Neighbours Kids Won't Leave Our Ducks Alone!

[Doobly]

I'm honestly getting quite upset about this now. The neighbours kids and the 20 odd local kids who also hang out in their garden have constantly in the 5 years we've been there and they've been big enough to climb things been hanging literally over our fence at our ducks. We have moved them around the garden but it makes no difference.

I wouldn't mind if they were sweet kids but they just stare back if I give them a look from the house and they are constantly throwing things into our garden and pushing things through our fence slats.

We do not get very well with our neighbours, sadly, not duck related but personal as we upset one neighbour who was an ex-colleague and she was already good friends with the others and all their kids play together so they just followed suit.

I'm nervous about confronting the parents in case it makes the kids behaviour worse.

To be honest it's the experimental aspect of their curiosity that scares me,throwing things,attempting to feed them things. What if one day they get fed up with the Call duck noise and try and harm them intentionally? It scares the crap out of the birds having them leaning over at them all the time (including waving umbrellas!) and frankly I don't want 5 children at a time leaning with all their weight on the top of my fence.

I've tried once to just show them two of them and answer a few questions hoping to quell the insatiable interest but it hasn't helped. They do it every time they are in the garden and ignore my son whose ducks they actually are! We only have 4 but they're very dear pets and the idea of them getting hurt scares me to death.

Would I have been one of those kids? Probably, but I'd have been scared crapless if I was caught in the act! I know I'm being a bit over the top in my worrying but every time I see them my mumma-bear for the ducks just goes insanely protective! My OH says to "calm down they're just kids" but they're little monkeys in the street and I want to put my foot down without starting a war. Any advice?

 

[Dona Worry]

ELECTRIC FENCE.

 

[centrarchid]

Stop glaring at kids. You have made yourself a target. Be nice even when uncomfortable. Work to repair social issues with local adults.

Electric fence is a bad call.

 

[Dona Worry]

Stop glaring at kids. You have made yourself a target. Be nice even when uncomfortable. Work to repair social issues with local adults.

Electric fence is a bad call.

They work absolutely Fantastic for kids leaning on fences. Label it if you'd like. Say it's for raccoons or whatever, but yeah, disrespectful kids bothering my animals? Leaning on my fence? Time for a hot wire.

 

[centrarchid]

This is more about monkey politics than care of backyard birds. Smarts needed to correct situation as stressful for all and OP will not come out on top escalating issue.

 

[Helloworld]

It appears that you care a lot about your animals. I would speak to the parents so they can correct their own children. If you are sincere about them helping you in a safe manner for all, keep your promise and the war is gone.
They are curious, bored and you have an opportunity to make a difference. It is your choice.

I would say to said kids, I am sorry but things have been climbing over my fence and bothering my ducks and so I had to put electric wire for now.

I would put up my electric wire. You won’t even have to turn it on. Problem solved. Respect is dwindling my friend. Hang on. Do what you can to keep it here on this earth while you can...

 

[Doobly]

Stop glaring at kids. You have made yourself a target. Be nice even when uncomfortable. Work to repair social issues with local adults.

Honestly I've always been friendly and polite and things were fine here for the first 2 years before the issue with the ex colleague. We are looking into moving in the next few years but I've found every time I try and extend a laurel leaf, something happens. Last time our car was scratched. I'm just looking for advice from people who have been there regarding a somewhat-worrying curiosity from neighbours children but without the strong relationship with the local parents to help them assert their wishes.

 

[NoFlyBackFarm]

I would have called the police already.... I count that as harassment to you and the birds

 

[Doobly]

It appears that you care a lot about your animals. I would speak to the parents so they can correct their own children. If you are sincere about them helping you in a safe manner for all, keep your promise and the war is gone.
They are curious, bored and you have an opportunity to make a difference. It is your choice.

I would say to said kids, I am sorry but things have been climbing over my fence and bothering my ducks and so I had to put electric wire for now.

I would put up my electric wire. You won’t even have to turn it on. Problem solved. Respect is dwindling my friend. Hang on. Do what you can to keep it here on this earth while you can...

I'm not sure if the electric fence would be seen as too "aggressive", we're in a fairly urban area (I'm from a very rural background so these politics are alien to me!) so something as unknown as an electric fence would almost certainly be seen as nasty on my behalf. The fence is already 6ft and half brick, half wooden slats, and the kids have pushed up their garden furniture to lean over it. I've also had them ask me to remove the rain cover from their run!

Although they're peering over from one neighbour (who I've never had a problem with, thank goodness!!) they're also the children from the ex colleague who has caused the animosity and from the other side whose parents have thrown broken glass into our garden, taken our front gate, and we had to get the police involved when we repeatedly asked their landlord to ask them to move the security camera they fitted that pointed directly at our front door only 5ft away from it! I feel like regarding speaking to the parents, I'd only be able to use our decent neighbour as a broadcaster!

 

[townchicks]

I'm in the "try to work with the neighbors" camp. Go to the parents and try to get them on your side. Don't go over raging about the kids, if you think you've got your momma bear up, think how those parents will react. Just be calm and reasonable and try to find some common ground. Maybe bring up the worry about the fence collapsing, that's a safety issue for the kids, as well as cost to them for repairs, as it is a common fence. If all else fails, enclose your duck yard so they can't throw things into it. Good luck.