# Discourage your invader



## alterego (Jan 27, 2013)

I have seen and heard all kinds of things intended to discourage a home invader.

Don't leave mail in your mail box when you go on vacation.

Leave a TV on so the lights flashing makes it look like some one is home.

A dog is the supposed number one detractor.

Well I have seen and thought up a few non standard detractors.

I went to my sisters house yesterday to help with hooking up a generator, as the whole area is with out power.

They have targets tapped to their front door,

Our new lab, shepherd, rotweiler puppy likes to pick up my empty shot gun cartridges and carry them up on the porch to chew the plastic. He also has picked up some deer bones from some where. We tie him up on the front porch when we leave the house so he has a 25 foot cable that allows him to stand in the middle of the porch chewing femur bones and spent shot gun shells all over the porch. 

I am not sure if a home invader would take these two ideas into consideration while walking up a porch but I think it can't hurt.

What other subtle hints do you think would send a message.


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## GTGallop (Nov 11, 2012)

Scatter clear Lego's on the floor when you go to sleep.


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## pheniox17 (Dec 12, 2013)

keep all quick to sell items out of sight, (dvds, PlayStation games etc,)

try and give the impression from the outside there is nothing inside worth the risk of a pissed off dog that has a taste for shotgun shells... let alone where those shells came from...

other suggestions, house sitter, only tell people you trust your going on holidays and to check in from time to time, and put a big dirty padlock on the electrical supply box (the most common scout tactic is to shut off power at the box, and check it the next night, most alarm systems can not last 24 hours without mains power... then make entry)


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

Dog, he has it well covered. Little Dog she does what she can.


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## pheniox17 (Dec 12, 2013)

GTGallop said:


> Scatter clear Lego's on the floor when you go to sleep.


evil evil man, you have kids lol


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## sparkyprep (Jul 5, 2013)

My family has framed targets in our front entrance area with our names on them. They are all pretty much on the bullseye. We hung them as a matter of pride and to show our shared interest in shooting. Now that I think about it, I don't think an intruder would like that sight as he entered.


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## roy (May 25, 2013)

Preditors don't generally pick targets randomly. Minimize factors that attract preditors. Maximize factors that repell them. Nothin' is 100%.


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## Meangreen (Dec 6, 2012)

GTGallop said:


> Scatter clear Lego's on the floor when you go to sleep.


I think that would fall under "Cruel and unusual punishment"


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## BamaBoy101 (Dec 9, 2013)

GTGallop said:


> Scatter clear Lego's on the floor when you go to sleep.


I prefer jacks! Painted a similar color as the flooring.


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## inceptor (Nov 19, 2012)

Meangreen said:


> I think that would fall under "Cruel and unusual punishment"


Especially if you have to get up during the night to go to the bathroom :lol:


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## nurseholly (Oct 7, 2013)

We have a clapper... clap on, clap off, the clapper...


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## Meangreen (Dec 6, 2012)

Get the family and yourself in always closing and locking windows and doors even when you're home. If you have a gate at the end of your driveway, use it. It is amazing how things as simple as keeping a gate closed even without a lock keep opportunists out. 

When I lived in Minnesota, home to the nosiest people on the planet, I placed a sign at the end of the driveway that stated, "You are now in range" people stopped coming up my driveway just to have a look. 

Invest in a really good safe. A big gun safe that weighs 800+ pounds empty, add your ammo to the bottom, all your firearms except of course your go to gun, and all your valuables. Don't forget your important paperwork and irreplaceable items like photos. I sleep well at night because I have this immobile, fireproof, little piece of mind. 

I look at home defense in layers. The outer layer is the perimeter which is surrounded by a 8 foot fence with locked gates. Inner layer has nasty plants under the windows like cactus and the windows are locked as well as the doors. The inner layer is a safe room with steel reenforced door and frame, cell phone, and me with my bad attitude.


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## Meangreen (Dec 6, 2012)

inceptor said:


> Especially if you have to get up during the night to go to the bathroom :lol:


You feel it all the way up your leg!


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## nurseholly (Oct 7, 2013)

Meangreen said:


> The inner layer is a safe room with steel reenforced door and frame, cell phone, and me with my bad attitude.


I think if we had an intruder, you would be as giddy as a school gir...


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## Meangreen (Dec 6, 2012)

nurseholly said:


> I think if we had an intruder, you would be as giddy as a school gir...


Te He


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

All he wants to ask is can I eat them. And being a heeler he is very sneaky.


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## Meangreen (Dec 6, 2012)

Smitty901 said:


> All he wants to ask is can I eat them. And being a heeler he is very sneaky.


