Thread: Vandals and theft

Tweet

How many of you have had problems with Vandals?

I had my first experience with vandals and a theft this year after 13 years of haunts. It was only one incident but it does make me feel mad and sad at the same time.

I have a very large spider in my yard behind a cemetery fence. Someone went inside the fencing and stole the large and very expensive mask off the spider display.

I have hung a sign on the fence asking for the return of the mask. I let that person know that they have ruined the Halloween experience for all the kids that come to see our Halloween haunt.

I have a lot of people in the neighborhood watching my yard during the day and the police do a great job patrolling our neighborhood. Especially with the increased traffic during the month of October.

I am wondering how often this happens with other haunts. I still consider myself very lucky with only this one incident after all these years. And I will still do Halloween haunting no matter what. The kids deserve it.

I dont put much of my stuff out until halloween day, and take it down halloween night. In a perfect world you could decorate your yard and not worry about it. Years ago we had all the x-mas decorations stolen. Kids took them to the woods across the street and broke them and cut the cords. Just pointless destruction. Had one wheel stolen off a truck in the yard, had our big american flag stolen, plants and planters stolen.

Such a shame...how a miserable few, wreck it for the many....

We live on acreage, and only have a couple things down at the end of the drive, and every time I drive out I expect to see the sign has been stolen or the scarecrow beaten. It has never happened but I know it could at any point. For the rest of our trail I just know the temptation is there for people to touch or take. I grew up in Southern California and wanted so bad to touch stuff in the Haunted Mansion at Disney when I was a kid. Our philosphy is this...... we have a screw gun and know how to use it! We screw everything to everything somehow, and it at least is a deterant as it makes it harder to grab and go. I think the only things we have had taken amounted to a few glow sticks the night of the trail. There is always going to be someone only thinking about themselves and how they can help themself to something that belongs to someone else.

Sorry you were a victim of someone else's selfishness, don't let them win by killing your spirit.

Lil

I've never had a huge problem with vandals, since most of my props are what you call ghetto props. Most of them cost very little to make, since they use all natural materials. Almost nothing I use is store-bought or electrically driven.

I have a giant 12' scarecrow, made entirely of deadfall sticks and twine, with a pumpkin for a head. I have several smaller scarecrows made of bound cornstalks on a central post, also with pumpkin heads. My tombstones are nothing more than foam ceiling tiles coated with fleckle grey spraypaint. There's an anatomically correct skeleton, also make of sticks, painted white. There is a small fence that encompasses everything, and it too is constructed of lashed limbs from the forest floor. The most expensive item to replace would be a static spectre which i have hanging from a tree -- 24 ft. up. The lighting is either natural or in out-of-reach places same goes for speakers or smoke machines. There is little that a vandal can do to cost me any money, just time & effort.

Lilly,

Not to worry - The spirit of Halloween burns bright at my haunt.

In the news last night we just had the second haunt in the area trashed. It is the bad apples that spoil the enjoyment of so many TOTs.

I was just seeing if other people have had the same experience as I just had. I have neighbors that are always amazed at how I can leave my haunt up the entire month. They used to do the same as most - up for a day or two. I say Halloween is too important for the memories of the kids to limit it to a day or two. But then again I am the sick neighbor. LOL When I am asked where I live I say "I am the Halloween House!" They all know where I live. I am very proud of that fact.

I have a tendency to think everyone thinks like me, so when my 18 year old asked if I ever wondered if everyone thinks we are the Adamms family I was shocked to ponder the thought I might be a freak! It's one thing to have the neighbors look sideways at me for a month out of the year, but my own son? I have one friend who helped last year only to please her husband who helps, and when she said "nothing against you or halloween", I thought what an odd choice of words. I have concluded not everyone knows how to have fun, be it Halloween or any time, so the people that trash someone else's fun, their display, are probably boring!
Lil

Lilly,

I agree with what you say about those "boring' people.

Our neighbors, 2 years ago, put their house up for sale during October. So the people that bought the house knew what they were moving into when they bought it. You have to love people like that.

Of course now another neighbor is moving! Does that speak volumes to me - heck no! :-)

I don't know how expensive or effective this is, but I know of a yard display that puts an intercom in the yard, and they can hear whatever is going on out there while in the house. They do put everything out by this time (couple weeks prior), so maybe it works well.

Glad you're not letting it put a damper on your fun! We had a light-up ghostie we had bought for our oldest stolen, and ever since, we just don't put out anything that we wouldn't mind getting taken.

I know others here have mentioned motioned activated lights, trip wires and surveillance cameras (fake & otherwise). Anything that looks or acts like a detterent would probably work. Definetly agree it's very sad when a few spoil it for everyone.