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Someone without any experience in self defense and without the money to enroll in self defense classes. Am I talking about myself? No. The miss and I got a dog together recently and it stays with her (we don't live together). So when I am not there obviously she walks the dog. The dog is not a very large dog, about 40 pounds, so while she might be able to protect her a bit, shes not big enough to scare away potential predators. She used to walk to the park against my asking her not to do it alone and got harassed by some jerk one time and hasn't done it since, but just the other day a similar but not quite as bad situation happened when she was walking around her apartment complex. Just makes me worried when I am not around. Not trying to be a macho "man must protect woman" but my mere presence as a larger man seems to be enough for most not to try anything, and at the very least I could intervene and give her time to get away if it came to that. I was thinking of purchasing a stun gun...are these devices pretty effective at disabling someone? Any other better ideas?

You mean a handgun?

No not a gun that shoots bullets...a stun gun or taser...the thing that incapacitates through shocking them basically. It's legal where I am at in the US. No way she'd ever go for carrying around an actual gun though.

Bas Rutten's "Punk Payback" videos



and a hangun
and trusted friends to accompany her
and a better neighborhood

USA is weird

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"his hands can't hit what his eyes can't see" - muhammad ali

Her neighborhood honestly isn't that bad but I've found that the type of punks that like to harass women by themselves are pretty much everywhere. I'm assuming hangun is supposed to be handgun. That is out of the question. Other people aren't always going to be an option either although generally I'm there to walk with her. Unfortunately the dog will not take a crap within half a mile of her place no matter how much we've tried to get her to do. LOL.

Why is a handgun out of the question? Criminals have them. Shouldn't she?

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Thanks TimD.

I'd say to invest in an appropriate handgun, a good hand gun course, a concealed carry permit, of course and a holster or other carry device (hand bag with a specific compartment for the gun, not just loose in the bag). Of course, if she is a gun hater, you may not be able to convince her.

Yeah, a stun-gun is better than nothing. The problem is that you can't use it until you are in direct contact with your attacker. The attack begins when the assailant approaches the victim. A gun is effective when he (or she) is still approaching. You don't have to wait until they are on top of you to use it. Once a large man is on top of a small and otherwise untrained woman, she may not be able to use the stungun before he takes it away from her.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

"No not a gun that shoots bullets...a stun gun or taser...the thing that incapacitates through shocking them basically. It's legal where I am at in the US. No way she'd ever go for carrying around an actual gun though." - Rucifer

Stun guns have no range. You have to actually touch someone with it to shock them.

Tasers are generally more effective and can be used at a distance (up to ~20 feet). However, they aren't always legal to own/carry, so check your state and local laws.

A drawback of both is that they need to be kept charged, and the rechargable batteries will eventually need to be replaced, which can be expensive (assuming you can even find a replacement).

Pepper spray is another option, however you shouldn't expect it to do any more than temporarily blind an attacker, and in rare cases it may have no effect at all.

In fact, you shouldn't look at any non-lethal weapon as a sure thing. I've seen a police demo where a man who was tasered actually pulled out the barbs and kept coming (pretty scary dude). In other instances, attackers have gotten up and continued to attack after being floored by tasers, since the shock is of relatively short durration. This is less of a problem for police who also carry battons and firearms, but it could be a big deal if a taser is your/her only weapon.

"of course and a holster or other carry device (hand bag with a specific compartment for the gun, not just loose in the bag)" - Jungledoc

I wouldn't ever recomend carrying handgun or any other weapon in a purse or handbag, even those designed specifically for the purpose. Firstly, it makes it harder to access the weapon in an emergency. Secondly, it's less secure, since sooner or later a woman is going to put her purse down.

Concealed carry is admittedly more of a challenge for women, since women's clothing tends to be more form-fitting, and often lacks pockets or belt loops. Still there are better options like belly bands.

PS) You'll/ She'll need to be able to justify any defensive use of force, although obviously the standard is somewhat lower for pepper spraying someone than it is for shooting someone.

get her some nunchuks

If you want to go really oldschool, you could just carry a walking stick. Used as a club it could give you a big advantage over a single unarmed attacker, or even the odds between a small woman and a larger man. However, you need to be prepared mentally and physically to brutally beat someone, otherwise you might as well forget it. Likewise, if you're up against someone with a firearm, you're SOL.

"USA is weird" - ephs

Women get assaulted and raped in Germany also. There's nothing funny about it in either country.

i just said that, because of the possibility to have guns in usa. in germany almost nobody can have a legal gun.

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"his hands can't hit what his eyes can't see" - muhammad ali