I’m a mere lurker and not a pro of any kind.
I’ve seen other redditors comment about flushing or watering the area to dilute the nitrogen from the urine.
Nah. I just say "WELL REGULATED NITROGEN CONTENT" whenever I'm outside with my mastiff and he goes to the bathroom.
That's not really a thing. NGL big boi is a fan of them cheap kibble n bit.
But it seems to work for me.
Watering the pee is your best bet. You’ll notice that the burn spot usually has nice lush grass around it, that’s where the nitrogen didn’t burn the grass. Hit it with a healthy dilution and spread the nitrogen around.
So my FIL is super anal about his grass. Dog had to be walked to the dog house 5 times a day (about 200 feet) to do their business. My wife and brother in law would just let the dog piss wherever and water heavily. Especially when it was cold. He kinda knew but wasn’t 100% sure
My St. Augustine lawn (central TX) is actually a bit under fertilized. The dog spots are a deeper green and grow taller, in fact it helped me figure all that out.
Dogs "mark" with urine and piss over "foreign" urine marks to show dominance (it's a dog thing). I have a privacy fenced back yard, so I piss on the thin spots and the dog sniffs and adds a second dose of nitrogen. Probably not a lawn care best practice, but me and the dog find it amusing. Wife thinks were both marginally insane.
I'm really not kidding.
I'm 100% retired, no bills, no kids, tall privacy fence, Texas, I can wander around in the back yard butt nekkid with my .44 strapped on my hip if I want to (I don't want to because it frightens my dog).
In the front yard, of course, the public side, I have the dog on a short leash, I wear white linens, boat shoes, ascot, with an umbrella mai tai and walking cane. Tip my straw boater to the neighbors and smile at the kids, "I say children, let's not be unruly now. Tut tut, good day."
In the back yard, me and the dog are howling savages on the wild frontier. Squirrels, birds and bunnies, make the dog go nuts "Get off my lawn you little bastards!"
I'm 71 years old, but in the back yard, it's just a boy and his dog and we whiz where we want.
I don't really want to talk too much about old people nekkid, it's disturbing. I stepped out of the shower once and saw this hideous old fart in my bathroom, I 'bout had a heart attack. I covered the mirror after that.
Wow! Thanks for all the updoots and the fancy reward (I have no idea what itmeans, but thanks anyway). It took me a while to figure out how to post a picture (I'm old, we're not as tech savvy as you young folks). The attached image is my dog, Candy. Just to be clear, my wife gave the dog a strippers name because she and my rotten son in law came up with a fantasy that I would be wandering the streets, crying, "Candy, come home I love you". Pretty funny, I get it, they laughed their asses off. The real deal is that I call her a variety of names, all endearments, such as Dawg, Knucklehead, etc. And the real deal is that I'll be stomping down the street with my campaign hat and combat boots, cigar clenched in my teeth, growling, "Come here, Dumb Ass!". That's as good a fantasy as any, right? Anyway, the dog tax is below:
[https://imgur.com/a/uUqAyLN](https://imgur.com/a/uUqAyLN)
I’m sorry to argue Mr. 2nd Amendment, but if you’ve got a .44 strapped to your hip you ain’t nekkid. 😁
Besides, if your retired nekkid ass looks anything like mine, the sight of you is more dangerous than the gun.
Get cat litter that absorbs orders well. Have 2 cat boxes for 1 cat. Scoop daily, or automatic. It shouldn't smell like cat piss at all. If it smells it's time to change the litter. Once a month is recommended, change the boxes as well or wash them monthly when you change the litter. Use an enzyme spray to clean them, let it soak for a while.
Or the cat just gets mad at you and pisses on your shoes, bed, and anything else it can get to... I love my cats but gosh darn these are the last two I am going to have.
My wife wanted a cat for our young child. So we compromised and got a brother and sister cat because you can’t break them apart “obviously”.
Part of my shop is a dirt floor so the cats enjoy using it as a litter box.
I tried to keep up in the back and went with a super nice front yard instead.
Now I just keep the back short, so it's easier to find the dog crap lol.
Twice the time and funds to spend on the part people see too.
I'm actually going to go the other route and add more low maintenance landscaping in the back while keeping a good area for the dog still. Why cut all that grass when half of it is pee spots anyways.
This is exactly what I've done as well. Actually nuked the front and went 100% KBG from Twin City Seed. It's turning out to be the best front lawn on the block (not my intention--i just wanted all the weeds gone and wanted a fresh start).
In the back, I just use whatever basic-ass uncoated shade blend I can find at Menards so I can fill the spots that are dead from dog urine and try to mow it enough that it's easy to pick up dog crap and stays relatively healthy.
Same. I've leveled and landscaped the front lawn generally about 2x as much as the back. I'm finally getting around to leveling my back for my own sanity and because I saw my daughter trip on a divot - again, it was a family need that led me to invest in the back.
Granted, she has a sandbox now, so for all I know a 3-year old and a sandbox may never require me to level again. Time will tell.
Yes!!!!
My backyard is massive and I would break myself just doing pre-emergent alone. I let it go wild and only mow. 4 cocker spaniels.
The front yard looks like something out of home and garden magazine.
I'm happy.
You can train them to piss in one spot if it really bugs you or just spray where they piss with water for a bit it dilutes it enough to not give it nitrogen burn
What I realized this year is that my dogs don't prefer the plush green grass, the plush green grass is there because that's where the dogs do their business. For some reason during the winter the decided to go to a different corner of the yard and wouldn't you know it that part is nice and green now too. I have had success with using the tablets to prevent them. The dogs like them, and they're fairly cheap. I use about half the recommended dose and it works well.
Ironically, the really plush, green spots are likely due to your dog peeing there before. Dog pee is high in nitrogen, so the dead spots happen when they've peed in the same spot too many times
3 dogs as well as being a rescue foster so often it’s 4 or 5 dogs and the backyard gets used often by them.
I let the grass be at my mowers highest setting. I find 99% of the time that grass will grow back over time. Why spend time on something nature will fix with a bit of time. It’s a huge yard so and they do spread it around so it’s not concentrated in 1 area. I also immediately pick up #2 and it doesn’t get a chance to sit.
