In a dog.

If that sounds counterintuitive – dogs eat lots of food, which you will have to provide in order to keep the dog operational – consider what you get in return for the investment.

First and above all, a security alarm that will go off even if the power isn't turned on. Even a very friendly dog that won't bite – or who isn't big enough for his bite to be of much consequence – will usually bark. He will let you know there is something you should know. Whether it is about someone – or something – that might otherwise go unnoticed, until it is too late.For example, if you have chickens or ducks (maybe both, plus geese!) as we do. We let our birds free-range – that is, we let them forage for food in the yard – because it is healthier for them, better for the eggs they produce, nutritionally as well as insofar as how they taste – and free for us. But it comes with a cost – one you're more likely to end up having to pay, if you haven't got a dog. That being the loss of some or even all of your birds to a fox or some other predator, who may kill them all before you even notice.