Help Your Dog and Landscape Play Better Together

Keep your precious plants intact and your dog happy with the wisdom of professional gardeners and dog owners.

Dogs and outdoor spaces are a natural fit. But some dogs who love digging holes, creating runways worthy of an international airport, and eating plants can wreak havoc on your landscape design. Knowing what the most common problems are and how to overcome them will help keep the peace between you and your dog, and ensure you have a beautiful yard for both you and your dog to enjoy.

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

Know your dog

If you’ve ever had trouble keeping your scenery together when your dog seems to have a different mind, consider replacing your pet with this dog statue. I’m kidding! Of course, there is a way to live in harmony.

Every dog is unique, but each breed has different characteristics. Terriers dig, beagles try to escape, and golden retrievers jump into the water. Additionally, every dog has his or her own special personality and character traits.

Knowing how your dog approaches life – is he or she eagerly exploring the yard and seeing new things, or is he or she simply sitting back and watching things go by? — Helps you recognize problems that may arise.

Enter the path

Dogs think it’s their job to patrol the yard. Rather than fighting this instinct, include a running space at or near the edge of your yard and add a clearly designed path to get there. Make the path straight or gently curved. Your dog will probably turn a corner rather than a 90-degree turn.

If your dog has already created a path through the yard, you can try retraining by creating a new path and blocking the old path. But in the end, it might be easier to just give up and follow the rules. Transform dirt roads into something everyone can enjoy using foot-friendly materials.

Concrete, brick, flagstone, smooth river stone, and smooth gravel are great for your dog’s paws. Using fine tree bark as mulch can also work, but cocoa mulch certainly does not. Thick mulches are good for smooth-coated dogs. For long-haired dogs, it is best to avoid even small mulches. This is because it sticks to the dog and spreads throughout the house.

Put up a barrier

It would be nice if your dog realized which plants are delicate and which areas are off-limits. But that won’t happen. Instead, you should create a physical reminder that makes it unpleasant but not dangerous for your dog to reach a certain point.

You can do this with hard landscaping, such as walls, fences or wood chips, but for a softer look, consider using plants such as rose bushes, tall ornamental grasses, hedges or thick shrubs. Make sure it is not toxic or physically harmful to your dog.

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Protect your crops

Blacky is almost 2 years old and absolutely loves peaches. He also loves ripe tomatoes,
strawberries, lettuce, and spinach. If that person had been a child, he would have been very happy. I’m not very happy because he’s a cocker spaniel and his feast of choice is vegetables and fruit from my garden. Actually, I would like to harvest my own crops.

If your dog enjoys the richness of a garden, you have options. A classic fenced vegetable garden always works, but is not necessary. Placing a low fence around your vegetable garden will keep larger dogs out of it. They might be able to surpass it, but it might not happen for them.

Bird netting can protect lettuce, spinach and strawberries, and cages around tall plants can keep dogs away. Meanwhile, fences can create boundaries and tomato cages can protect trees and shrubs.

Pet stores have bitter apple and orange sprays that you can use on your plants. The taste interferes with chewing. It may not be fully functional, but it may help mitigate the damage.

The wall doesn’t even have to be permanent. Newly planted seedlings, annuals and perennials can be very tempting. Getting something out of the ground is new and fun. It may be enough to limit these plants until the novelty wears off and the plants have a chance to establish themselves.

Excavation processing

Dogs dig, some more than others. Consider yourself lucky if you don’t have to struggle with digging.

Before you condemn all digging by hand, remember that there is a good reason why dogs dig. This is to create a cool place to lie down or bury the bones. They may also dig for escape, to relieve boredom, or simply because their breed was bred to do so.

If your dog tries to escape, add barbed wire or boards at or below the soil line. If your pet digs in other parts of the garden, reduce the hassle of digging by laying down a wire fence or placing small, round wooden stakes directly underneath or at soil level.

Dense planting along fence lines can also be a nuisance. Keep the bed relatively narrow and check regularly to make sure your dog hasn’t found his way through the space.

You can also create a designated digging spot with sand or gravel. Think of it like a child’s sandbox. Bury treats or toys to encourage your dog to dig there and offer praise for using the area. As with the sandbox, you may need a cover to keep cats out.

Environmental protection

Lawn is one of the most comfortable surfaces for dogs and people to roam on, but a common problem with dog ownership is brown spots caused by nitrogen in dog urine. Keeping your lawn well-watered and keeping the leaves somewhat long will help dilute the urine and hide browning. Some products may help prevent or relieve burns.

Better yet, designate a bathroom space for your pet. Although it takes some effort, it is possible to train your dog to go to only one or two areas of the yard. The creative location is hidden behind a fence. Another option for your bathroom space is a gravel patch that can be easily watered. After all, dogs often prefer gravel to grass.

For men, consider adding marking posts. Clearly your dog needs a personal fire hydrant.