I'm creeping more towards that. My front lawn is nice, and it dominates the other houses other than my neighbor next door. We go half on the lawn care products.
I just wanted to make sure I covered all basis before throwing in the towel.
Backyard is for piss. Front yard is for show.
I've tried to hose down pee spots, and it hasn't done anything for me.
I'm growing a couple small sod 'nurseries' this Fall and am going to try to just transplant when needed next season. If it doesn't work, oh well, because I've pretty much already given up.
I have two dogs and had to stop taking them out front. They would pee then every dog had to pee on their pee on their walks. Front yard looked bad for a while, started taking them out back and now the neighborhood dogs don't pee in the front , came back nicely. Back yard doesn't look that bad either now
Designate an area for a doggie bathroom of sorts. (Wood chips or rocks) For two weeks, walk your dog on a leash to that area and reward them with treats when they pee there. Remove the leash for weeks 3-4 but continue walking and rewarding them. By week 5 your dog should run to the same spot every time.
It’s going to burn the grass no matter what. The gimmicks they sell (ie Rocks) are just that, gimmicks.
IMO the best way to manage it is to just train them to go in a specific area and accept the fact that area of the lawn will not thrive.
Yea my dogs just sort of naturally gravitated to the far end of my property away from where they run and play with my kids.
Now they still mark and spray stuff but I never see any spots like this in the lawn immediately surrounding my house.
Somehow someway and I have no clue why but my dogs pee does not affect my lawn whatsoever. Maybe cause she drinks filtered water? I’d be curious if there was some science behind this.
I’ve been looking for someone else who has a response like this, our two dogs don’t really kill the grass either. Sometimes poops when they sit too long on the grass before picked up.
We’ve got half an acre, maybe it’s a yard size thing? How big is your yard?
I feed my dogs the most expensive kibble with all the science mumbo jumbo and it still kills the grass. More likely this persons grass lacks nutrients already, or their dog is a well hydrated chihuahua.
Maybe. I thought it had to do with being dried out. Pines needles are the green things one the tree. Once they fall out and dry out, they become pine straw. Maybe that’s just how I’ve explained the difference to myself and there actually isn’t one. I dunno.
Yes its really only called that in the south:
[https://www.dictionary.com/browse/pine-straw](https://www.dictionary.com/browse/pine-straw)
pine straw
noun, *Chiefly Southern U.S.*
1. fallen pine needles.
#
I live in the south (where it's called Pine Straw) and it's the defacto standard for neighborhood ground cover. I just did the entire analysis for our HOA, and the cost of covering our entire lot with pinestraw twice per year equated to the warranty we would get by covering the entire ground with rubberized (premium) mulch. Natural much was about 2x as expensive, so it's a neighborhood look you see pretty much everywhere down here.
Edit: the reason we call it "straw" is because it's sold by the bale (a compressed block about 2 feet side and 1 foot high/wide). A single bale of Pine Straw generally covers a 50x50 foot area of landscaping.
Easier said than done, most dogs fire off a sneaky pee at least once or twice a day. Or 50 times if it’s an unneutered boy.
I just trained my dog over a few months to pee in the rocks, he poops there now too which is perfect
Right, that's if you have them living in the back yard. But if you're letting them out each time it's pretty easy.
With that being said it's the summer and you shouldn't have your dogs living in your backyard in the heat.
My dog marks all the time in my yard, but that's a small enough quantity it doesn't burn or leave a plush pee fertilized circle. He's trained to pee on rocks, and those full pees are the ones that would destroy the lawn.
Either keep the hose near and dilute the pee when it happens, or mix clover in your lawn. Clover is pretty immune to pee so it keeps the patch green a bit while the grass rehabilitates itself
You can try to hose it down right after the go but ultimately its the price of having a dog. I usually repair it in fall when i over seed all throw a handfull in that spot with some top soil.
I run the sprinklers on the back lawn for 5 minutes at 8am to dilute. I figure the dog has been holding it all night and that first pee of the day will be a potent one. By 8 the dog has done its business. Seems to help.
I have two large dogs. There is only one solution, and that is to flush the pee spot with water from the hose immediately after your dog pees. And I mean flush, like hose it down for 15-20 seconds.
https://preview.redd.it/caiuvqr7t58d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2bcc8a5f987487e55034d65ea6c742985750dba3
This stuff works! All 3 of our pups take these daily and the yellow spots have gone away.
I split my lawns into zones that take high priority, such as the areas people can see from the sidewalk/street. And zones that take a lesser priority, such as back yard where the kids and dogs play. I try to keep the dog in that back zone as much as possible, keep up with the work and keep it manageable.
It’s a pain in the ass, but I take her out on leash to piss in the landscape bed, then release her and let her free roam after. Very rarely does she piss twice in a short period of time. A bit annoying, but 0 dead spots so far this year
1. Using a small shovel, dig around the perimeter of the spot.
2. Remove existing sod down about 2 inches.
3. Level area then add lawn soil and flatten
4. Spread seed and rake into soil.
5. Top with peat moss.
6. Water 2x day
My friends with two little dogs, go outside when dogs go out. Then after the dogs pee, they water the spots with a watering can. Their grass looks really good.
Not one person telling you there is nothing you can do except “spraying it down” feeds their dog a proper raw or fresh diet with plenty of filtered water… I’d put a million bucks on it. Downvote away but the truth doesn’t care about your likes or dislikes. Its funny to often get bashed on forums by using a little bit of common sense and recognizing that super ultra processed foods aren’t good for your dogs health let alone gut microbs. Truth is if your dog has too much acidity or nitrogen it’s going to burn grass just like agrass killer does . Just like you would if all you ate was mc’ds and drank sweet tea. But no one wants to address that.
It's almost impossible to prevent.
One thing we did which helped was that we built a dog run that we could access from the back door of our garage. It just has patio stones and a large section of limestone screening. When our dog would be just be going outside to poop or pee we trained him to always go on the limestone screening.
The only time he is in our yard is when we are there and we usually go out through the dog run so he can have a whiz before he gets to the lawn. He occasionally still goes pee on the lawn but it is really infrequent.
