Carry enough gun. Even at home.

[Purplehood]

I have a Black Cat named Zack that in purely cat-terms, rides the short-bus.
He is convinced that he is actually some sort of predator and behaves that away around me. If anyone else wanders into the house he immediately runs for the curtains on my back patio-door and hides his head under it. This leaves his entire body exposed from the shoulders back, but that does not concern him. If he can't see you, you obviously can't see him.
I bring this up purely for the warning-value that he imparts when I walk in the door from work. If as usual he is standing by the front door when I walk in, I am 99.9% positive that no one is currently in my house that shouldn't be.
If he is not, and does not appear to be coming into plain-view, I immediately go into whatever color-code is appropriate for wondering exactly what is going on in the house.

[Bird of Prey]

My neighbors have two poodle-looking things and a red heeler that bark at EVERYONE (including me and I've lived there for 2 years now). Then I have motion sensor lights all around the house and night vision cameras with the monitor in my bedroom right by my head recording everything! This is the cool part, I rigged a wire from the motion sensor lights to one of those speaker things used to scare off mice so if the lights go off, I'm jumping out of my jammies! If they make it to the front door, my 9 month old Boxer (Meeko) has already been alerted by the "poodles" and is standing by the front door looking out the window through the curtain. If he so much as sees a shadow, he'll start howling and barking in a real low tone. (He thinks he's a Mastiff or something). All that racket will have me reaching about 2 feet from my bed to my Glock 19 9mm (15 in the mag and ALWAYS one in the pipe!)

If I were in McAllen, I'd also keep an AR / AK by the bed...

You never know when those Narcos may get the wrong house.

There are home invasions withing 10 miles of my house at least once a month! I live in one of the nice areas of McAllen (Sharyland) but I'm not taking any chances. My neighbors stare sometimes cause I open carry when watering my lawn but they're all friendly with me so perhaps they appreciate knowing I'm packing.

[dubya]

"I open carry when watering my lawn"

I am not putting open carry down but I do not understand it. You lose a tactical advantage when you let someone know you are armed.
I'd prefer no one know. Are you open carrying just because you are waiting on your license?

And, I do understand open carry in a rural environment; it escapes me in an urban setting.
I saw a "Pawn Stars" episode where a lady's very large son had a big tactical holster tied down on his leg. Completely floors me what that must do to a crowd in Nevada.
Regards,
JW

[Mike from Texas]

I wear at least 1 gun on my person at all times, even when at home.

I typically have a 9mm on my hip with another in my pocket. Spare magazines are the norm. I usually have no less than 40 rounds on my person between the 2 guns and spare mags. That should be sufficient to get me to my room if necessary where I am heavily armed. 2 shottys with 18 rounds each on board the gun and my M4 carbine with 60 rounds on board. Not to mention a few other handguns within reach.

[Bird of Prey]

"I open carry when watering my lawn"

I am not putting open carry down but I do not understand it. You lose a tactical advantage when you let someone know you are armed.
I'd prefer no one know. Are you open carrying just because you are waiting on your license?

And, I do understand open carry in a rural environment; it escapes me in an urban setting.
I saw a "Pawn Stars" episode where a lady's very large son had a big tactical holster tied down on his leg. Completely floors me what that must do to a crowd in Nevada.
Regards,
JW

I'm more of an "Ounce of prevention" kinda guy. I'd prefer they know so they might not want to try anything then to have them feel confident enough to do something stupid. If I'm a BG, I'm hitting the house that doesn't have someone walking around with a gun in the front yard. My front yard is the closest I can get to open carry in Texas! Besides, I've been doing it for over a year now and never had any problems.

[VMI77]

I'm more of an "Ounce of prevention" kinda guy. I'd prefer they know so they might not want to try anything then to have them feel confident enough to do something stupid. If I'm a BG, I'm hitting the house that doesn't have someone walking around with a gun in the front yard. My front yard is the closest I can get to open carry in Texas! Besides, I've been doing it for over a year now and never had any problems.

