How do you defend your home?

When SHTF I am sure you will nt get a knock at the door from a policeman to charge you with injury to an intruder. The intruder will be like all the rest of the looting population that didn't prepp. Hungry, possably sick and doing what it takes for HIM to survive. Both my husband and my self are seniors and I've pondered wether to stay or leave. To leave for where? Mount Benson? Then theres the problem of moving all our emergency supplies. Elevator will be out of commition so it's 3 floors down to the van. Then what we need shelter, Checked into surplus artic army tents. Hmm, Think we'll stay put, get bear spray and stock up on oven cleaner and a bat for weapons. In my eyes if some hungrey crazed intruder should kick in our door to steal our supplies they will not going to go gently into the good night before they maim or kill us. Thanks for you idea of a machette also sound good. if it should happen it wouldn't be pretty and normal rules of law and morals will not be the order of the day. I have lived my life helping others so injury to someone else is a difficult thing for me to think of but if someone is going to attack people I love, I'm sure the mother bear in me will rear it's ugly head and I will be able to do what is needed to help them to survive.

This is my first post to this forum. I've read some of the posts and I'm finally ready to out in my 2 cents worth.
I've been a "prepper" for about 15 years now. Several years ago my wife and I bought an acreage about an hour and a half out
of the city. Our cabin is a little off the beaten track and you would almost have to trip over the doorstep before you realized that it was there (If they don't know you're there they won't look for you). I'm a retired infantry soldier so I know how to quickly turn my place into a fortress (You can come in uninvited but it'll be traumatic). However, the best way I know of to defend my home is having a good relationship with the local RCMP detachment. They regularly stop in for coffee when on patrol and people know it. My welcome mat is always out but, everybody also knows that if TSHTF, visitors had best knock at my door politely.

I wouldn't trust the RCMP too much.

I wouldn't trust the RCMP too much.

You don't have to trust them, but they can be a good deterrent. People tend to behave a little better when they see certain uniforms around all the time.

except that when the shtf i will guarantee that these same RCMP officers will be worrying about their own homes and families and not yours!!

You're right, the mounties are only good until TSHTF. That's why I have several good friends who're going to join me if (or when) the time comes. Besides having skills that will be needed to cope, everyone of them knows guns and a few are combat veterans like me. I've spent years preparing and making plans. During those years I've done a lot of study and preparation. The plans have been revised many times and the preparations have been updated constantly. We'll help others when we can but not to our own detriment.
Our place is called The Last Post and after it hits the fan we're willing to take in anyone who is wants to work toward making things better. That may sound idealistic but you have to start somewhere.

I think tazweiss hit the nail on the head though ... cultivating good relationships prior to shtf will go a long way after. I don't know that the bunker-buried-in-the-mountain isolationist mentality that I see around the net is the way to go. Community, however small, a few good friends, family and yes, friends in law enforcement can all offer something beneficial. Let's put it this way ...tazweiss has a stronger chance of getting a response if he was to need aid because he has already formed a relationship with these guys.Would they be able to come in a moments notice...well no one knows that anyhow. But he is not off of their radar either. They are aware of him and that increases the chance of him getting aid if he should need it.

My daughter and her fiance are in the military, and we have always known if something happened, we would not probably see her and her fiance for a loooong time...they would be beyond busy. But that being said, I know ( and it has been discussed) that she would try arrange to have someone to come around and make sure I am okay if she or her fiance could not themselves.

End result, law enforcement, or military or even friends and neighbors...If something went down ( you can bet I would go to lengths to make sure VanIsleMom is okay!) it is not a bad thing to be on like-minded radars. No man is an island!

When it comes to defending your home there are a number of good sites with that info (I love google). Keep in mind that booby traps in your home are illegal and could get you in big trouble. With that said, when TSHTF what's going to be more important, life or legality. As far as firearms go, besides my 9mm pistol, I have 4 long guns. These people who have 20 or 30 different guns are fools who are easily parted with their money. I have a big bore rifle (.300 Winchester Magnum) that will take down any big game in North America and also doubles as a fine sniper rifle. My second rifle is a .223 calibre assault rifle (Mini 14 is a good reliable gun). The .223 is good for coyotes, beavers, porcupines, etc and of course can be used as an assault rifle. Then of course there's the .22, good for small game and the ammo is cheap. Finally a 12 gauge shotgun for birds and close quarter combat. Whatever the weapon, learn how to use it properly and safely. If you're not sure which kind of guns to get for your own comfort, go to the local gun ranges and talk to the shooters. A lot of shooters are happy to let you try a couple of shots on their guns and it'll give you an idea for making your own choices. Your children should also be taught about guns, my father started teaching me at age 5. I always keep my guns locked up but I also started teaching my son at an early age, he grew up with an understanding and respect for firearms.
In spite of everything I've written about firearms for home defence, don't come to rely on your guns too much. Use your smarts (brainpower will often trump gunpowder)

My 2 scents about law and order:

Pre SHTF, most police would consider armed civilians a liability. Armed civilians are powerful when compared to simple police and therefore a rival to their authority. They don't know if your the simple family oriented nice folks they don't have to worry about, or the lunatic fringe paranoiacs that hate the gub-ment and would smoke a cop if given half a chance.