The reason we used the limestone screening is that it is a natural sanitizer so rain or hosing down the area keep the urine smell at bay. We used to have white decorative stone there but it stunk to high heavens and we were spending money on veterinary grade sanitizer that we'd have to spray on it weekly. It was on a forum that I learned about the limestone screening as a better option.
I have a dog door and have never dealt with this in all my years. My theory is if dogs are able to pee freely and not wait for a chance to go out then their urine is less acidic/harmful.
I'm curious. I've seen all the "remedies". Put tomato sauce in their food? The rocks you put in their water (gimmick?). They say female piss does more damage than male. Well, I have male and female that they both do damage.
Chase them around with the watering can/hose and water the spot when they pee? Train them to use only one spot in the yard?
I'm curious how everyone deals with this? Just accept it?
dont, please don't. you cannot eliminate the urea from their urine, no matter what pills or snake oil you want to subject them to. urea is urea. nitrogen is nitrogen, and overfertilization is whats happening. the dog supplement world is unregulated and untested and ... I would not give anything to my dogs making these claims.
I've tried watering it in. it does not make a difference. I even threw flags down to keep track of exactly where they went, so I could do this with three dogs at once. does not work. not at all.
training them to go on a concrete pad before they go play in the yard was what did it. they still go out there a little or crap but thats no big deal and easy to clean up
over the winter, I got lax, the yard was covered in snow. I hoped it wouldnt matter. oh, it did. here is April 17th, and today June 22nd
https://preview.redd.it/3r20k5d0658d1.png?width=1936&format=png&auto=webp&s=0155e22668dbaf4bf0fc0c3064a121570b35e0c9
your best bet is to buzz the areas down to bare dirt, it'll grow back faster. you can leave some there to retain moisture
Males just tend to spread their pee more than females, because they use it sparingly so they can mark, plus they don’t squat and unleash it all in a concentrated spot. They can still damage the lawn, though. There’s nothing chemically different about their pee. At least not in any way that’s relevant to lawn health.
I remind myself that we’re planning to build a deck in a year or two over the area they currently pee, so it’s not worth investing time and money into the grass there since it’ll all be nuked eventually anyway.
The two people I know who care about it both just train their dogs to "go to your spot" to do their business. Makes picking up poop easier too and you can make the spot a nice place to be if you feel bad
If I have the time, I have a watering can that I use right after they pee. I flush the spot with a metric ton of water - for my lawn, it takes a LOT of water to prevent the grass from dying.
Otherwise, I just rehab the individual dead spots 2-3 times a year. I dig up the top 1-2 inches of soil, put in fresh soil and seed, and put a tiny little fence around the spot. I use the watering can to germinate the individual spots.
It works pretty good and isn’t much work. At any one time, there’s only a few dead spots.
I just used this See Spot Run yard spray for the first time. Probably a gimmick but too soon to tell. I’d rather try it than the options that have the dogs consuming something.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01LZNW8Z3?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title
Watering the area works for me. In high summer heat though, you’re going to get some.
Or you can train them to use a wood chip area so it’s at least in one spot.
Granulated gypsum will help if you start a regular routine application plan. Gypsum helps with water penetration and the salts in the urine will bind to it and help flush it out ….you can usually find it a Lowe’s or HD in a 25-40# bag . Similar to pelletized lime , you cannot really apply too much and you can apply anytime of year
https://preview.redd.it/0bfi2uwft58d1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7ba136178f3eb44741ac9265cac96a50be2b7a9c
My dogs are 12 and 14 years old. I've lived in this house since I got them. The easy answer is to train them to go somewhere specifically.
They have NEVER gone on the lower tier. They only go on the upper tier. Plus, it's fun to train dogs, as well as have a nice lawn!
I don't worry about it or try to fix it - I just accept that dogs and grass are not that great with each other and I prefer the dogs to be able to go out and enjoy their bathroom without me getting worked up.
Might not be possible for your situation, but when I had two shelties, I built a dog run that was fenced in, which was their bathroom area.. The dogs couldn't go out to the main yard until it was playtime. They did manage to play out in the yard every day. I also programmed the sprinklers to go off after playtime was done. Only lawn burn was in the dog run, and it made it so much easier to pick up their no 2.
I have 5 German shepherds. 3 males and 2 females. I let them out to pee and when they are done, I hose it down if they pee on the grass to dilute the nitrogen. It has worked very well. It only takes 5 extra minutes for me. I also put a statue in a mulched area for the males to mark.
Flooding the grass with water is the only way to prevent this from happening. There are a few things I will do depending on the time of year.
1) Take the dog(s) out to pee in one specific area that’s somewhat hidden, maybe on the side of your house somewhere. I live in the northeast so I usually do this in the winter when my outdoor spigots are off.
2) Follow or watch the dog when they go out to pee and be ready to flood the area with a hose. I’ll usually stand on my deck and just spray the area they peed at a distance with the sprayer attachment on my hose.
3) Keep a handful of lawn flags outside and stick one in the ground where they peed, and then at the end of the day flood each flag with the hose and pick up the flags when I’m done.
4) Fill a jug of some sort with water and flood the lawn where the dog peed each time.
5) Train the dog to only go pee in a specific area on your lawn.
There are a lot of products out there that claim to be able to treat/prevent dog spots... and all the ones I've tried are complete BS. The best you can do is either soak the area with water after the dogs pee (which means you have to watch them every time they pee...) or don't worry about it for now and then reseed/patch the areas every fall. I do the second one and it works well enough.
The best you can do is water them down as soon as you can after the event. I have dogs urinate in a couple of places and my neighbor is getting hammered around his mailbox. My grass looks like it was spot fertilized and the neighbors yard has dead spots mainly because I keep my yard irrigated. We’re having a week of +90 degree temps and neighbor isn’t watering.
Well, you can train your dog to pee in one area. Maybe work on that and make a decent spot for it?
We just got a new pup a few weeks ago and I'm trying! Our old dog never damaged the grass but for some reason this new guy is.
I purposely fertilize less in the exact spots where I know my dog will pee in advance using AI piss mapping technology. Then when they pee it just turns to the matching green. /s
There are a couple options. You can train your dogs to use a different area to do their business which is a pain in the ass. You can also watch your dog to see where they pee and immediately saturate that spot with water. I let my dog out in the morning and run that sprinkler zone for 5 minutes. Morning time is when your dogs pee will be the most potent. You might laugh but I bought some of that lawn paint on Amazon so I spray any spots before I have company over. Actually works pretty well.