Another great thing about a heeler is they tend to be loyal to only one person.


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## Scotty12 (Jan 5, 2013)

Rose bushes under the windows can be effective.


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## Ripon (Dec 22, 2012)

Smitty901 said:


> Dog, he has it well covered. Little Dog she does what she can.


Two Great Danes. Yeah they are babies but they got a bark that rocks! Of course they do eat about $80 a month in dog food but oh well.


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## Chipper (Dec 22, 2012)

German Shepard and looking to get a buddy for him. If he "knows" you no problems. If he doesn't don't get out of the car...

Have a sign on the door: Have a 45 and a backhoe. Will you be missed?
On the shop same thing but: Have a 308 and a backhoe.
If you get through the dog.


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## kevincali (Nov 15, 2012)

Scotty12 said:


> Rose bushes under the windows can be effective.


That's what I did to a degree. I have about 20' between my house and the street. So at the street, I planted roses. Then at my fence I planted more roses. I between the small walkway and the actual driveway where I park my cars, I planted roses parallel to the street along the street line. So anyone walking up either has to walk down the walkway, which triggers a motion sensor light, or walk down the driveway, which triggers the motion sensor. If they walk down the walkway, I hear them crunch the leaves from the mulberry tree, which also gets the dogs barking. Which is why I don't rake them up 

If they walk down the driveway, the dogs go nuts.

Same with the back yard. I have a short fence. So, not having money for a tall fence, I planted a eureka lemon (thorny) in the corner, and a blackberry (thorny) in the middle. I left the gate unblocked. When I planted the trees, I planted them so I have a clear view to that back gate. I also planted prickly pear cactus on the 10' of land I have back there. They will HAVE to be determined to go through 3 layers of cactus, a blackberry, and a lemon tree. If they make it through that, then I'll be waiting for them 

It'll be hard to STOP someone from getting over/in. But you can slow them down and influence their path of travel to your advantage.

Best of all, my roses bloom, and just look like any other rose garden, and they're edible.

The back fence looks like I just planted stuff, but everything is edible.

Other things I do, is leave junky car parts laying around. Who wants to rob a place if all they see is junk.

What I AM bad about is leaving stuff laying around. I got a free stove and the old yellow one is outside in plain view. Probably screams remodel. Or, looks like I just tore it out and threw it outside hahahaha.

I do also have a bad habit of leaving yard tools laying about.

I just make my yard look like total randomness. I make it look like I could come out any minute.

Which I AM out most of the day. When I'm home, I'm outside. In a SHTF scenario, it probably wouldn't be safe to be outside all the time. I have trees, a garden and chickens. I figure I'm a target. Kill me and take over my homestead. Hopefully the trees grow big enough to provide decent cover so I can move freely about my yard without being sniped lol

I do have a shepherd and a mutt for protection/alarm. They bark only when something is out there. They were just barking, and there were 2 dogs out on my street. Now, my dogs are quiet because there is nothing to bark at. Good dogs.

I also dont pick up all the dog poop. I leave some laying around, because a friend who used to be a thief (i didnt know until he got caught) said that he would pass on houses that had poop in the yard. Beware of dog signs weren't enough. Which reminds me. I know its Christmas, but I need to clean my yard lol


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## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

Decapitated head on a pike by the mailbox?


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## nurseholly (Oct 7, 2013)

Slippy said:


> Decapitated head on a pike by the mailbox?


I don't think the homeowners association would allow that...


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## ekim (Dec 28, 2012)

Two to the chest and one to the head should be a good discouragement!


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## retired guard (Mar 7, 2013)

How about a sign that says "Burglars welcome bring BBQ sauce."


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## nurseholly (Oct 7, 2013)

retired guard said:


> How about a sign that says "Burglars welcome bring BBQ sauce."


And a bottle of Chianti...


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## retired guard (Mar 7, 2013)

nurseholly said:


> And a bottle of Chianti...


Nah this is America BBQ and Beer!


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## nurseholly (Oct 7, 2013)

retired guard said:


> Nah this is America BBQ and Beer!


Then I guess the fava beans are out too...


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## retired guard (Mar 7, 2013)

Yes but corn on the cob is great!


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## jimb1972 (Nov 12, 2012)

GTGallop said:


> Scatter clear Lego's on the floor when you go to sleep.


I have a 9 year old that is into legos, and I am here to tell you they ain't got to be clear, red, white, blue, yellow, and green work just fine in a low light situation.


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

Bought niece's son a Lego set.

