old couples gardening in their backyard. Two men just walked into their backyard, roughed up the old couple and burglarized and robbed them. And last, there was a family having a birthday party. I overheard two vendors at a grocery store talking about this. These guys walked into the party and told the parents they'd shoot the kids unless they paid up. There is a serious lack of respect in the Country. It was better and safer in the Past.
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Old October 1, 2020, 12:10 AM   #56
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I feel pretty safe. Small old, rundown house out in the country, a dozen miles from a small town, I have no wealth to flaunt, newest car is 2006 with a bashed in door and a mirror held on with duct tape. half a dozen non running cars & truck for "lawn ornaments"...

Haven't mown the "lawn" in years, haven't had a lawn since wife's "evil" brother cut off the irrigation water, and he's been dead now several years, so I raise cheat grass and goatheads, as much as God grows here...

Simply put, there's nothing here worth stealing, so we get left alone. Nearest neighbor is several hundred yards away, across a canyon...we haven't ever had any trick or treaters in the 40 years I've lived here.

Not for everyone, but it works for me...I don't care about appearances.
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Old October 1, 2020, 10:28 AM   #57
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Not for everyone, but it works for me...I don't care about appearances.
Since it only needs to work for you that's a good thing. The only person you need to make happy is you (and a wife when we have one).

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Old October 2, 2020, 07:59 AM   #58
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I live in the country on acreage surrounded by tall trees, my location makes it difficult to case or perform surveillance. Not real concerned except the odd psycho pulling in off the highway.
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Old October 2, 2020, 08:21 AM   #59
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I am not connected to them but I have one and have given 5-6 to others. www.faketv.com
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Old October 2, 2020, 09:26 PM   #60
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My oldest brother lived in the country just outside a City. I figured that his house was the safest place here. I stored extra ammo and guns in his garage for him just in case I couldn't make it there but other friends and family could for some un-foreseen catastrophe. But, one of the CA fires burned down his house. The heat was so great that the engine blocks melted and his gun safes burned through. His guns in my small fire safe was fine but the safe wasn't salvageable. The ammo in it went bad from the heat and bulged the safe. I ended up taking a circular saw and cutting a hole in it to remove the contents. It wasn't hard. On an old hard-drive I have a photo of a 50cal can blown out with holes in it like swiss cheese. It would have been better to bury it yards away from any structure underground. Something important to keep in mind.
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Old October 3, 2020, 02:40 PM   #61
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I live in a good neighborhood, but it is accessible to anyone and it's not far off a major commercial corridor. Due to a burglary years ago when we lived in another house, the backyard is open to viewing from the street (we live on a corner). There's a street light across the street from our backyard and one in front of our house. We have three sets of motion-activated lights and a monitored alarm system (complete with a sign announcing that). None of this guarantees security, but it is enough to encourage the average burglar to go somewhere else. And, I don't advertise that I own guns. My family and a couple of friends know I own guns and that's it. No reason to waive a flag.

When gone, we don't have a fake TV, but we do have timers on some of our lights.
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Old October 3, 2020, 03:50 PM   #62
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I think a good monitored alarm system is worth the $30.00 a month. A couple of false alarms had a Deputy here in around 10 minutes both times.
The young attractive female deputy was attracted to my accent! And after we talked a bit on Glocks, dropped the charge.
A couple of reasonably sized signs from the alarm company adorn the lawn.
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Old October 4, 2020, 09:35 PM   #63
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Double K View Post
This is not my video but it's illustrative of what Rat terriers are like, there just big enough to really raise hell and still be somewhat harmless, 2-4 of them will command the full attention of several strangers without a doubt. I like to hunt deer with a bow, a couple of them can find a wounded or dead deer in a matter of minutes usually.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQQMVwnkvzc
I will second Double K on rat terriers. We had one for 11 years. He was the most neurotic dog we've ever owned, but he was protective of the house. He wasn't much of a barker unless somebody was actually at the door, but if somebody passed near his hackles were up and he growled. He was also my heart dog - slept by the door while I was on the road.
Now we have a corgi/cattle dog mix. He's more of a barker, but sleeps in the bedroom with us and doesn't get up unless there is something untoward outside.
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Old October 6, 2020, 09:43 AM   #64
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My dog is the first alarm. He hates blackbears. I have one living in the water shed.
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Old October 6, 2020, 09:50 AM   #65
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Amen. A dog is a early warning system NOT a defensive weapon.
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Old October 6, 2020, 11:49 AM   #66
BJung
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Some dogs are. I had a classmate who told me a story of when he was a boy and watched a man grab his grandmother by the throat and force his way into the house. The german shepherd leaped up and grabbed the man by the throat until the police came. Exception of course. I think alarms and dogs are limited. Dogs can be shot. The police can ignore alarms. With technology, you can video monitor your house so you can phone the police or your 2nd Amendment supporting friends. Too bad there isn't a service called 1-800-My-THUGS. You phone them and they'll take care of the burglar. My younger brother had a friend who stole parts from cars until he was caught by the owner and beat up. He never stole again.
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Old October 8, 2020, 02:44 AM   #67
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Nothing makes any place “safe”. There is risk mitigation and deterrence. Change procedures. Harden your home visibly. Change the door screws and install steel plating on the lock side of the frame. Improve the locks. Your local PD can do an assessment and has advice on their website. Add software that sends messages to your phone. Add exterior cameras.

Next, you should do what Jeff Cooper did and install a steel door with widely spaced bars that you can shoot through. He put his at the entrance to his bedroom at the end of a hallway. You may want to put one in a similar location. The rear glass patio door is essentially an open door. A simple wood dowel in the channel makes it more difficult to open, but the material is breakable. Change it to an impact resistant material and upgrade the lock. Thorny bushes should be laced under ground floor windows.

Finally, never open the door for people you do not know! Engage them through a side door, window or intercomm. Add a steel storm security door and keep it locked! Even if you do open the door, you still have a barrier.
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Old October 8, 2020, 04:47 PM   #68
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Wondering at what point does my home stop being a home and start being some sort of fortress? Residential neighborhood I figure make my home more difficult of as target than the other 19 homes on the block. I see too many inner city homes which with all the bars on windows and doors become more like a fortress than a home. I have no desire to live in a fortress. When I feel that unsafe in my own home I figure it's time to move.

Ron
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Old October 11, 2020, 08:44 PM   #69
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Quote:
Wondering at what point does my home stop being a home and start being some sort of fortress?
About the time you let it. Otherwise you're just you being you.
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