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The security benefits of having a Pet

Pets bring joy into our lives and there is no doubt about that. Even though some may be high maintenance, all of them are equally lovable.

People in the UK love pets with 41% of households having some sort of animal become a part of their family.

Dogs are the most popular pets making up more than half of the aforementioned statistic. Cats are not so far behind, followed by rabbits, indoor birds, guinea pigs, hamsters, tortoises, and turtles.

They are mostly kept in homes in both cities and rural areas such as on a farm and provide their owners with several benefits. Their mere presence helps lower stress levels and aids in treating a number of health conditions.

In addition to becoming really good friends and companions, pets also provide their owners with quite a few security benefits. The level of security depends a lot on the type of pet in question. You can’t expect the same level of security from a guinea pig as you would from a dog.

Read on to find out the security benefits of having a pet, the best pets for the purpose, and additional security measures you can take to maximise your security.

SECURITY BENEFITS OF HAVING A PET

All pet owners know there are countless benefits of having a pet. One of the most important reasons why people keep pets in the first place is the security benefits that they provide.

Let’s look at how your pet can help make your property secure and keep criminals at bay:

Physical deterrence

Sometimes all it takes for potential criminals to take a house off of their target list is the presence of a pet on the property. If it is a strong, well-trained animal like a security dog, you can sleep in peace knowing they’ll stay as far away as possible.

Certain breeds of dogs, with their looks, size, strength, and personal weapons in the form of sharp teeth and claws, are highly effective and infamous for protecting their owners and their property at any cost, which is why it is best to not mess with them.

Noise

Much like the alarm of a security system, the noise made by your pet, even if it is a small one, is enough to scare any intruders away from your property and alert you and the neighbours of the suspicious activity.

Most dogs, when confronted by a stranger, bark in anger to scare them away or to simply get their attention. In either case, it is enough to alert the people nearby that uninvited people are paying a visit.

Loyalty

The love and care that you give to your pet never go in vain. Some pets, such as dogs, are known to be the epitome of loyalty and do not think twice before putting down their lives for their owners.

They love you back tenfold and develop a sense of territorial instinct considering you, your family, and your home theirs. This isn’t just limited to dogs, though their level of love and loyalty is largely unmatched.

Intelligence

Animals are intelligent creatures and can be taught to act in a certain way using the proper techniques and training.

Most pets such as dogs, if trained properly, can pick up on discrepancies in their surroundings such as certain words, voices, and body language. They can evaluate situations to understand what is a threat and what isn’t.

BEST PETS FOR SECURITY PURPOSES

Deciding on which pet you want all comes down to your preference and why you need them, considered that you have the ability and means to care for them. Read these UK laws governing the protection of pets.

If you wish for your pet to add an extra layer of security to your property, you need to choose one that is fit for the job. For instance, cats are the second most common household pet in the country but do not add much security-wise.

Here is a list of pets best suited for security purposes:

Dogs

Considered man’s best friend, dogs have been used for security purposes for years. They are the first animal that comes to mind when you think of personal or property security.

Kept in houses, as well as in farms to protect livestock, dogs are considered one of the best protectors out there. Since there are thousands of different breeds of dogs, all varying in appearance and nature, some are more suited to become security dogs than others.

The top five breeds ideal for security purposes are German Shepherd, Rottweiler, Doberman, Akita, and Rhodesian Ridgeback.

Parrots

Parrots are talkative and just love to create a ruckus. They can pull a couple of tricks such as learning how to bark, which can be super useful in scaring away and confusing intruders who’ll be looking for and scared of a non-existent dog on the property.

They are also extremely territorial and do not entertain the idea of strangers in their house. They can’t put up a fight but they can fly into burglars’ faces startling and scaring them away.

For the types of parrots who can talk, you can train them to alert you using certain words every time a strange face appears anywhere near your property.

Geese

Anyone who’s been chased by geese knows what we’re talking about. They are extremely territorial and temperamental, and you can’t throw them a treat to distract them as you would try for a dog.

With their incredible hearing and razor-sharp eyesight, geese can spot an intruder even better than a dog, and once they go into their aggressive mode, there’s no easy way to calm them down.

Extremely territorial and loud, geese are a great addition to both homes and farms with their chasing and pecking enough to frighten intruders and compel them to stay away for good.

Llamas

Though they may not look very intimidating, llamas are great livestock guardian animals who protect the herd from burglars and other animals such as stray dogs and wolves. They are extremely territorial and can be trained to protect people and property as well.

When aroused and angry, llamas spit at their opponents and charge at them with their head hanging low, usually accompanied with a unique growling sound. If that’s not enough to scare away intruders, they start kicking them with their front legs.

OTHER SECURITY MEASURES

Although pets are a great addition to your security, they shouldn’t be the only form of security that you employ. If not trained properly, they can be bribed by giving snacks or tricked into following them if they are even a tad bit friendly.

Times are changing and so are the tactics of criminals. They’re becoming smarter by the day and it’s very important to level up your security game to botch any plan they may be devising against you.

Also, with the increase in pet theft and West Yorkshire becoming a hotspot for dog and cat burglaries, it is very important to use other forms of security to not just secure you and your property, but also your precious pets.