Niece's husband is not my favorite. :lol:


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## GTGallop (Nov 11, 2012)

Meangreen said:


> I look at home defense in layers. The outer layer is the perimeter which is surrounded by a 8 foot fence with locked gates. Inner layer has nasty plants under the windows like cactus and the windows are locked as well as the doors. The inner layer is a safe room with steel reenforced door and frame, cell phone, and me with my bad attitude.


^^ THIS!! ^^

So my serious answer is this.
1. I have my house and property divided into zones
a. Zone 1 is the fall back location - think the chapel at the Alamo No one is allowed into Zone 1 but family ever.
b. Zone 2 is more accessible to guests but you have to be on the guest list to get to this zone.
c. Zone 3 is the public areas of the house - Kitchen, front room, stuff like that
d. Zone 4 back yard. It gets its own zone because of the fence.
e. Zone 5 is anything accessible by anyone walking up to the house but only within arms reach. Someone looking in the front window is in Zone 5.
f. Zone 6 is the parts of the front yard that some one walking their dog may accidentally step into.
g. Zone 7 is the sidewalk and street immediately out front.
h. Zone 8 is the WHOLE STREET and other peoples yards and houses.
i. Zone 9 is anything that falls out of range
2. Each zone has a defensive position and a kill box.
3. Each zone has a method to seal off and fall back to the next zone.
4. Zones increase in priority as you fall back closer to 1. Some zones like the street can be given up easily with no material investment - there are also restrictions and legalities to consider until you hit about Zone 5.
5. The house maintains a "Grey-Man Lives Here" appearance. It is a tan house with a red tile roof and a cactus out front - just like every other house in Phoenix.
6. Trash - especially product boxes (like big screen TV, or other attention getting products) are eviscerated and put in the recycle. Nothing with my name and or address makes it to the trash - even junk mail is shredded. Recycle is either burned (legally and unobtrusively) or it is put in a garbage bag with water to turn it into slop. Trash usually gets a little ammonia or bleach poured in (for germ control) before it goes to the curb. That also acts as a deterrent for snoopers (as if the bag of Dog $#!+ wasn't enough?). You can learn a lot from a man's trash - you will learn that I hate you for snooping in my trash.
7. Cars are backed in with no plates on the front. Windows tinted and nothing left in sight.
8. House windows have solar screens that make viewing the inside difficult.
9. I vary my schedule. Anyone watching the house would have a hard time pinning down when I'm coming and going. Some times I leave and go around the block and come right back to the house (Crazy Ivan) before going on to my destination. Any time I'm going two places and the house is in between them, I will go out of my way to pass through the neighborhood and pull into my driveway.

There are other things too but that's high level strategy.


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## jesstheshow (Nov 18, 2013)

We have a privacy fence all around our house. Inside of that privacy fence is a Siberian Husky and an Irish Wolfhound, trained well 
Most of the windows are hard to get into, other than the ones on the front and back porch... But, you know, you gotta get past Kaiser and Fergus.
Once you get in, if you get in, you'll have to answer to my husband, our arsenal, and I.

One of us is always home and if we are gone for an extended amount of time, I'll let my brother stay at my house. Its like his vacation home.


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## Meangreen (Dec 6, 2012)

Denton said:


> Bought niece's son a Lego set.
> 
> Niece's husband is not my favorite. :lol:


I feel the same way about my brother-in-law, got their kids a drum set.


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## alterego (Jan 27, 2013)

I do the crazy Ivan also. I recently caught on to a neighbor driving down and turning around at the end of our private drive so he could scope out our property to go push deer through my woods and onto the neighbor farm where he has permission to hunt. It was inconvenient for me as I had to get to my combine to run corn. But I knew something was a little off when I seen him go past the intersection when he left his driveway and turned around in mine. I was two miles down the road when I turned around. Went home grabbed my favorite modern sporting utensils and went over the hill on my fence row, to find five ass holes pushing my woods. Strong language was used.


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

Meangreen said:


> I feel the same way about my brother-in-law, got their kids a drum set.


Thanks for the idea! 
Today is a great day for 2014 Christmas shopping.


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## StarPD45 (Nov 13, 2012)

WHAT?!!
No punji sticks? :twisted:


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## PaulS (Mar 11, 2013)

StarPD45 said:


> WHAT?!!
> No punji sticks? :twisted:


Unless you have knee deep water the punji sticks aren't worth much. They are easily defeated with hard soled boots. I prefer leg hold and waist/chest hold traps. Basically a hole in the ground with stakes angled down and toward the center. You are not injured until you try to get out. That's when it gets gory. Between those and various rakes you can set a pretty good perimeter from the edge of any cover on your property to within a few yards of your home. Add to that some electrically triggered pipe mortars and a few good dogs and you may never get to fire a shot.


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