Dogs: Man’s best friend. A lawn’s worst enemy.
We got a boxer dog last year. Goodness but that dog is cute!! She’s a real handful - full of bounce and vigour. She’s a great companion for our little boy and they love to share our garden (although the gate blew off in the recent high winds, meaning they’re penned in by an overturned wheelie bin at the moment!)
However, all that pizazz and cuteness comes at a price. Pardon my French, but dog piss is no friend to your turf. I’ve struggled to get out to mow the lawn of late with the pitiable weather, but where the grass isn’t knee deep it is brown and dead. Female dogs are prone to re-using the same small patch again and again to urinate - which spells doom for your grass. Not only is the urine highly acidic, and therefore prone to burning the tender shoots of grass, but also extremely high in nitrogen. Nitrogen is normally thought of as a fertiliser, but like a lot of things that are good in limited amounts it can actually kill in concentrated doses.
Having consulted some books and websites, it transpires that there are only two courses of action:
- Train the dog to wee somewhere out of sight (not a chance!)
- Wash the lawn after she’s finished with plenty of water.
It’s too late for me - but watch out if you’re a dog owner and learn from my mistakes!!