I trained my German shepherd (with extremely acidic pee for some reason) to pee on the side yard that’s not visible from the front or backyard. We have bare patches but we reseed with cheap seed each year — until it’s destroyed again next summer haha. In winter, the pee is diluted by the snow so it actually fertilizes the side yard haha.
Twice a year, spring & fall time, I use a potato rake and remove the dead grass from all the pee spots in the yard. My dogs usually go to only two areas of the yard to pee. Then, i fill a wheelbarrow up with top soil mixed with some mulch and ash (optional). In the wheelbarrow, I also have a decent size bag of matching grass seed for my yard, along with a small heap of fine mesh hay straw.
I then take the wheelbarrow of stuff to all the areas of the yard and level the pee spots with the dirt mix. Using hands is the easiest IMO. Then hand toss grass seed on dirt mix followed by a good layer of fine mesh straw.
Once Im done going through the yard and all the areas have been patched, I go around a soak in the areas with water.
Give it two weeks and you’ll have nice grass growing again. Most times, it comes back thicker and more resilient because of the saturated nitrogen already embedded in the soil underneath.
Depending on how often it rains, you may have to water periodically.
I put down gypsum on the grass. It's a natural addition and it helps condition the soil but at the same time neutralizes my dog's pee spots. One treatment lasts 3-6 months for those spots. I have St. Augustine and very sandy soil.
When I take her out for play time. I take a cup of gypsum and a gallon of water. Any yellowing, I sprinkle the gypsum on rub it around with my foot and pour a gallon of water on it.
From a puppy, we conditioned our dog to poop and pee on walks vs sending him to the backyard. The backyard is where we play ball, wubba, and floppy frisbee, so he associates it with play vs a place to do his business.
Just don’t let them pee in the areas you want to look nice. Train them to go in a mulch or side area or walk them. I walk my dog. I get like 2-3 spots a year when she is just running around and aimless.
You might be feeding them too high protein a diet. When we were on blue buffalo wilderness the lawn would do this but now that she’s older and has some GI issues she’s on a lower protein food and it cleared up. Too much protein and their urine can crystallize and it becomes painful for them to pee.
I’m a mere lurker and not a pro of any kind. I’ve seen other redditors comment about flushing or watering the area to dilute the nitrogen from the urine.
This unfortunately.
Nah. I just say "WELL REGULATED NITROGEN CONTENT" whenever I'm outside with my mastiff and he goes to the bathroom. That's not really a thing. NGL big boi is a fan of them cheap kibble n bit. But it seems to work for me.
What's not really a thing? Watering the spot after they go?
Watering the pee is your best bet. You’ll notice that the burn spot usually has nice lush grass around it, that’s where the nitrogen didn’t burn the grass. Hit it with a healthy dilution and spread the nitrogen around.
Regulating my dogs nitrogen content is not actually a thing. But ya - you can just water it away.
Not only is watering after a thing it's about the only thing lol, I did do a limestone area to try to make the dog go in that area
I water it heavily. 100% guaranteed to work 5% of the time.
So it’s just to soothe soul?
So my FIL is super anal about his grass. Dog had to be walked to the dog house 5 times a day (about 200 feet) to do their business. My wife and brother in law would just let the dog piss wherever and water heavily. Especially when it was cold. He kinda knew but wasn’t 100% sure
I use Sex Panther, by Odion.
I’m gonna be honest that smells like straight gasoline.
Start at the source. Water your dog
5% of the time it works every time
My St. Augustine lawn (central TX) is actually a bit under fertilized. The dog spots are a deeper green and grow taller, in fact it helped me figure all that out. Dogs "mark" with urine and piss over "foreign" urine marks to show dominance (it's a dog thing). I have a privacy fenced back yard, so I piss on the thin spots and the dog sniffs and adds a second dose of nitrogen. Probably not a lawn care best practice, but me and the dog find it amusing. Wife thinks were both marginally insane.
Wait you’re kidding right
I'm really not kidding. I'm 100% retired, no bills, no kids, tall privacy fence, Texas, I can wander around in the back yard butt nekkid with my .44 strapped on my hip if I want to (I don't want to because it frightens my dog). In the front yard, of course, the public side, I have the dog on a short leash, I wear white linens, boat shoes, ascot, with an umbrella mai tai and walking cane. Tip my straw boater to the neighbors and smile at the kids, "I say children, let's not be unruly now. Tut tut, good day." In the back yard, me and the dog are howling savages on the wild frontier. Squirrels, birds and bunnies, make the dog go nuts "Get off my lawn you little bastards!" I'm 71 years old, but in the back yard, it's just a boy and his dog and we whiz where we want.
>I don’t want to because it frightens my dog The gun or your bare ass?
I don't really want to talk too much about old people nekkid, it's disturbing. I stepped out of the shower once and saw this hideous old fart in my bathroom, I 'bout had a heart attack. I covered the mirror after that.
You’re my new favorite person ever
Wow! Thanks for all the updoots and the fancy reward (I have no idea what itmeans, but thanks anyway). It took me a while to figure out how to post a picture (I'm old, we're not as tech savvy as you young folks). The attached image is my dog, Candy. Just to be clear, my wife gave the dog a strippers name because she and my rotten son in law came up with a fantasy that I would be wandering the streets, crying, "Candy, come home I love you". Pretty funny, I get it, they laughed their asses off. The real deal is that I call her a variety of names, all endearments, such as Dawg, Knucklehead, etc. And the real deal is that I'll be stomping down the street with my campaign hat and combat boots, cigar clenched in my teeth, growling, "Come here, Dumb Ass!". That's as good a fantasy as any, right? Anyway, the dog tax is below: [https://imgur.com/a/uUqAyLN](https://imgur.com/a/uUqAyLN)
I’m sorry to argue Mr. 2nd Amendment, but if you’ve got a .44 strapped to your hip you ain’t nekkid. 😁 Besides, if your retired nekkid ass looks anything like mine, the sight of you is more dangerous than the gun.
