Secure Your Home in South Africa In The 70s!

The slogan read: The joys of Canine Security with Guardian Paws in an Open-Doors Lifestyle.

What It Means: Secure Your Home in South Africa In The 70s!

Well, our houses were open, the neighbors were friendly and our garden walls were more of a suggestion than a barrier. The definition of privacy was fluid.

One day someone wandered into our backyard looking for an easy entry, and we studied security in a more detailed light.

Meet Bob!

Having a trusty sidekick like Bob is not just a luxury it’s a necessity. I used Bob to navigate that fine line between openness and security. When you have a dog, you have a fenced-in yard.

William Robert, or “Bob” as I called him was a very big Rottweiler.

He was loving and beautiful, except that I could not pick him out in a room full of Rottweilers – they all look the same!

Bob walked around like the CEO of the house; he always had that “I’ve got this” look.

He took his duties seriously and fancied himself as the neighborhood watch.

We never believed in high-tech sensors and complicated gadgets. Bob relied on barking; we relied on Bob and we were the only humans who understood him!

One bark for the mailman, two for the neighbor’s cat, and a keening outcry for anything out of the ordinary. Then he could growl…

He had a goofy grin and canine charm… he knew when he was making us laugh!
It only cost us belly rubs… Lots and lots of belly rubs…

I am allergic to dogs, and if they accidentally lick me, my skin will break out in hives.
Dogs make me sneeze.

But I was alone in a big house, except for Lena and we were always busy. Throughout the day I spoke to Bob all the time and he listened – we had an understanding.
(And when Bob visited Lena, she spoke to him too – I heard it myself!)

Even though I had to love him from a distance Bob would still kill for me.
One day he was put to the test, and he almost did.

Our house was at the top of a hill, if there was a high wind, it would be severe. Not hurricane severe, but unable to hear someone yelling for you, severe.

We were having some construction work done on our house soon after we moved in. The end of the building was open to the elements, and at night we were protected on the inside by a tarpaulin and Bob.

Here’s The Scene:

When an African crew works on a site, one of them will build a fire and start the cooking of the porridge early in the day.

In a second pot, he cooked water, meat, tomato, and onion and he kept an eye on dinner while he worked.

Later in the day the men put down their tools and sat together around this communal pot and ate pap and vleis (porridge and meat).

The pap was rolled into a ball and dipped into the tomato/onion sauce… which smelled divine… And Bob wasn’t going anywhere.

He sat near these guys like a guardian, waiting, in case someone dropped him a morsel. As much as the crew thought Bob was a nice dog, they were in the habit of not feeding the animals belonging to someone else.

Besides, Rottweilers have a reputation for being potentially dangerous.

While this was happening, I opened the front door to a strange delivery man. There were several pieces to unload, and he lingered and looked around at what we were doing.

He appeared aggressive and took everything in. I was very uncomfortable and Lena had stepped out for an hour.

While the delivery was taking place, I went to find Bob knowing he would never hear me calling against the wind. I wanted my trusty protector to be with me when I signed off on our packages.

Bob was where I knew he would be: near the food. He slowly left his post and as we rounded the house we met up with Mr. Delivery Man… Bob took one look and stopped…

He emitted a low, scary, growl… the hair on his face stood up and his eyes were crackling…
His teeth were bared. B-ob!…

It took all my strength to hold him back. What is it about the sixth sense of an animal that can detect anything sinister in a person?
(Can dogs sense if a person is good or bad?)

When he calmed down, Bob sat upright, pressing his shoulder against my leg, and his eyes never left the stranger’s face… I confidently signed off the paperwork.
Mr. Strange Delivery Man left in a hurry… never to return.

I took Bobbie back to the kitchen and gave him treats and hugs.
He was probably the best dog who ever owned us.

“Soft” Security: A Secondary Solution!

I had been advised to “only adopt a bird whose traits are compatible with your personality and lifestyle” – I wondered what that meant.

Did you ever own a bird that could talk? I mean, understand what you say and respond appropriately? I heard of this once … but surely these birds didn’t exist.

