House was broken into today

[Aslkahuna]

My son wants to get into other Martial Arts after he gets his Black Belt including the the Filipino art of stick fighting ( he also has a staff, cane and a couple of very sharp swords in his room as well)-he's been practicing with the staff and starts with his sword after he tests.

Steve

[Cookiely]

Get a big dog! Like a mastiff or something.

i hate how these sorts of things make you feel. jumpy. violated. i hope your wife and kids will be okay soon.

a baseball bat is always good to keep around too.

Sorry to hear about your problems Air Force Met.
I've had burglar alarms and bars on the windows and believe me I felt safer with the bars. With the alarm it took fifteen minutes for the police to arrive and I could have been dead a long time before they got to the house. I know people say the bars are ugly and they think they are a safety hazard in case of fire (we had escape bars to get out in case of fire). My father was assaulted at his job many years ago, and it was traumatic for the whole family. As for the dog, I saw a program put out by the Tampa Police Department and they recommended a small dog not a large dog. Small dogs get scared and start yapping like crazy and wake people up. I keep a small bat ( it has some kind of metal rod through the center) by my bed. Also, I keep a personal alarm that really hurts your ears when it goes off (it makes me want to run away). My prayers are with you during this difficult time.