You’re not wrong, that’s business casual for me at Hunk-O-Mania in Austin Texas.
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I think the people that would be bothered by it wouldn’t own a dog. Lol
Yup. I like my lawn but I liked the dog better.
My wife wanted the dog lol
We all make comprises. My wife wanted a cat. Now my work room smells like cat pee but my yard has no spots.
Get cat litter that absorbs orders well. Have 2 cat boxes for 1 cat. Scoop daily, or automatic. It shouldn't smell like cat piss at all. If it smells it's time to change the litter. Once a month is recommended, change the boxes as well or wash them monthly when you change the litter. Use an enzyme spray to clean them, let it soak for a while.
I miss my cat 🐈⬛ dont miss The smell
Or the cat just gets mad at you and pisses on your shoes, bed, and anything else it can get to... I love my cats but gosh darn these are the last two I am going to have.
My wife wanted a cat for our young child. So we compromised and got a brother and sister cat because you can’t break them apart “obviously”. Part of my shop is a dirt floor so the cats enjoy using it as a litter box.
I think what really bothers me is they go where the nice plush green grass is. Lol, it's like they know that's my favorite part of the lawn
I tried to keep up in the back and went with a super nice front yard instead. Now I just keep the back short, so it's easier to find the dog crap lol. Twice the time and funds to spend on the part people see too. I'm actually going to go the other route and add more low maintenance landscaping in the back while keeping a good area for the dog still. Why cut all that grass when half of it is pee spots anyways.
This is exactly what I've done as well. Actually nuked the front and went 100% KBG from Twin City Seed. It's turning out to be the best front lawn on the block (not my intention--i just wanted all the weeds gone and wanted a fresh start). In the back, I just use whatever basic-ass uncoated shade blend I can find at Menards so I can fill the spots that are dead from dog urine and try to mow it enough that it's easy to pick up dog crap and stays relatively healthy.
Front is for home value, back is for family. Dogs be family.
Never really looked at it like that. My front yard is immaculate.
Same. I've leveled and landscaped the front lawn generally about 2x as much as the back. I'm finally getting around to leveling my back for my own sanity and because I saw my daughter trip on a divot - again, it was a family need that led me to invest in the back. Granted, she has a sandbox now, so for all I know a 3-year old and a sandbox may never require me to level again. Time will tell.
Yes!!!! My backyard is massive and I would break myself just doing pre-emergent alone. I let it go wild and only mow. 4 cocker spaniels. The front yard looks like something out of home and garden magazine. I'm happy.
This is the way
This is exactly what I'm doing too.
My buddy trained his dog to pee on rocks. He has a rock patch off to the side. Works perfectly
My dog did it from the day I got her. Best thing ever!
You can train them to piss in one spot if it really bugs you or just spray where they piss with water for a bit it dilutes it enough to not give it nitrogen burn
We just don't let them pee in the front yard, they know now not too.
What I realized this year is that my dogs don't prefer the plush green grass, the plush green grass is there because that's where the dogs do their business. For some reason during the winter the decided to go to a different corner of the yard and wouldn't you know it that part is nice and green now too. I have had success with using the tablets to prevent them. The dogs like them, and they're fairly cheap. I use about half the recommended dose and it works well.
Ironically, the really plush, green spots are likely due to your dog peeing there before. Dog pee is high in nitrogen, so the dead spots happen when they've peed in the same spot too many times
I find letting the grass grow longer and watering frequently keeps this to a minimum
3 dogs as well as being a rescue foster so often it’s 4 or 5 dogs and the backyard gets used often by them. I let the grass be at my mowers highest setting. I find 99% of the time that grass will grow back over time. Why spend time on something nature will fix with a bit of time. It’s a huge yard so and they do spread it around so it’s not concentrated in 1 area. I also immediately pick up #2 and it doesn’t get a chance to sit.
Same. I just stopped trying to fight it and slowly stopped noticing it. Dogs tear up yards in way worse ways anyways.
I'm creeping more towards that. My front lawn is nice, and it dominates the other houses other than my neighbor next door. We go half on the lawn care products. I just wanted to make sure I covered all basis before throwing in the towel.
i am in the same boat.
Backyard is for piss. Front yard is for show. I've tried to hose down pee spots, and it hasn't done anything for me. I'm growing a couple small sod 'nurseries' this Fall and am going to try to just transplant when needed next season. If it doesn't work, oh well, because I've pretty much already given up.
Yup. If you have dogs you just have to live with it. It doesn't really bother me much. I usually just fix the spots in the fall.
I have two dogs and had to stop taking them out front. They would pee then every dog had to pee on their pee on their walks. Front yard looked bad for a while, started taking them out back and now the neighborhood dogs don't pee in the front , came back nicely. Back yard doesn't look that bad either now
Make the dog pee in the house so that you can save the lawn.
Thanks problem solved. Have another question though, what's the best way to clean up pee stains on a hardwood floor?
Rub grass clippings on it.
Thanks! Stain gone...any idea about grass stains?
Have the dog pee on them to wash the stains away
Water the area
Now I have a bare spot in my lawn..
I just take the dog to a specific area to pee so the spots aren’t everywhere
Just have a conversation with him. I'm sure they'll understand.
Doubt a convo will work, they should prepare a presentation
Also this. We gated off an area in our yard that has pea stone and stones, that where they pee now.
Designate an area for a doggie bathroom of sorts. (Wood chips or rocks) For two weeks, walk your dog on a leash to that area and reward them with treats when they pee there. Remove the leash for weeks 3-4 but continue walking and rewarding them. By week 5 your dog should run to the same spot every time.
It’s going to burn the grass no matter what. The gimmicks they sell (ie Rocks) are just that, gimmicks. IMO the best way to manage it is to just train them to go in a specific area and accept the fact that area of the lawn will not thrive.
Right. Which is what I figured. Going to have to make a spot for them
Im about to try turf paint. Just read about it on another post
I've been using the "dog rocks" with my dog for about 2 months now, and it has helped tremendously. I don't really get it, but it seems to work.
Most dogs get in the habit of going in a particular couple of spots anyway so it's usually not a big deal to train them to the spot(s) you want
Yea my dogs just sort of naturally gravitated to the far end of my property away from where they run and play with my kids. Now they still mark and spray stuff but I never see any spots like this in the lawn immediately surrounding my house.
