Discussions

Probably a cat.  

bigmoe said "Probably a cat.   "

...a cat burglar?

a rabbit

I wouldn't immediately assume it was a cat. I was doing dishes, and the window faces my backyard. I watched a SUV with teenagers in it stop in the back lane, look around, and attempt to jump the fence. At that point, the guy jumping realized I was watching, and they drove off as fast as they could. I wish I was able to see the license plate number, because the vehicle was way too nice to be owned by a teenager. I bet the parents would like to know what their SUV was being used for.

Think we're gonna see more and more of these sorts of questions answered by security cameras as they get cheaper and easier to setup.  
There are even cameras available pretty cheaply now that are able to do face recognition. They're for indoor use, but how long before similar technology gives a chance at really changing the game in these kinds of situations (though many privacy concerns to address no doubt).  
 
Or If one doesn't want to deal with the hassle of a camera, wouldn't be surprised if we see a few more of these pop up for how cheap they are:  
http://m.bestbuy.ca/defaultpage.aspx?lang=en#/catalog/productdetails.aspx?ajax=true&sku=10208465&lang=en-CA  
 
 
 
 
Edited by Adam, 2015-09-13 13:53:08

Nothing beats a motion sensitive light to deter would be thieves. These people like to work under the cover of darkness. Cheap and quite effective.

There are no motion sensors installed outside a home for an alarm, only inside. No cat set it off because they can't open doors. Sounds like the op armed their security system, but forgot to lock the house doors. Then a potential thief tried the door.  
 
Krunch

Prowler entered our backyard and my dog heard him outside. I don't think he even got to the house door. We turned on the outdoor flood lights. I think my dog's barking must of been very encouraging because he scaled the six foot fence quite quickly. And my dog is my first line of security.

You said, "testing our security system" and "setting it off". No one speaks like that about a dog?!  
 
Krunch

He was gone before we even opened the door.

recycler said "you walk outside to tell the person they were on private property and them being there was suspicious and not welcome? "

Head outside and confront the prowler. What's the worst that could happen.....

Well, hound. Hope there's an extra Scooby Snack for his vigilance!  

Ythen57 said "    recycler said "you walk outside to tell the person they were on private property and them being there was suspicious and not welcome? " Head outside and confront the prowler. What's the worst that could happen..... "

what if the prowler is armed. What would you do? confront! If you trained ... maybe

Does the idea of confronting a prowler seem like a really really stupid idea. What if they have a weapon? In a world where so many people rage over the smallest things, you would be putting yourself in harms way. I would get a video of the individual trespassing and license plate if possible and report it to the police. Then look at security measures to prevent it next time.

When we lived in Calgary years ago we had back yard prowlers in our area so I rigged up our motion sensor with an extra wire going into the house. With a small battery. It was hooked to a door bell inside. So, when the little buggers would enter the yard the door bell would let me know.. Caught 2 of them.

Sheppard said "Thank you for testing our security system. I am sure our neighbors appreciated you setting off it as well. "

I've just been reading all the messages following this and think really?? I would just like to say whether your alarm system is a dog or an installed one, so glad you were alerted to this! We have both the sensor flood lights and an installed alarm system, due to a break in a few years ago through our garage we were forced to do this. It is a sad thing that a thief not only made away with our personal items but is still stealing from us by forcing us to have the alarm system installed. Unfortunately this is happening more frequently then we would care to admit :-(