Can Dogs Replace Home Security Systems?
Dogs do have some value as crime deterrents, but if you try to make them your only home security system, you are surely headed for trouble.
Dogs, whether large or small, do add to the value as part of a good home security package; the biggest benefit being that they make a noise, and criminals don’t like attention being drawn to them. But just owning a pooch is not going to give you any guarantee. From a security perspective, just the fact of owning a pet dog (as different from a trained attack dog) is not much better than owning a home security system that you don’t switch on.
There have been instances of a home being burgled while the whole family slept peacefully, with the dog or dogs sleeping peacefully in their owner’s cozy rooms, oblivious to the break-in downstairs.
If you wish your dogs to alert you to burglars or attempted break-ins, help them do their job and insist that they sleep on the main floor where a burglar is likely to enter! Dogs can’t give the alarm if they can’t hear anything!
If you expect your dog to protect your home when you are not there, you might be in for a disappointment or even heartbreak. To a great extent, the type of dog you own will determine its capacity to protect your home while you are away; but even the biggest mutt in the world is not really the insurance you might think he is.
It is true that larger dogs present a greater deterrent to criminals, but you would be surprised to know how many big dogs turn into loving lap dogs once a criminal gets into your home. If your dog has always been well behaved and unaggressive with your guests, the chances are he will be the same with a burglar. He may just bark, get chased into a room and get locked there while the crook goes about his business. If he is very good natured, he might even offer the burglar a nice guided tour of the house.
Your best bet for protecting your home is to include the regular home protection measures and consider your dog only a part of the total home security system.
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