If positive action is taken you can substantially reduce the chance of your home being the subject of a burglary. The more you can do to dissuade a prospective thief - the safer you are.

Dogs
Sometimes a dog can be a deterrent, however most dogs are family pets and are not properly trained to be guard dogs, so please don't use them as your sole deterrent. Generally burglars don't relish the thought of being disturbed by the house holder and usually burgle unoccupied houses. You can convince a burglar someone is in the house by using plug in timers to randomly switch lights on and off throughout your home. Radios can be connected to such devices to provide `lived in` sounds to dissuade unwanted visitors. Chat channels are better than music channels for this application.

In the Garden
It is important to stop burglars and prowlers from wandering around your garden. Mother nature can help solve many security problems, a hedge made from prickly bushes would deter most thieves and prickly climbers placed near to walls would stop most of our unwanted visitors climbing over. Drain pipes giving access to flat roofs and windows can be protected with anti climbing paint, but a nice rambling rose can do a wonderful job.

Don't forget the garage or shed. Valuable electrical items should really be best stored in the home. A good quality hasp and staple with a padlock is important on all sheds and side doors to garages. Always lock cycles to something fixed or bulky and if possible have them post coded. Many cycle dealers provide this service for a small charge.

And please don't leave spades, ladders and the like lying around the garden and they provide a prospective burglar with handy tools to use when burgling your home.

Burglary Prevention Advice
Burglary, on the whole, is an opportunist crime. A burglar will select his target because it offers him the best opportunity to carry out his crime undetected and with the fewest number of obstacles in his way, the list below shows what a burglar is looking for in a prospective home to burgle.

Side gates open.
Milk bottles or parcels on the doorstep.
Newspapers and mail in the letter box .
Unlit houses after dark.
All windows shut in very hot weather.
Accessible windows open.
Ladders left out outside.
Garden tools available to force entry.
Untrimmed hedges offering natural surveillance.

 

Each of these makes access to the building far simpler.

Remove the Opportunity - Prevent the Burglary.