Our next door neighbor is going out of town for a few days so they asked if we'd pick up any papers, etc. that might be delivered while they're gone. That got me to thinking of other common sense things we should do, even if we're only going to be gone during the day. I found this site that lists 13 tips that burglars gave about what they look for before commiting a robbery. Other suggestions I found on related searches were having someone cut your lawn, installing a timer that turns your tv on and off. We always just did a light, but the tv is a great idea. There's also a barking dog alarm available to buy, but unless the burglary is spur of the moment, I'm willing to bet that the burglar knows whether or not you really have a dog.