Keeping your home safe during the holidays

[TanksHill]

I'll step outside & close the door to speak with them (right after they see the barking, snarling dogs, of course, heehee).

aint that right. usually i'll let the dogs out and call to the strangers "just stay in your truck" like i cant call the dogs back... that usually gets 'em

;-)

Ohh I am so gonna use that one!!!

 

[Wifezilla]

OD is a demon. the UPS guy HATES coming to our house - and not because of the dogs

We had an Irish Setter who was kind of a runt, but very fast. She was the friendlies dog in the world EXCEPT for the UPS truck. I don't know if one of the drivers kicked at her when we weren't home once or what, but that little thing thought it was her mission in life to hunt down and kill that truck. She would hear it coming dow the highway and take off so fast you couldn't grab her. We would have to chase after the truck to where ever it stopped so we could get a hold of her collar before the guy hopped out of the truck.

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

Then I started panicking, thinking it was poison. I have a bit of an overactive mind fro too many crime shows on TV tongue

nah - its a good thing to think about. i've always trained our dogs that food only comes from my hand.

i've had people try and give them treats but i just give the person a mean look and say "we dont give treats" or "he wont eat it from you" and then glare at the dogs with that "thats mine dont touch it" look.

but yep you were wise to be creeped out.

and remember to say "he aint lickin' you friend - he's TASTING you" if your dog acts friendly
;-)

 

[Javamama]

My dog does not act friendly usually. In fact i can only think of one instance where someone entered the yard and she didn't go ballistic - and it was Karen (from here at SS!) and her hubby. Dog did finally bark after I said "she didn't even bark at you!"
My dog is part greyhound and can make it across long distances at a scary pace. I love it.

 

[i_am2bz]

A few years ago, DH had a broken-down van parked in the back yard, & asked a mechanic he knew to come look at it to see if it was fixable. The guy didn't come to the door, but walked around the house to the backyard. I was so proud of my Topaz (so named because she's a jewel)...she was sitting out on the deck, when this stranger (to her) walked thru the yard, she zoomed to the railing, sat back on her haunches, bared her teeth, & snarled & growled like she was going to rip this guy's throat out! You should have seen the guy's face - turned 3 shades of white before tearing out of here! All I could do was crack up & give her a big hug - she is the sweetest, friendliest dog, actually very submissive - but she knows her job!

 

[abifae]

Note to self.... If I am ever in Co. steal Abi's silks.

 

[Beekissed]

I'm sort of like Abi....I have nothing worth stealing. Most of the time my house is unlocked and the keys are in my truck out in the driveway anyway. Actually, I'm kind of hoping someone steals THAT hunk of junk!

It kind of pays to live in the nosiest place in the universe...even if someone did enter my house unbeknownst to me, my neighbors would be spying on them, folks driving by would be gawking at them and they would be telling the whole county before I ever even found out.

The county mounties would be cruisin' the place with spotlights and filing reports for DAYS....scanner needles would be tipping over and CBs would be buzzing...all before I ever knew anything had happened.

Thank God for rural neighbors!

 

[Denim Deb]

And I live on the last house on a dead end street w/the woods next to me. So, they'd either have to come down the street and hope no one is home, or go thru the woods and try and figure out a way to get the stuff out of there.

 

[SKR8PN]

Our first line of defense is all three neighbors, their eyes and their dogs. My shop is here at the house, so the cars in the driveway are in a constant rotation. A burglar would be hard pressed to figure out if I am home or not, simply by looking at the driveway. Once they do enter either drive, I have a driveway alert system that goes off, and all three dogs KNOW the difference when it says "Shed", "North" or "South", and they head to the appropriate windows to check it out and voice their disapproval. If the burglar gets past all those, then the house, shop and shed are all wired to the main alarm system. I am seriously considering adding a video surveillance/recording system next.

Oh ya.....the homeowner is always armed as well.



On a side note: There was a tragic fire in a mobile home park, just west of here, last week. Three children died, the parents survived. A couple of days after the children's funeral, they discovered that the burned remains of the trailer had been broken into and lots of still usable items stolen. In the same article, they also mentioned that a collection jar set up to help that same family, had been stolen off the counter of a local convenience store.

 

[Javamama]

I saw about the fire SKR8PN. How terribly sad and I have no words I can use here for the people who broke in

Our neighbors would be more likely to call the police on us than on a criminal. I know from experience :/