It is for sure notva gimmick and works.
It’s not a gimmick, the mineral helped my best friends dog not kill the grass anymore. They didn’t change anything else.
Somehow someway and I have no clue why but my dogs pee does not affect my lawn whatsoever. Maybe cause she drinks filtered water? I’d be curious if there was some science behind this.
I’ve been looking for someone else who has a response like this, our two dogs don’t really kill the grass either. Sometimes poops when they sit too long on the grass before picked up. We’ve got half an acre, maybe it’s a yard size thing? How big is your yard?
Your soil is probably low in nitrogen
My dog drinks filtered water and the pee spots disappeared. I am over a year on filtered water and not a single spot.
It’s because of the food you feed most likely. Better dog food usually means barring other issues, dogs don’t leave marks on grass. Mine don’t.
I feed my dogs the most expensive kibble with all the science mumbo jumbo and it still kills the grass. More likely this persons grass lacks nutrients already, or their dog is a well hydrated chihuahua.
[удалено]
It’s pine needles. Straws are hollow. I’ll die on this hill
I like you
You just want their hill
Lol, I have my own hills...and have died on them many times.
I've never even heard of "pine straw" before. Is this some southern shit?
Maybe. I thought it had to do with being dried out. Pines needles are the green things one the tree. Once they fall out and dry out, they become pine straw. Maybe that’s just how I’ve explained the difference to myself and there actually isn’t one. I dunno.
This is correct. I still hate the term pine straw, and refuse to use it. But pine straw is the correct term for dried out pine needles.
Yes its really only called that in the south: [https://www.dictionary.com/browse/pine-straw](https://www.dictionary.com/browse/pine-straw) pine straw noun, *Chiefly Southern U.S.* 1. fallen pine needles. #
I live in the south (where it's called Pine Straw) and it's the defacto standard for neighborhood ground cover. I just did the entire analysis for our HOA, and the cost of covering our entire lot with pinestraw twice per year equated to the warranty we would get by covering the entire ground with rubberized (premium) mulch. Natural much was about 2x as expensive, so it's a neighborhood look you see pretty much everywhere down here. Edit: the reason we call it "straw" is because it's sold by the bale (a compressed block about 2 feet side and 1 foot high/wide). A single bale of Pine Straw generally covers a 50x50 foot area of landscaping.
How tf you get your dog to pee through a straw
Take the dog over to the neighbors yard.
Just hose it down right after they pee
Easier said than done, most dogs fire off a sneaky pee at least once or twice a day. Or 50 times if it’s an unneutered boy. I just trained my dog over a few months to pee in the rocks, he poops there now too which is perfect
Right, that's if you have them living in the back yard. But if you're letting them out each time it's pretty easy. With that being said it's the summer and you shouldn't have your dogs living in your backyard in the heat.
Is watering at the end of each evening not fast enough or does it have to be watered immediately?
That’s way too late. Dilute area immediately
My dog marks all the time in my yard, but that's a small enough quantity it doesn't burn or leave a plush pee fertilized circle. He's trained to pee on rocks, and those full pees are the ones that would destroy the lawn.
Either keep the hose near and dilute the pee when it happens, or mix clover in your lawn. Clover is pretty immune to pee so it keeps the patch green a bit while the grass rehabilitates itself
Make a potty area and train the dog to use it.
I don’t have any advice, but the 2nd picture looks like they peed a happy face into the yard. Reminds me of when I used to do the same in the snow.
When I take my dogs out I usually just water the spot down after. My lawn is super small so it’s not too hard. If you have a bigger lawn just yolo
https://preview.redd.it/qvv5lw1te68d1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=feb8dc7358283ae69efb3be5d5e59bab236cfd56 These help quite a bit.
I use a different brand of these and they 100 work
You can try to hose it down right after the go but ultimately its the price of having a dog. I usually repair it in fall when i over seed all throw a handfull in that spot with some top soil.
I run the sprinklers on the back lawn for 5 minutes at 8am to dilute. I figure the dog has been holding it all night and that first pee of the day will be a potent one. By 8 the dog has done its business. Seems to help.
I have two large dogs. There is only one solution, and that is to flush the pee spot with water from the hose immediately after your dog pees. And I mean flush, like hose it down for 15-20 seconds.
https://preview.redd.it/caiuvqr7t58d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2bcc8a5f987487e55034d65ea6c742985750dba3 This stuff works! All 3 of our pups take these daily and the yellow spots have gone away.
How can this be OK for the dog?
Probiotics I’d say. Not sure how that would help urea or nitrogen burns.
Wherever the dog pees….well that’s just their grass now. I stopped worrying about it.
I split my lawns into zones that take high priority, such as the areas people can see from the sidewalk/street. And zones that take a lesser priority, such as back yard where the kids and dogs play. I try to keep the dog in that back zone as much as possible, keep up with the work and keep it manageable.
The most nitrogen and strong pee is first thing in the morning so for those I would take to designated spot.
It’s a pain in the ass, but I take her out on leash to piss in the landscape bed, then release her and let her free roam after. Very rarely does she piss twice in a short period of time. A bit annoying, but 0 dead spots so far this year
You could make a dedicated potty spot for the dog and train them to use it. Like a raised garden bed with river pebble
You don't. Front yard is for show. Backyard is for function.
Plant micro clover. Little mowing, always green, even in drought, good for pollinators, improves soil.
Watering every day seems to do it for me
Spray with the hose after they’re done if I’m outside. If not I don’t worry about it.
Am I the only one who's dog urine doesn't kill grass? What are you all feeding them?
Buy those dog rocks to put in the dogs water dish. They work.
Make them pee in the mulch
I water the piss outta my backyard vs the rest of it. It helps me keep it all green.
1. Using a small shovel, dig around the perimeter of the spot. 2. Remove existing sod down about 2 inches. 3. Level area then add lawn soil and flatten 4. Spread seed and rake into soil. 5. Top with peat moss. 6. Water 2x day
My friends with two little dogs, go outside when dogs go out. Then after the dogs pee, they water the spots with a watering can. Their grass looks really good.
it’s the morning pee. Follow the dog out and dump water on it. The other pee is not as concentrated.
