Suggestions for game cam...

[froggie71]

for catching vandals. 2nd time our mailbox was taken out. I meant to get a game cam the 1st time, but didn't. Now serious about it. Worried that if the darn kids that did it come again and a flash goes off, they will vandalize the cam too. We are pretty sure who did it, cops are too, but they would be grateful if they were caught on cam. They went through several neighborhoods taking out quite a few mailboxes. Post office would be grateful if we caught them too.

 

[woodmort]

I don't think the infrared ones actually flash--at least the animals don't seem to react to them. Also use a ladder to put it up high enough that it can't be reached and then chain it to a post.

 

[Runt Of The Litter]

Quote:
wow,we have very different laws-it is totally mixed up but due to privacy laws our police do not take kindly to people whose camera records outside the boundary of their land.

if at all possible,woud say to set up a small camera from inside the house window,zoom in as far as needed.
it coud be disguised as part of something.

woud recommend looking into recordable wireless IP-CCTV cameras [ones that have night vision as not all do],we have one at the farm and can view it from anywhere in the world on the internet.
the server software it uses has a lot of options as well,if its set up fully.
the other decent option is to just get a typical webcam,have that hooked up to a computer that never goes on sleep mode so its recording and can be watched back.


with cameras attached outside,a metal cage screwed into the wall over it can stop them being damaged.

 

[chickened]

The cops have hi-tech cameras and if they wanted to catch them they could.

 

[Southernbelle]

I have one with infered night light. It never flashes, but sometimes I'll catch a flicker of red light, but can't really see it, so the kids probably won't notice. The nighttime pics are in black and white and the daytime pics are in color.

Mine takes pictures when it detects movement, but it only takes a picture every few seconds when it detects movement. I think you can adjust the sensitivity. There's so many times I've gotten a picture with just the fox's tail whipping out of sight....

Hope it helps you catch your vandals! I agree with the suggestion to chain it to a post/tree, so they can't rip it down, if they see it.

 

[chickbea]

What exactly are they doing to your mail box? I'm trying to think of some nasty sort of booby trap that would teach them a better lesson than the cops ever could...

 

[froggie71]

Quote:
Well we don't have our own town cops, only the state police. They certainly can't hide outside our house for who knows how long for something that may or may not happen.

I think it will definitely be in a nearby tree. I just hope it will be a good enough pic to discern who it is. As far as what they are doing.... they are ripping the mailbox off the stand or in some cases beating with a bat or something. Our stand is set in cement and nothing happened to that, but the mailbox split at all its seams. The 1st time it happened the mailbox needed to be replaced anyway so I wasn't as mad, but this was a new box that wasn't cheap

 

[Peaches Lee]

Quote:
Haha!!~Like some of that blue dye that stains people so they can track 'em down...LOL!!

Froggie~I have a Bushnell Outdoor Camera and it is fairly easy to use (I'm always forgetting my password) and takes some nice night time pictures.

I hope you catch these vandals in the act.

 

[turney31]

Quote:
Yes, you would be correct, we have a scanner and one night heard about numerous mail box murders. Somebody got a liscence plate and good description on the vehicle. Sheriffs deputys in the right place at the right time and they were caught. It was then aired, one of the names. A youngster that went to the same school as my children. We knew the family well. Well his uncle, a Texas State Trooper was called (on the radio) to the scene and little hoodlum was released to his custody. The deputy came on the radio and stated. County call the reporting party and tell them we were unable to locate.

I think its called professional curtesy.