Lawn Care and Dog Urine!
What does lawn care and dog urine have to do with spoiling your dog you ask? Good question - easy answer!
We all have good memories of happy gatherings out on the lawn.
The lawn's the perfect place for having some fun with your dog. It's right there - no need to get
dressed up to go anywhere. And your dog loves that "spoiling" time when he gets your one-on-one attention
out on the lawn - be it a little training time or just some outdoor play. The thing about fun and games
though is that they can be rather "stimulating" and this leads to...you guessed it...dog urine!
You love your lawn. It's a dreamy place to kick back in your hammock
on a summer's day, until...you
spot those pesky brown patches in the lawn. You need some solutions to handle the lawn care and dog urine problems ...f-a-s-t!
Lawn care will be next on your agenda - forget the hammock!
What to do?
Can You And Rover Find Harmony
Between Lawn Care And Dog Urine?
I know you're
gonna give it your best shot, because your dog enjoys the lawn as much as you do. Hopefully one of the
several solutions I'm going to suggest will at least make a doggone improvement!
Some of these
solutions are focused on dealing with the lawn care and dog urine itself - while others are related to
adapting Rover's routine.
So here goes, let's start with the main thing that spoils your
landscaping - the dog urine and grass damage.
If you don't already
have a well-established lawn, you might want to consider planting one that is more resistant to dog urine spots.
Some that fall into this category are fescue and perennial ryegrass, but do some research with your local
experts because water and soil conditions in your geographic area may impact the choice.
Some grasses that are best avoided are Bermuda or Kentucky Bluegrass. Studies have shown these grasses to
be very sensitive to dog urine damage and result in harsh burning.
If you already have a decent
lawn and don't want to change it, then we'll just tackle the problem of the dog urine spots themselves.
Lawn Care and Dog Urine - Chemistry
From your basic chemistry, many of you most probably
know that the lawn damage is a result of the nitrogen content of the dog's urine. The burn reaction is
similar to when you over-fertilize your lawn.
Female dogs tend to cause more damage because they
usually empty their entire bladder in one place and saturate that spot on the lawn, whereas male dogs
tend to "mark" areas of the lawn with a little here and there.
Lawn Care and Dog Urine - the pH factor.
Most experts agree that the pH level of
a dog's urine
is not the cause of the lawn damage. So, remedies aimed at neutralizing the acid
by applying baking soda or lime to the burned area, wouldn't be of help. Likewise, remedies to
reduce the pH of your dog's urine internally, is also off-target for the same reason.
Though these things would no
doubt reduce the uric acid in the urine, they would not do anything to help the burn effect caused by the
nitrogen.
On the other hand,
Green-UM
is a product that can really help control lawn burn quickly and naturally. In addition to healthy
nutritional ingredients, Green-ums contains an extract from the Yucca plant. This ingredient binds or
neutralizes the nitrogen compounds in the urine or feces. Thus, Green-UM can benefit both your pet
and your lawn at the same time. Green-UM® can also help prevent burns on plants and shrubs caused by
pets using them as their "favorite" dog urine spots.
Lawn Care and Dog Urine - Target the burn!
Continuing to work
on the nitrogen angle, here are two other remedies you can try. Improve the drainage of the damaged area
so that the nitrogen can be carried down below the roots of the grass. Applying Gypsum is one way to do this
that also benefits soil quality. A similar idea, is to sprinkle brown sugar on the affected areas and
water lightly. This methodology is based on attracting worms to aerate the soil - leading to better
drainage.
Another simple approach for handling lawn
damage from dog urine is to flood the area with water. Not just a bit - a lot, otherwise the nitrogen
will go out only so far and leave a green ring. I like the water treatment because it has worked for me, but
it's critical to water the area right after the dog has just deposited his urine on the grass!
After you have repaired your lawn, you could try keeping your dog away from certain areas of the lawn by using a
motion activated sprinkler. This device can be very helpful when you are trying to train or retrain your
where you want him not to go for his potty trips.
Adding a second sprinkler of this type to your
front landscaping is also a way to startle neighboring dogs
away from choosing your place as a "watering hole" and leaving brown patches in the lawn there.
Lawn Care and Dog Urine - Protect Grass From Dog Urine
OK, aside from the urine damage to the grass
itself, what can we do about Rover's routine to give the lawn a break and still spend some special time
with our best friend?:
Take him for a walk more often to a local park or just around the neighborhood.
Getting some extra exercise will do you both some good.
Section off a piece of your property
for Rover's "own" use. Plant a couple of trees, plus a
Pee Post Hydrant 
placed within a patch of artifical grass or some gravel.
The Pee Post hydrant, is treated with pheromones that attract and encourage your dog to eliminate
in a specific area. It is easily inserted into the ground and your pet will be attracted to the
smell for months.
For the first few times, you'll want to take him on a leash to the post, but
after that, you can let the attractant do the work. Of course it can't hurt to give him a lot of praise
for going where you want him to go!
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Lawn Care and Dog Urine - Dietary Help
Lastly, keep your dog on a well-balanced,
premium dog food diet. This
will help to maintain your dog's chemistry at a "normal" rather than "high" nitrogen level. Remember,
Nitrogen is at the heart of Lawn Care and Urine damage solutions.
Try some of these
suggestions with your own dog urine and grass challenges. They worked for some and could well lead
you to greener pastures!
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