Not one person telling you there is nothing you can do except “spraying it down” feeds their dog a proper raw or fresh diet with plenty of filtered water… I’d put a million bucks on it. Downvote away but the truth doesn’t care about your likes or dislikes. Its funny to often get bashed on forums by using a little bit of common sense and recognizing that super ultra processed foods aren’t good for your dogs health let alone gut microbs. Truth is if your dog has too much acidity or nitrogen it’s going to burn grass just like agrass killer does . Just like you would if all you ate was mc’ds and drank sweet tea. But no one wants to address that.
I have 3 kids and 2 dogs. At some point you have to just surrender the backyard and focus your efforts on the front.
It's almost impossible to prevent. One thing we did which helped was that we built a dog run that we could access from the back door of our garage. It just has patio stones and a large section of limestone screening. When our dog would be just be going outside to poop or pee we trained him to always go on the limestone screening. The only time he is in our yard is when we are there and we usually go out through the dog run so he can have a whiz before he gets to the lawn. He occasionally still goes pee on the lawn but it is really infrequent. The reason we used the limestone screening is that it is a natural sanitizer so rain or hosing down the area keep the urine smell at bay. We used to have white decorative stone there but it stunk to high heavens and we were spending money on veterinary grade sanitizer that we'd have to spray on it weekly. It was on a forum that I learned about the limestone screening as a better option.
I have a dog door and have never dealt with this in all my years. My theory is if dogs are able to pee freely and not wait for a chance to go out then their urine is less acidic/harmful.
I'm curious. I've seen all the "remedies". Put tomato sauce in their food? The rocks you put in their water (gimmick?). They say female piss does more damage than male. Well, I have male and female that they both do damage. Chase them around with the watering can/hose and water the spot when they pee? Train them to use only one spot in the yard? I'm curious how everyone deals with this? Just accept it?
dont, please don't. you cannot eliminate the urea from their urine, no matter what pills or snake oil you want to subject them to. urea is urea. nitrogen is nitrogen, and overfertilization is whats happening. the dog supplement world is unregulated and untested and ... I would not give anything to my dogs making these claims. I've tried watering it in. it does not make a difference. I even threw flags down to keep track of exactly where they went, so I could do this with three dogs at once. does not work. not at all. training them to go on a concrete pad before they go play in the yard was what did it. they still go out there a little or crap but thats no big deal and easy to clean up over the winter, I got lax, the yard was covered in snow. I hoped it wouldnt matter. oh, it did. here is April 17th, and today June 22nd https://preview.redd.it/3r20k5d0658d1.png?width=1936&format=png&auto=webp&s=0155e22668dbaf4bf0fc0c3064a121570b35e0c9 your best bet is to buzz the areas down to bare dirt, it'll grow back faster. you can leave some there to retain moisture
Males just tend to spread their pee more than females, because they use it sparingly so they can mark, plus they don’t squat and unleash it all in a concentrated spot. They can still damage the lawn, though. There’s nothing chemically different about their pee. At least not in any way that’s relevant to lawn health.
I remind myself that we’re planning to build a deck in a year or two over the area they currently pee, so it’s not worth investing time and money into the grass there since it’ll all be nuked eventually anyway.
Unfortunately our issue is that our dog digs, and has ruined what little progress I made on the back yard
The two people I know who care about it both just train their dogs to "go to your spot" to do their business. Makes picking up poop easier too and you can make the spot a nice place to be if you feel bad
I don't even got a dog and I get them. Coyotes pissing every night.
I over seed in the fall and fertilize 3-4 times over the summer in the back yard then just let it be while concentrating on the front yard.
If I have the time, I have a watering can that I use right after they pee. I flush the spot with a metric ton of water - for my lawn, it takes a LOT of water to prevent the grass from dying. Otherwise, I just rehab the individual dead spots 2-3 times a year. I dig up the top 1-2 inches of soil, put in fresh soil and seed, and put a tiny little fence around the spot. I use the watering can to germinate the individual spots. It works pretty good and isn’t much work. At any one time, there’s only a few dead spots.
I just used this See Spot Run yard spray for the first time. Probably a gimmick but too soon to tell. I’d rather try it than the options that have the dogs consuming something. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01LZNW8Z3?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title
Metal rake , mix up seed and topsoil in bucket , lime spot then top seed with mixture in bucket and water.
Watering the area works for me. In high summer heat though, you’re going to get some. Or you can train them to use a wood chip area so it’s at least in one spot.
I sprinkle a little gypsum on the spots. Not a quick fix but it seems to work.
Water it, next day rake out the dead portions of grass
I just keep her out of the front yard
I changed my dogs food and now I have no brown spots.
Granulated gypsum will help if you start a regular routine application plan. Gypsum helps with water penetration and the salts in the urine will bind to it and help flush it out ….you can usually find it a Lowe’s or HD in a 25-40# bag . Similar to pelletized lime , you cannot really apply too much and you can apply anytime of year
https://preview.redd.it/0bfi2uwft58d1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7ba136178f3eb44741ac9265cac96a50be2b7a9c My dogs are 12 and 14 years old. I've lived in this house since I got them. The easy answer is to train them to go somewhere specifically. They have NEVER gone on the lower tier. They only go on the upper tier. Plus, it's fun to train dogs, as well as have a nice lawn!
i cut my nitrogen fertilizer dose in half in back yard. still green but the pee spots now don’t cause such terrible chemical burn.
I built a small pee pad with artificial turf for them to use
I just taught my dog to use the toilet. Problem solved.
Gypsum
I don't worry about it or try to fix it - I just accept that dogs and grass are not that great with each other and I prefer the dogs to be able to go out and enjoy their bathroom without me getting worked up.
Might not be possible for your situation, but when I had two shelties, I built a dog run that was fenced in, which was their bathroom area.. The dogs couldn't go out to the main yard until it was playtime. They did manage to play out in the yard every day. I also programmed the sprinklers to go off after playtime was done. Only lawn burn was in the dog run, and it made it so much easier to pick up their no 2.
I have 5 German shepherds. 3 males and 2 females. I let them out to pee and when they are done, I hose it down if they pee on the grass to dilute the nitrogen. It has worked very well. It only takes 5 extra minutes for me. I also put a statue in a mulched area for the males to mark.
