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, by Rob Pilkes Installation manual IP camera set
8 tips to prevent bird theft
- , by Rob Pilkes
- 5 min reading time
Anyone who falls victim to bird theft would be wise to remain extra vigilant. Figures from the Centre for Insurance Statistics (CVS) show that of the 328,000 home burglaries, 27,000 were committed at an address where thieves had struck relatively recently.
In short: bird thieves also understand the situation and know what they can steal. As a pigeon fancier, you've often spent years collecting, breeding, and training birds. But if you have poor security, your collection of pigeons can be gone in minutes. These are often targeted and premeditated burglaries. The value of the birds has increased enormously over the years, making them easy prey for thieves and difficult to trace.
Read the "8 Tips to Prevent Bird Theft" and take action!
1. The location
Protecting your birds starts even before the aviary is erected. Before building your aviary, carefully consider its location. When choosing the right spot, we recommend considering the well-being of your birds and positioning the aviary so it's not visible from the public road. Of course, you want everyone to be able to see your beautiful birds, but from a safety perspective, this is far from ideal. By concealing the aviary, you prevent passersby from seeing its existence and contents. If your aviary is already visible, you can explore options for screening it with a fence or hedge, for example.
2. Prevention is better than cure
It's not only important to deter and record an attempted theft as much as possible, but perhaps even more important to prevent an actual attempt. Danger often lurks just around the corner. For example, if you're selling a bird on Marktplaats and you enthusiastically show off your aviary during the sale, it could be the wrong person.
Getting relevant supplies delivered can also be tricky. You order 10 kilos of seed from an unknown forum member or sales site, and have it delivered to the address where your aviary is located. But instead of the food you ordered, your aviary is emptied.
Therefore, be very careful about who you share what information with. We recommend that you only do business with well-known and trusted dealers when selling goods or animals, or that you offer your birds at a bird fair.
3. Install security cameras
Bird thieves are sneaky, and even if you do everything you can to keep the aviary private, the risk of a break-in remains. We therefore recommend purchasing a good security camera system and installing it in and around the aviary.
A set can consist of one or more security cameras and serves as a deterrent, providing evidence for insurance companies, the police, and the judiciary. The number of cameras you install depends on the size of both the aviary and the rest of the property.
4. High-resolution security cameras
In recent years, a huge number of new camera systems have been installed. Unfortunately, the image quality isn't always usable. Therefore, when securing your aviary, always choose high-resolution security cameras. We recommend an IP camera with at least 2 megapixels.
5. Deter
When securing an aviary, the deterrent effect of a security camera is perhaps just as important as its recording function. Therefore, we recommend choosing IP bullet cameras for security. Bullet cameras are conspicuous and suitable for both indoor and outdoor use. Mount the cameras prominently in plain sight to deter bird thieves.
A nice added bonus is that you can watch live from your armchair or on your smartphone while on the go. 
6. Night vision
Research shows that bird thieves, just like "regular" burglars, usually operate during dusk and evening. Therefore, it's crucial to choose a bullet camera with night vision. Night vision can be a built-in infrared function or a camera with a Starlight function. Besides the presence of night vision, also consider the range of the night vision.
7. Height of the camera
After selecting the right cameras, it's important to install them in the right location. In the event of a burglary attempt, it's crucial to capture the perpetrators' faces as clearly as possible. Police and prosecutors can use the footage to identify and potentially prosecute the perpetrators. The ideal height for a camera is 1.70 meters. In locations where vandalism is a risk, we recommend mounting the camera higher. Ensure that the camera is never mounted higher than 3 meters from the ground. Identifying individuals from this height is difficult.
8. Mount against the light
Don't mount the security camera against the light. When a security camera is mounted in the shade of the aviary, facing the sun, a dark spot will appear where the camera detects something. 
To prevent this, we recommend mounting the camera elsewhere in the aviary or choosing a security camera with the WDR function. WDR stands for "Wide Dynamic Range." Security cameras equipped with the WDR function can naturally capture the difference between the shadows under the aviary and the overexposed portion of sunlight, ensuring you always have sharp images regardless of the weather conditions.
You have now done everything you can to keep unwanted guests out of your aviary.
Source: ip-camera.nl
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