My friend, Beauhla, owned an African grey parrot: he was a small grey parrot – that’s the best I can do.

“Fyi (for your info) and Beauhla talked, all the time! Fyi rode everywhere on Beauhla’s shoulder.
(I’m not sure how to say it. Try ff-ye)

I learned that the African grey is the #1 most intelligent talking parrot. He can learn up to 1,000 words and is as smart as a three-year-old child – how sweet is that? (African Greys)

And since he could be anywhere, and hear everything, and reason like a 3-year-old, don’t tell secrets! And don’t lie, because that bird will say something, somewhere, and rat you out!

We all learned this the hard way and Fyi was the “soft security” in Beauhla’s home.
Everyone lived happily and I compared it to Alfred Hitchcock.

Bird-Talkers, Enter Jesker…

In Bryanston, Johannesburg, Jenny lived in an area that was open and spacious. It housed many families and a tennis court was nearby.

One day, Jenny had a tennis party, and several pairs joined in a day-long tourni.
I did not play tennis, so I kept score.

So did their parrot, Jesker. All day long, we watched him, and he watched us.
(My sports escapades here!)

Jesker was a beautiful Macaw, who stood a proud 32 inches tall, in a large cage on the veranda.

His tail feathers made up half his length, but he was still a big bird, weighing about two pounds.

I wasn’t a tennis aficionado but not a bad scorekeeper. Things got out of hand when one of the players lashed out “That’s not the right score”…

“But Jenny told me the score!” I pleaded.

“That wasn’t Jenny, that was Jesker!” … our Macaw, in his cage on the veranda… who had been waiting to pounce all day.

Jesker the Macaw was known for looking beautiful and having a bold personality. I guess that means you could hold a conversation.

Macaws are capable of learning many different words, and some may seem to be using their words in context.

Macaws can learn short phrases and snippets of songs, and have advanced capabilities for mimicking human speech!

Until my scorekeeping was in question, no one ever caught Jesker doing this!
Maybe the ball was in! Jesker won’t talk.

My Cat’s Meow!

I had a cat named Shayna: oh well, I was in my first home with just two neighbors and it was lonely. She had beautiful blue eyes when she was born and loved to cuddle.

Shayna would kill for me. Well, not exactly kill, but raise such a hissy-fit – someone would have to have a look.

By then you could be dead, but she did the job she was supposed to do!

She had a pleading look in her eyes and just wanted to please me.

Shayna confidently wandered through the tall brush beyond our property and came back with a mouse in her mouth which she had proudly caught for me!

I frantically ran from window to window, closing everything up, so Shayna couldn’t bring that mouse inside only to chase it around for two days!

The beauty of Shayna was that she was a great mouser. Other than a few of these escapades, we never had mice in our house or baboon spiders.
(Baboon spiders are big and ugly)

These cats were territorial and did not allow other cats near their home. That usually included your whole property, and anywhere else they decided to roam.

With feral cats everywhere this type of security was a must!

Enter Tonkinese Brutus…

I had another cat, named Brutus. He was a Tonkinese, weighed 38 lbs., and was 1 meter long when he took a deep stretch. He was ominous and children thought twice about trying to pick him up. (Most lovable cats!)

Brutus did not like to be picked up, because of his size. We, humans, did not have enough space to fully fit him in our arms, so he preferred to jump onto your lap if you qualified for his attention.

Brutus had the most wonderful personality of any animal I had ever known.
He was loving and sincere and got jealously upset if we did not willingly act as his staff.

He gave me purrs and we played “chase your tail” games and he loved it.

Then he would jump up and walk away.
That’s all; no more for today; time for my nap.

We trained Brutus to stay out of the kitchen. Since we lived open-plan, he freely talked from the threshold of the carpet and the kitchen tile. It suited him – he liked space.

Yes, he talked. Not like Fyi; Brutus meowed to us. When he heard his name he answered.
He was a tom of few words, but you can learn how to read your own cat.

When I had restless leg problems, Brutus insisted on laying across my thighs, and he purred – nonstop for about 30 minutes. This alleviated the RL and helped me sleep.