I don't know.....it may provide an ounce of prevention, but what I'd be concerned about is the leverage you may be allowing an anti-gun nut neighbor or visitor to the neighborhood. If such a person wants to cause you problems and accuses you of threatening them, or waving your gun around, or just scaring the children in the neighborhood, I think you're more likely to have problems refuting the charges if you're carrying the gun in the open. Someone driving by could call the police and say "there's a man walking around outside with a gun." My son knows someone who had the police called on him by someone who saw him clearing his guns through a kitchen window --a Yankee who thought it was illegal for people to own handguns.

If it's concealed then no one has anything to report in the first place. It seems to me that running into a jerk in the neighborhood is a more likely event than a deterred attack. That said, I think you should be able to walk around in your yard with a gun without having to worry about a nutty neighbor, but I don't think that's the world we're living in now. I lived in the Valley when I was in high school and I used to walk down the street carrying a rifle or a shotgun over my shoulder --no one ever complained or called the police. And when a cop stopped me it was to ask about my gun and check it out, not as some kind of criminal suspect. Unfortunately I think those days are gone and I wouldn't dare do that in my old neighborhood today.

[Bird of Prey]

I'm more of an "Ounce of prevention" kinda guy. I'd prefer they know so they might not want to try anything then to have them feel confident enough to do something stupid. If I'm a BG, I'm hitting the house that doesn't have someone walking around with a gun in the front yard. My front yard is the closest I can get to open carry in Texas! Besides, I've been doing it for over a year now and never had any problems.

I don't know.....it may provide an ounce of prevention, but what I'd be concerned about is the leverage you may be allowing an anti-gun nut neighbor or visitor to the neighborhood. If such a person wants to cause you problems and accuses you of threatening them, or waving your gun around, or just scaring the children in the neighborhood, I think you're more likely to have problems refuting the charges if you're carrying the gun in the open. Someone driving by could call the police and say "there's a man walking around outside with a gun." My son knows someone who had the police called on him by someone who saw him clearing his guns through a kitchen window --a Yankee who thought it was illegal for people to own handguns.

If it's concealed then no one has anything to report in the first place. It seems to me that running into a jerk in the neighborhood is a more likely event than a deterred attack. That said, I think you should be able to walk around in your yard with a gun without having to worry about a nutty neighbor, but I don't think that's the world we're living in now. I lived in the Valley when I was in high school and I used to walk down the street carrying a rifle or a shotgun over my shoulder --no one ever complained or called the police. And when a cop stopped me it was to ask about my gun and check it out, not as some kind of criminal suspect. Unfortunately I think those days are gone and I wouldn't dare do that in my old neighborhood today.

Those days aren't gone at all! My father and I still drive home with deer strapped to the hood of his truck and everyone sees us unloading the arsenal of rifles. In the 25+ years of doing this, we've never once received a complaint or anything. Just about everyone I know has at least one gun in their home and most drive around with them. I know it's frowned upon by most people here or other gun forums but the Rio Grande Valley is still "old school" enough that if someone says they have a gun with them, most people's response is, "So what?" I guess the "no no's" of telling someone about your gun are only relevant in other parts of the world. In the good ol' RGV, law enforcement encourages gun owning!

[Terlingueno]

I can see our southern border from my quarters. So Mr .45(7+1) is always worn, a semi auto AKM(30) is by the bed or in the living room(wherever I am at the time)and also it goes for a ride in the truck whenever I do, but it is out of direct view and accessible...

[VMI77]

Those days aren't gone at all! My father and I still drive home with deer strapped to the hood of his truck and everyone sees us unloading the arsenal of rifles. In the 25+ years of doing this, we've never once received a complaint or anything. Just about everyone I know has at least one gun in their home and most drive around with them. I know it's frowned upon by most people here or other gun forums but the Rio Grande Valley is still "old school" enough that if someone says they have a gun with them, most people's response is, "So what?" I guess the "no no's" of telling someone about your gun are only relevant in other parts of the world. In the good ol' RGV, law enforcement encourages gun owning!