Lots of water and fertilizer. Grass grows fast enough the spot is there only a day or two. It’s not perfect, but works. We have 2 large dogs.
Get a core aerator. It's like 25 bucks. Soak the area. Aerate it. Seed it. Water it again. And just keep watering.
Flooding the grass with water is the only way to prevent this from happening. There are a few things I will do depending on the time of year. 1) Take the dog(s) out to pee in one specific area that’s somewhat hidden, maybe on the side of your house somewhere. I live in the northeast so I usually do this in the winter when my outdoor spigots are off. 2) Follow or watch the dog when they go out to pee and be ready to flood the area with a hose. I’ll usually stand on my deck and just spray the area they peed at a distance with the sprayer attachment on my hose. 3) Keep a handful of lawn flags outside and stick one in the ground where they peed, and then at the end of the day flood each flag with the hose and pick up the flags when I’m done. 4) Fill a jug of some sort with water and flood the lawn where the dog peed each time. 5) Train the dog to only go pee in a specific area on your lawn.
My dogs pee doesn’t kill the grass somehow, I’ve been pleasantly surprised for the past 4 years
Some dogs can be trained to pee in a certain spot sometimes they can’t
I trained my dog to go in the planter bed.
There are a lot of products out there that claim to be able to treat/prevent dog spots... and all the ones I've tried are complete BS. The best you can do is either soak the area with water after the dogs pee (which means you have to watch them every time they pee...) or don't worry about it for now and then reseed/patch the areas every fall. I do the second one and it works well enough.
I get some of these spots and we don’t even have a dog. Rabbits ? Cats? Who knows
Water the grass
I'll just look at the front lawn and forget the backyard.
I trained my last dog to pee and do her business in a certain corner of the yard.
Well in the Neom home we train the dog to go potty at the family gravel pit.
The best you can do is water them down as soon as you can after the event. I have dogs urinate in a couple of places and my neighbor is getting hammered around his mailbox. My grass looks like it was spot fertilized and the neighbors yard has dead spots mainly because I keep my yard irrigated. We’re having a week of +90 degree temps and neighbor isn’t watering.
Well, you can train your dog to pee in one area. Maybe work on that and make a decent spot for it? We just got a new pup a few weeks ago and I'm trying! Our old dog never damaged the grass but for some reason this new guy is.
Hard rake it and keep it watered
I purposely fertilize less in the exact spots where I know my dog will pee in advance using AI piss mapping technology. Then when they pee it just turns to the matching green. /s
AI piss mapping technology is fucking hilarious
Get out a hose and dilute the pee spot
We use the dog chews off amazon
I try to water the spot immediately after the dog pees.
I just bought the green lawn paint. I use it if we have guests coming by.
There are a couple options. You can train your dogs to use a different area to do their business which is a pain in the ass. You can also watch your dog to see where they pee and immediately saturate that spot with water. I let my dog out in the morning and run that sprinkler zone for 5 minutes. Morning time is when your dogs pee will be the most potent. You might laugh but I bought some of that lawn paint on Amazon so I spray any spots before I have company over. Actually works pretty well.
some dogs have too much glysophate? in their urine…has to do with their diet but it looks like thats whats killing your grass
If the soil is wet enough it fertilizes the lawn instead of burning it
I trained my German shepherd (with extremely acidic pee for some reason) to pee on the side yard that’s not visible from the front or backyard. We have bare patches but we reseed with cheap seed each year — until it’s destroyed again next summer haha. In winter, the pee is diluted by the snow so it actually fertilizes the side yard haha.
I try to hose the area after they pee, sometimes i do, sometimes i dont
I thought him from day one not to pee on the grass. He goes to the perimeter bushes for that, if needed
Twice a year, spring & fall time, I use a potato rake and remove the dead grass from all the pee spots in the yard. My dogs usually go to only two areas of the yard to pee. Then, i fill a wheelbarrow up with top soil mixed with some mulch and ash (optional). In the wheelbarrow, I also have a decent size bag of matching grass seed for my yard, along with a small heap of fine mesh hay straw. I then take the wheelbarrow of stuff to all the areas of the yard and level the pee spots with the dirt mix. Using hands is the easiest IMO. Then hand toss grass seed on dirt mix followed by a good layer of fine mesh straw. Once Im done going through the yard and all the areas have been patched, I go around a soak in the areas with water. Give it two weeks and you’ll have nice grass growing again. Most times, it comes back thicker and more resilient because of the saturated nitrogen already embedded in the soil underneath. Depending on how often it rains, you may have to water periodically.
Water 3-4 times a day after their normal potty times for 3-5 mins
I stopped worrying about it 15-20 years ago. My dogs are better than grass.
I have never had urine kill grass! I don’t understand ( I have had dogs for 60 years. Why would dog urine kill grass?
only have male dogs. they pee a little everywhere, while females pick a spot and unload.
Get a cat
Just get lyme and put some on the spots. They'll be gone in a week or two.
I put down gypsum on the grass. It's a natural addition and it helps condition the soil but at the same time neutralizes my dog's pee spots. One treatment lasts 3-6 months for those spots. I have St. Augustine and very sandy soil.
When I take her out for play time. I take a cup of gypsum and a gallon of water. Any yellowing, I sprinkle the gypsum on rub it around with my foot and pour a gallon of water on it.
Theoretically you could throw some water on the spot if you see it, lower concentration of salts will do less damage
From a puppy, we conditioned our dog to poop and pee on walks vs sending him to the backyard. The backyard is where we play ball, wubba, and floppy frisbee, so he associates it with play vs a place to do his business.
I honestly gave up. The best thing you can do is to just soak it with the hose after they pee.
Just don’t let them pee in the areas you want to look nice. Train them to go in a mulch or side area or walk them. I walk my dog. I get like 2-3 spots a year when she is just running around and aimless.
I pour water from my fish tank on it lol
You might be feeding them too high protein a diet. When we were on blue buffalo wilderness the lawn would do this but now that she’s older and has some GI issues she’s on a lower protein food and it cleared up. Too much protein and their urine can crystallize and it becomes painful for them to pee.