Neighbours kid

[wishingw]

So we've lived in our home for 2 years now (we own it) and we've had a few issues with the neighbours kid who lives diagonally to our back garden. The kid is 12/13 ish (pretty sure he's in high school now) and he's been known to sit on the fence and look into our garden at our dogs. I've caught him doing it maybe 5/6 times, today being one of those times. He was sat on the fence and looking over and my dogs obviously went ballistic so I had to go out to calm them down. He did it again and pretended he was climbing over to my neighbours to get a ball, again my dogs went crazy so I went out and asked him politely to get down which he did. 5 mins later he again was up at the fence and my dogs went crazy again, he also was whistling and clearly trying to get my dogs attention.
I went out and brought my dogs in as they were getting worked up.
I've been out and asked him to get down, I'm not really sure what more I can do. I'm not sure who his parents are but my neighbour said they're kinda rough so don't really want to go round there.
I'm trying to think of a way to block his view and give my garden more privacy. We already have 6ft fences but has he climbs and sits on his fence anyway it doesn't make much difference.
AIBU to want to block his view or am I overreacting?
I'll also add I have autism and very bad anxiety and this is really having an effect on me and I constantly feel paranoid that he's up at the fence looking in.

plant a conifer? Hard to say without a diagram

I dunno, I think if it were me I'd be inclined to say a friendly hello before launching into 'get down' mode

I find being nice to people first can set the tone

It's his fence.

You need to train your dogs to be less reactive. He's looking into your garden, not running around it.

I have two dogs, and reading this I'd say yours are more of a problem than the lad.

Is he sitting in your fence or his? If it’s his, you can’t really stop him. Maybe he has autism too and just wants to look at your dogs 🤷‍♀️

Is it their fence? I'm not sure if you can stop him sitting on his own fence but you could explain about the dogs and ask him not to do it if they are outside because it upsets them, and see if he takes any notice. 5/6 times in two years is not that much though. My son and his friends used to sit and play on the shed roof which was against the fence between our house and the neighbours, giving them a very clear view into the garden.

I think you need to train your dogs! To be so reactive to someone sitting on a fence - too much. I have two dogs in a terrace house and there are two young kids next door who run around and make a considerable amount of noise. One of my dogs used to bark occasionally but *O corrected her every time and they are used to it now.

Diagram added for reference. It's his fence he sits on but can clearly see into our garden. I simply went out and said 'can you get down please' after he did it a few times.
I mean, my dogs are naturally trying to protect our home, how do they know the difference between a neighbour and someone climbing over to break in?
It makes me extremely uncomfortable when he's just sat there looking into my garden, I'm sure it'd make anyone uncomfortable?
I'm just wondering if there's anything I can put there to block his view

This is my take too. Badly trained dogs. Too reactive. Boy knows that, what fun to wind them up a bit. This caught my eye:

He was sat on the fence and looking over and my dogs obviously went ballistic

Obviously? Really? If I look over at my neighbour's dogs they wag their tails and carry on snoozing or whatever.

Also OP sounds a bit snooty calling the neighbours 'rough'.

They bark because someone is sat looking into our garden, not because of noise ect

@SeeSeeRider
By ballistic I mean they were just stood barking at him. I went out and stopped them each time.
My dogs are extremely friendly but protective, they don't know the difference between a neighbour and someone trying to break in

You've got a dog problem not a kid!

Also just to add, even if I didn't have dogs, him sitting there looking into my garden would still make me feel very uncomfortable

Someone trying to break on? How do they know burglary is a thing?

Strike up a lengthy (friendly) conversation with him every time he sits up there. He will soon loath the thought of talking to you and not climb up 😂

Unfortunately you choose to live on top of other people then that's going to happen.....people will see you and you will see them!

You need a detached house with land

Dogs are naturally protective of their environment? Even if I didnt have dogs or if they didn't bark I'd still be very uncomfortable with someone invading my privacy as I'm sure you would? Or maybe I am just overreacting. My anxiety does seem to go to worse case scenario sometimes

I'll be honest, he was polite to get down when told. He doesn't owe you anything, and it's not your business if he's sitting up there. By your diagram he's sitting on his parents garden fence and you are a neighbour at the back of them, not even a next door neighbour.

You were lucky he didn't tell you to fuck off, to be honest. He's doing nothing wrong. If your dogs are barking, then that's your issue.

Thanks everyone so far, you've helped to calm my anxiety and I feel a bit better. It is his fence so I know he's doing nothing wrong it just makes me uncomfortable feeling like I'm being watched sometimes and as I've said my dogs do bark if they see him but I'll work on this with them and move them into the house if they do this again

But he's sat on the fence to specifically look into my garden, fair enough if it was another reason but he literally sits there looking at my garden. Surely this is an invasion of privacy?

Those are problem dogs in my opinion, and probably your neighbours' opinion too. Why don't you get this? We have a neighbour whose dog bloody barks if someone walks past and if, God forbid, the postman visits, he goes berserk. It's very annoying.

If someone climbed on the fence at the back of my house, and they were out.. my dogs would bark. I’m a responsible dog owner with well trained dogs. Perhaps some bamboo plants or screening?

Sounds to me as if he's bored witless and thinks it'll be fun to wind the dogs up. He knows there's nothing you can do about it..it's his daily sport. Plant Leylandi a bit smartish and get rid of the little plonker.

He is being a mischievous kid, and deliberately trying to winde them up for a reaction, and with you coming out he has all the drama he needs. Just take the dogs in everytime and do not acknowledge him. He’ll get bored as he likes the reaction.

What a brat!!
Sounds like he's clearly out to wind the dog up!

As an owner of a reactive dog I can tell you it's not as simple a training!!!! Bloody hell the ignorance around about dogs!!!
I'd be raising the fence and putting trellis up or rapid growing trees across the back to prevent him.

This thread is crackers. A teenage lad shouldn’t be staring into someone’s garden. It’s creepy quite frankly, regardless of the dogs.

Could you plant bamboo in pots to obscure the view?