Any breakdown in law and order, no matter how severe the event that brought SHTF, will be temporary. Worst comes to worst, your community will "deputize" local civilians. If you are smart productive community minded people, who are obviously taking care of your shit, whatever legacy police there may be would consider you an asset that gives them some extra backup to rely on, and one group less to worry about. Remember police need the general backing of the population to be effective.

Home Defense and security has been on my mind alot lately. I live in a small city (barely over 10K population) that acts as a regional center for many smaller communities. In a SHTF Scenerio Bugging out to a safer location won't likely be much of an option so Sheltering in place will be my primary goal.

Now as a part of my primary vocation I sadly come into contact and have to deal with the worst that this community has to offer (Drunks, Drug Addicts and often those that are dangerously mentally ill). As a result my property has been vandelized on several occassions and on at least one of those occassions my neighbors saw those responsible while in the act of damaging my home (I was at work at the time) and failed to act or contact the authorities out of fear for their own safety.

This is what I deal with now in an everyday capacity and as a result had no choice but to install a full electronic security system and even a few closed circut security camera's which do their job quite well as long as the power grid works.

I am looking at removable security bars (for windows) and different solar motion detectors for a grid down scenerio, I have seen a few rather pricey options for increasing front and backdoor security but being Canadian and being a working class smuck seriously limits my options for much more.

I am curious as what other steps or idea's that anyone looking at sheltering in place in an Urban Enviroment might have for property and home security in a SHTF Scenero.

I hate to say this but a defender style shotgun for worst case scenario is and option. Getting your PAL and purchasing a shotgun and ammo will cost $500.00 to $800.00 depending on what style or how fancy. But when push comes to shove I sure wouldn't want to even put myself in that situation where I would have to defend my home. It's a delicate topic but I'd do whatever is most cost effective. I just purchased a Grizzley from canadaammo.com , It's on route still so I don't know how it rates but It fits my needs and it's only $300.00.
http://www.canadaammo.com/product.php?productid=11&cat=0&page=1

or something nicer but more $$

http://www.cabelas.ca/index.cfm?pageID=71&&section=1187&section2=1727&section3=1954&ID=3982

I thought of prepping window covers/bars but it would be lots of money and I don't have anywhere to store them if and when I'd need them. Good old bear spray is a very good deterrent but of course it's only temporary and would probably make the situation worse. But if your plan is to bug in, I'd have some way to defend your belongings and family.

Honesty, get a paintball gun, some full tanks of air and throw a couple bags of balls in the freezer. Takes 45 seconds to load up and it's game time. Just think of what a marble would do Yout body and face if flung at you with a slingshot...for those who paintball, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Non-lethal defense. Lethal defense if you freeze the balls and crank up the psi on the gun. And there's nothing like having 250+ rounds at the will of your trigger finger!

I personally have much more lethal defense strategies for a shtf situation. But anyone over 18 can get this one covered. Plus I love the option of being able to engage people in a non-lethal way first, from there I can drop the weapon, flip around the shotty and engage. As well, there may be people in your group not willing to hold a live firearm, So thus at minimal, this method allows them to help take down or put suppression fire down on a target, 10 feet or 100 feet, doesn't matter.

I do not understand the concept of non-lethal self defense.

As I understand the law, if your life was not in danger, your non lethal "defense" would constitute assault, even if they are trespassing, breaking and entering etc... Use of force is only allowed in self defense. If your life was in danger, you are legally entitled and morally obligated to do whatever it takes as quickly as you can to protect life and limb of you and your loved ones. The law is quite clear on this.

If your life is not in danger call the cops and run away. If your life is in danger, anything and everything is fair game.

Correct but one, given the position to where you would have to defend yourself, you don't have to be lethal about it. And second, I was referring to an shtf situation, as clearly stated....

Oh and if I remember correctly, weren't you the guy advising an insignificant flashlight as a self-defense tool?.....just sayin'
From what ive read, a lot of "what you do" or "your experience" or even your advice, holds no water in any given reality, confrontation, event or experience that I have endured where I have been in need as well used, such devices and tools for my safety. If you use ANY object in defense or offense, it's classified as a weapon. So good luck with your flashlight alternative....if your only backing argument is getting through airports...carry a metal pen. 10 times more effective. And clearly your aren't trying to be "non-lethal" with your flashlight, because that would be beyond your understanding as claimed in the last posting. Not mocking you, again, just sayin'!