Introduction:

A dog is a man's best friend but can be a lawn's worst nightmare. Dog urine and feces can create end number of problem on lawn. While small amount can be considered as a fertilizer, a large amount can often lead to lawn burn.

Causes of lawn damage:

Dog waste has high nitrogen content and is very concentrated. Urine is more serious as it spreads nitrogen content all at once, unlike feces that slowly release waste products over time. An additional disadvantage is that you can see solid waste and can therefore remove it quickly. Urine is discreet and you will only realize where your dog is doing his job when the damage is done. Urine marking, done by dogs are even more hazardous as they appear in small volumes all over the lawn rather than one large puddle. The brown spot that result from these markings appear in form of a brown ring. This is often called as 'female dog disease' by many lawn care experts. The damage done to the yard depends a lot on the grass used. Grass like Festuca is more resistant to urine effects as compared to Cynodon.

Prevention of damage:

Constructing a fence around the lawn can discourage dogs from entering the lawn. Walking the dogs in other areas like roadside shrubbery can be another option. Though some owners change the diet of their dogs in order to make the urine less concentrated, it cannot always lead to the desired outcome and in some cases in not vet. approved. The best approach to prevent this problem is by training the dog itself through conditioning to see the lawn as a play area and not a toilet.

Cure:

Damaged lawns need a little extra attention and sometimes-intensive treatment to cure it of burn patches. Using gypsum or lime on burnt spots is advocated. If lawn burns are mild, they may recover over time. Meanwhile, being on spot with the dog as he wanders on the lawn can be useful to catch him in the act. Watering the urine puddle can also be useful as it can decrease the concentration of nitrogen. Sodding and seeding can be done to repair damages effectively.

The best approach is to have a comprehensive plan of dog training and damage control operations to solve this problem

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