OK fellow Dawgs- need you opinion here. I have an older lady friend that goes on long walks by herself and I am a bit worried about her safety. She asked me about pepper spray and I brought up the suggestion of a small gun or knife. I guess the pepper spray would be OK- it just seems if she got attacked by man or beast would be difficult to aim or ? She seems a bit worried of a gun- but a knife is OK. She resides in a rural area- is in her 70s- fairly good shape and very smart. So- what do you think ? Gun- knife - pepper spray or ? Thanks in advance <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

I say gun. You said she's worried about carrying a gun, but is this simply due to lack of familiarity? Maybe a range trip or two would change her mind.

A knife is good as a last line of defense, but if it were me, I'd like to have the threat stopped before it's within arm's reach of me.

I agree with Luke on this one Ordawg.
Pepper spray is vulnerable to the direction of the wind, so she could end up
with it being sprayed back into her face.
You should have her get a shotgun.
.410 or 20 gauge would be able to handle just about anything short of a bear I
would think.
Plus the visibility of the lady carrying a shotgun would deter possible attackers
of the human variety more so than a handgun.
Does she have a dog?
A dog is a pretty good deterrent as well. Might cause a problem with a bear
though

No dog and she is on city/ park /rural areas so a shotgun might bother others. That is why I was thinking smaller ? Thanks

Gun is a much better idea, or even pepper spray. It takes skills to effectively fight with a knife.

Knife fighting is up close and personal and it's a very nasty business. First and foremost, in my opinion you had better be a good fighter to begin with before thinking of using a knife, because remember, most likely you will have to "fight your way to your knife" before you can use it. Knives are very poor defensive weapons for those not trained to use them.

Talk her into getting a reliable handgun that is easy to operate (small revolver), something like a Lady Smith, or any lightweight .38, and then take her out and teach her how to use it properly. Better yet, after teaching her to use it, get her signed up in some handgun classes with someone who teaches people professionally. Encourage her to practice as much as she can.

Most of all, try to teach her the importance of carrying herself with confidence and not looking like an easy victim. When it comes to human predators this can be one of the best ways to keep yourself out of harms way. Bad guys don't want to mess with someone who looks like they'll fight back when there are plenty of others who look frail and meek.

My first choice for the situation you describe would be a handgun (Glock 26 or S&W 5 shot 2" .38). Second choice would be this:

http://www.taser.com/products/consumers/Pages/C2.aspx

I've seen pepper spray not stop the attacker too many times. If I was going to use pepper spray the Fox fogger seems to be the best.

Next choice would be an expandable baton, although, a female in her 70's might not be able to weld one effectively.

While the knife would be an effective defensive weapon for you or me I serious reservations about it being so for a 70ish woman.

+1

- and if she's opposed to weapons, how about an air horn? Loud noise that draws attention can be extremely effective. They come in a smaller size these days(smaller than the old freon can ones).

Excellent point Tolly. An attack will almost always be of the ambush/surprise
type, with enough force used in the initial attack to overpower the victim.
Also, there is always the possibility that the knife, if you manage to draw it,
would be taken away from you and used against you.



Reconseed made a good statement in a similar thread in the Outdoor section.
To paraphrase him, he said that the most important tool is the one between
your ears.
Make sure that you are aware of your personal situation at all times.
Like you said Tolly, don't look like a victim. Look like you know how to take
care of yourself, and they will look for someone else to take on.

Oh, and if she listens to music while on her walks, get her to stop.
It's really amusing to me to see those people who walk around with earbuds and
MP3 players going. Whatever it is that they are listening to, only serves to
distract them from what is going on around them.
They loose their situational awareness and become vulnerable.
Why give someone else the advantage by disabling one of the senses (hearing)
that warn you of danger?

Tolly has said it all...... I just got done with a NRA class to teach basic pistol classes and a small handgun would be the better. She needs some training and range time but a pistol is far better than a knife. Like Tolly said a well trained fighter uses a knife as a LAST resort and it takes special training to use it effectively.

That lady needs serious training before she carries any type of firearm!

I'm not a big fan of chemical weapons to much to go wrong. This leaves guns and knives. Some elderly individuals have trouble with guns. Recoil, arthritis and carrying it. These may or may not be an issue with your friend. The knife is arguably faster to deploy easier to carry and conceal and again arguably more effective. Of the two the gun will take less time to learn and will provide protection from two and four legged encounters.
As Tolly pointed out using a knife is very nasty. Acquiring the mind set and the technical takes time.

If she can legally, in reality a small caliber revolver like a .38 or even a .22 would be her best bet. And add to that some good training.

knife is a terrible option for a 70 year old woman. essentially, you are giving her the weapon in which would probably end her life is she drew it and attempted to use it.