Here’s what you can do in addition to having a pet for security:

Invest in good locks

The security of your property is only as good as the quality of the doors and locks on it. The doors and windows are the main points of access to the inside and securing them is the most fundamental step.

When looking to break in, intruders make sure to check for unlocked doors or windows, and what comes as a shock is that they find them unlocked more often than not.

One thing to note here is that only the presence of locks does not suffice; they need to be sturdy, of good quality, and unable to be broken.

Lock-snapping is a technique used by burglars to snap locks into two using a couple of tools and a bit of strength, and works on the standard Euro cylindrical locks, rendering them utterly useless.

The answer to this problem is replacing the old “snappable” locks to anti-snap locks and also reinforcing the doors and windows while you’re at it.

Secure the perimeter

Locking up the door and windows of your house isn’t enough; you must secure the entire perimeter of the property to ensure every corner of the land remains protected.

The boundaries must be secured by a fence that cannot be broken or easily uprooted. This is especially beneficial for farms that are spread across a vast area.

To take it a step further, wires could be placed on the fences to make sure someone doesn’t climb over them.

Intruders are also looking for possible hideouts in the form of large trees and heavy bushes to hide behind and look for vulnerabilities. Special care must be taken to not give them any such advantage by trimming all trees so that the boundary is always visible to you.

Light it up

Lights are your best friend when it comes to securing your property, and an intruder’s worst nightmare. Stealth is one thing that criminals need to not get caught and the dark aids them in achieving that.

To foil their plans, what you can do is light up the entire area, which includes the front, back, and all sides of the property, so that every corner is illuminated and visible. This way, if anyone even tries to hide in a corner, they’d be unable to.

Smart lights are something worth investing in that come equipped with various features. Some have motion sensors in them that enable them to automatically turn on as soon as someone is in their proximity.

They can be timed to turn on and off at specific times, and also be controlled remotely. This way, even if you’re away from your home and you wish to turn on the lights on the porch to give passers-by the impression that you’re inside, you can easily do that via a connected smart device.

Install burglar alarms

A burglar alarm is extremely effective in increasing the level of security on your property that works to serve two basic purposes; alerting inhabitants and neighbours of an intrusion, and scaring away potential intruders.

Placed at key points throughout the property, the sensors inside the systems pick up any unusual movement and trigger the alarm setting off the notification components in the form of sounds or flashing lights.

Coupled with professional monitoring services, burglar alarm systems provide a great way to ensure that every alarm trigger is responded to and the police are informed if need be.

The systems are connected to a central monitoring station, also known as the Alarm Receiving Centre (ARC), which is manned by professionals keeping an eye out on your premises 24-hours a day without any form of interruption.

Put the area under CCTV surveillance

No criminal likes getting caught and to prevent it from happening, they do all that they can to carry out the crime with extreme stealth.

Installing CCTV cameras on your property makes it impossible for them to do that since the surveillance systems help you put eyes all over the place.

Burglars actively avoid targeting properties with CCTV security systems, making them one of the most effective burglary deterrents out there. Even if they try and attempt a burglary, the chances of them getting caught become very high using the recorded footage from the CCTV cameras.

Professional CCTV monitoring ensures that your property is being watched over by a professional monitoring staff in real-time. This is especially beneficial for when your property is unoccupied or in a vulnerable state, such as in a secluded area.

For properties spread over a large area such as a farm, keeping an eye on every single area can be quite challenging for the owners. CCTV surveillance cameras can help monitor even remote areas of the farm and catch the perpetrators before they try to cause any damage.

They can also be used to see if someone is trying to lure away your pets or causing them harm. You can take instant action and protect not just yourself but your precious animals as well.

CONTACT CALDER SECURITY

Calder Security provides a complete solution for all your security needs ranging from anti-snap locks to CCTV cameras.

We’ve been in the security industry for over 40 years and our experts can help you with a wide range of services including professional installation, maintenance, monitoring, and repair.

Our extensive experience enables us to provide you with the most ideal recommendations best suited to your property and individual needs.

  • We are SSAIB approved installers: all of our intruder alarm installations comply with standards: PD6662: 2010, DD243 and BS8243 required to qualify for police assistance.
  • Our systems meet the stringent requirements of BS4737 and European Standard EN50131.
  • We only install high-quality systems including Texecom, Visonic, Scantronic, Risco, and Pyronix that we know and trust.
  • Our monitoring stations operate via DualCom GPRS and BT Redcare GSM; the most secure intelligent alarm signalling services in the UK.
  • Our experts can detect and fix issues that you may not even be aware of.
  • We can repair most burglar alarms and CCTV systems, even if we haven’t installed them ourselves.
  • We offer both analogue HD and IP camera systems and can advise on the best solution for your property.
  • We are members of the Master Locksmith Association (MLA) since 1976 and can supply and work on a vast range of locking mechanisms.
  • We are the official suppliers for leading lock brands including Chubb, Yale, Securikey, and Garrison.
  • We are qualified and experienced specialist security system engineers; general electrical engineers cannot rival our knowledge of security systems.

Let’s work together to make your home a safer place for you, your family, and your pets. Contact us here or give us a call on 0800 612 9799 right away!

Photo by Joe Caione on Unsplash