I have since learned that the “purr” of cats is attributed to their having nine lives. Their purr creates vibrational/electrical frequencies and can treat their bones, pain, edema, muscles, strains, joint flexibility, and wounds. (why do cats purr?)

The “purring” action is now mimicked in a vibration machine to help people like me with restless legs. It works and I was glad that someone had the sense to mimic Mother Nature and put it into something so useful.

Brutus never spoke unless it was important, and when he approached with a meow in his voice, you had to follow and find out what the problem was.

There could be a stranger at your front door. There could be toxins in the food, there could be people in the room he does not like. You get the idea… he’s not a dog.

Good Old-Fashioned Phones!

Today people worldwide safeguard their homes via cell phones – I love this technology!

My friend lives in a gated community on a large body of water in South Africa.

No matter where he is in the world, he can open the gate with his phone to let in his guests.
If he is on his boat, he can still see who wants to get into his house.

In the 2020s I know this is common practice but that is how far safety has progressed from the land of open-door policies.

To Summarize:

In the years since the 90s South Africa was lauded as the most extreme for home security and property protection. Cars would throw flames if approached by a thief and every house in the neighborhood screamed an alarm.

Today, I would classify their emphasis on safety as quite normal in our modern world.
Use your common sense.

If you should visit this country, there are things you can do to improve your safety.
You can move about with confidence and you will enjoy yourself more!

1. When you land in South Africa, buy a local SIM card for your phone while you are still in the airport. Vodacam server is a very useful choice as it has reliable network coverage throughout the country. Also, you will save by not paying international roaming fees.

2. Save local emergency phone numbers on your phone, such as the police, hospitals, your consulate, your tour guide, and the hotel where you are staying.

3. Choose a reliable mode of transportation. Get advice from your tour guide and your hotel manager or doorman. Uber is reliable and cheaper, but you can rent a car or take a taxi.

4. Only go to a safe ATM, in a mall, or inside the bank doors.
Use common sense; if in doubt, go with a friend.

5. Carry cash in small denominations, in several pockets. Keep some handy for tipping and buying souvenirs. Most places take card payments anyway.

6. Take a photo of your passport with your phone, and leave your passport and all valuables locked in the safe at your hotel. You could share this photo with your tour guide, just in case your phone is stolen.

7. If you like to walk about, join a walking tour or go with friends. Common sense tells you not to be walking in remote areas alone. And don’t go out alone after dark.

8. Don’t flash an expensive phone or camera around. Be aware of your surroundings.
Be sensible. Pretend you are on a crowded big city street; don’t even carry an expensive handbag.

9. Pay attention: don’t leave your backpack or purse unattended.
Keep your valuables with you at all times.

10. Keep your car doors locked at all times; hide your valuables in the boot.
And for goodness’ sake, stay away from sleazy, dark areas at night.

11. If you are off on a hike, arrange to be in a group. Most hiking areas are remote and the trip could take several hours. Let your hotel manager know where you are going.
Be sure your phone is charged; take lots of water and a hat.

12. South Africa has beautiful beaches everywhere but not all are safe to swim in. Choose a protected beach – which has shark nets and a lifeguard on duty.

To Summarize My Summary:

Every point to remember for traveling to any foreign city can be applied to visiting South Africa.

Most people do not wear their wedding rings when they travel – they leave them in a safety deposit box at home. It’s something of great value that you won’t have to worry about.

Jewelry can be valuable and this is not the time to flaunt diamond earrings. Think about it: if your jewelry is stolen from you in a foreign country, what recourse do you have?

You will be leaving the country anyway and the stones will be sold before you say goodbye.

You can take it a step further and even though you have your phone with you, you could use a disposable phone and a disposable camera.

I only have one rule that I always adhere to for travel: take half as many clothes and twice as much money. Use a credit card.

Do you have a home security idea that you can share?
Do you live in an area where you don’t lock your doors at night?

Do you have any ideas about travel safety that you would like to share?
I am always open to new suggestions.

Are there things that you think a person should not do while traveling?
I am all ears!

I would love to hear from you: leave a comment in the box below.
I will get back to you within 24 hours.

Regards, Corinne :-)))