It's good to hear you haven't had any problems but I'd still urge caution when it comes to something like displaying an "arsenal of rifles." I don't think that's the kind of information you want to get around; it seems like you could be making yourself a target. I can envision a neighbor, perhaps a kid who thinks it's cool, innocently telling a friend that the guy down the street has a whole bunch of guns, and word getting passed along to less innocent parties who might target you for a burglary based on an exaggerated expectation of what they can steal.

[Pawpaw]

Those days aren't gone at all! My father and I still drive home with deer strapped to the hood of his truck and everyone sees us unloading the arsenal of rifles. In the 25+ years of doing this, we've never once received a complaint or anything. Just about everyone I know has at least one gun in their home and most drive around with them. I know it's frowned upon by most people here or other gun forums but the Rio Grande Valley is still "old school" enough that if someone says they have a gun with them, most people's response is, "So what?" I guess the "no no's" of telling someone about your gun are only relevant in other parts of the world. In the good ol' RGV, law enforcement encourages gun owning!

It's good to hear you haven't had any problems but I'd still urge caution when it comes to something like displaying an "arsenal of rifles." I don't think that's the kind of information you want to get around; it seems like you could be making yourself a target. I can envision a neighbor, perhaps a kid who thinks it's cool, innocently telling a friend that the guy down the street has a whole bunch of guns, and word getting passed along to less innocent parties who might target you for a burglary based on an exaggerated expectation of what they can steal.

There are still places where the one family that doesn't own guns are the "weird-o's". Those places also tend to have very low crime rates.

[mgood]

The "plan" is to be slinging pistol lead while moving toward shotgun.

My .45 is within arms reach of my computer and my .40 is within arms reach of the bed. I can get to the shotgun in 2-3 seconds from either place.
I live in a 2-story apartment. Living room and kitchen downstairs and bedroom and computer room upstairs. I'm almost never down stairs except to grab something out of the fridge. Stairway is narrow and steep with 2 ninety degree turns. Anyone who kicks in the door and assaults the stairs is going to find me well-armed and waiting for them. I suppose they could rappel down from the roof and kick in an upstairs window and perhaps take me by surprise, but I don't hear about that sort of thing happening much.

[Rye956]

Prayer + I always have either my .380 or 1911 beside me. I also set the alarm and have a good guard dog. I still hope I won't be put in a situation wherein I have to use my pistol.

[Bird of Prey]

I'm not worried about neighbors knowing about my guns. Again, the norm is to have them. And as for some kid spilling the beans would be like him telling people I have a car in the driveway. Keep in mind that not every neighborhood is going to be like yours. The Rio Grande Valley is made up mostly of farm/ranch land so no one thinks twice when they see or hear of someone owning a gun.

And as for some gun-hater calling the cops and manufacturing some story about me pointing my gun at them. I've got cameras all over my property so the only one taking a ride in a police car will be gun-hater.

[aceat64]

I think I'm prepared, I've got my AR-15 leaning up against the wall behind me right now and we always keep our door locked.

[chefkristian]

I usually think about this situation on a daily basis. Ever since there was an attempted home invasion on me almost a year ago, I keep some sort of weapon near me when I am at home. I snore, so generally I sleep on the couch most nights to spare th better half a good nights sleep (It's better than the her unrested wrath ). I usually keep my 9mm near me, but lately been sleeping with the Glock 36 or Compact 1911 loaded with either Winchester HP or with frangible ammo. I have 2 stashes that I have around the house. One in the middle of the house (gun #2) and the other in the closet next to the master bath (gun #3). The gun in the middle of house is in a cubby in the hallway which provides a strategic advantage since it provide coverage against the front of the house.The strategy in this is that if there is a break-in at the front of my house, I immediately repel the threat, working my way to middle of house to gun #2. Then work my way to Gun #3 while corraling anyone in the house to the master bath and laying down into the tub. OR if break-in happens in rear of house, my GF grabs gun #3 and immediately heads to bathroom into the tub, while I head to gun #2 to repel threat. I am in the process of making my gun #2 a HD 12 GA.

Now, I would not say I lived in a bad neighborhood but I most certainly do not live in the best part of town. There is a police substation about 1.5 miles away, and a hospital about 3 blocks away.

Hopefully this strategy will not fail me, but I NEVER want to find out...