Dog urine on grass
 

Sorry about the title, but didn't know how else to state it. I have read through a lot of posted but haven't seen this topic addressed, so was wonding if someone would have any suggestions. We just moved into a Courtyard Villa with grass in the Courtyard. My lab does his business in the grass, but now the grass is turning brown/dieing where he urinates. It is zoysia grass. Does anyone know of remedites to neutralize this?
Thanks

I have heard people say that they dump water on any spot where he "goes" as soon as he goes. That dilutes the urine and can perhaps keep it from harming the grass.

I use a mixture of tap water and baking soda, and after our dogs' have done their duty, pour the mixture over the area. The grass is fine

:MOJE_whot:Instead of fighting city hall it might be a good idea to designate a spot, not on the grass, but perhaps on some rocks or soil where you need to train him to go. Still need to dilute with water because the odor will kill you. I have an Aussie and Standard Poodle that love the back downspout and have killed the grass there. When we landscape in the back I plan on putting a rock bed of some sort at that spot for them to use. Have a hose right there as well so will be managable.

Thanks for saying he is using your yard 'cause boy would things get rolling otherwise!!!

Keep in mind that it's the time of the year when the grass will go dorment and may turn brown in spots or in whole. Not sure though how you can tell if it's urine or dormency setting in. Perhaps someone with more experience in this area could add to this!

Different color than dormant grass and somewhat circular in shape!

You might try....
 

Artificial turf... I did and it's wonderful! We've lived here for almost a year... we pick up the poop and wash it down every day... disinfect every couple of days! It's put on top of rocks and sand so it washes down.

Add a little tomato juice to the dogs water, cuts the urine acidity. Use about an 8-1 mixture.

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THanks for the information. I appreciate it.

There is a product you can buy. I don't remember the name but I''m sure Petco has it. I have used it on the brown spots and it works - sort of.

Yeah- I get your gist !!

Good idea

:beer3:

:agree::agree:

We have had dogs whose urine would kill grass where they went due to the protein the their urine. We tried everything. Bought every pill, vitamen and anything else with no results. We heard about pouring water over where they go to dilute the urine and this work great. We would fill a coffee ground container full of water and walk out with our dog and pour it on as soon as she went and all our grass came back and it never became brown again (except weather related of course). Even when the grass recovers you still have to keep the water up or it will turn brown again.

Here in Maryland -I keep a 5 gallon bucket with water and a cup to pour on the urine or my grass is sure to die-when I am there in the villages I do nothing-I assume the yard is so sandy that the water doesn't lay long enough to damage the grass. I used to water there also but my neighbors told me it wasn't needed and they were correct.

This works, also Ketchup about 2 tablespoons in there food

I am renting a courtyard and note the same for my dog's browning the grass. I don't know of a remedy but wonder if timing irrigation for a brief spritz more often would help...

Might help with the dog urine, but not so much for whatever else gets spritzed. They tell us to water deep so the roots grow down - a quick spritz might encourage the roots of whatever gets spritzed to come to the surface for a drink. Use a hose or a watering can to saturate the area and you should be ok. The owner will love you for it and allow pets in the future.

Dog urine on the grass
 

Wow....something I have not thought about...I am moving to the Villages in March and have two 35 lb. (fixed) Terrier mixes. I have noticed that their urine does not affect the grass here (VT) but when my son's Lab visit's, his does. He is also fixed. Different breeds can have different acidity levels in their urine and cause the grass to die off. What was happening to the grass in the place you lived before you moved to the Villages..?

Both our goldens' urine killed/kills the grass in Michigan (blue grass, I think), despite the urine neutralizing pills from Drs. Foster and Smith. I was hoping the zoysia grass would be tougher, but not the case. It still turns brown. Our dog loves to veg out on a run in the backyard, and I can't catch every time he pees to wash it down with water. Since the backyard is only 10 feet deep and ends at a wall, we've kind of designated that as a throwaway spot.

But now we're having that landscaped, and I'm really interested in trying the tomato juice or ketchup routine. Of course, since we're from Pittsburgh it must be Heinz.

It’s the nitrogen in dog urine that burns the grass. I’ve found that Zoysia grass is more adversely affected this time of year, much more so than during the active growing season. As has already been recommended, the best thing is to pour water directly on the spot right after your dog pees. It’s not as daunting a task as it sounds, the first pee-break in the morning is the most important time. I would advise against trying to change the natural PH levels via commercial or home remedies, especially for dogs prone to kidney or bladder issues.

That's an interesting point about kidney or bladder issues. Thanks for bringing that up. Ours doesn't have those problems, but I will ask my vet before proceeding with any home remedies. Our first and last pees of the day (well. his, not mine...) are taken in the landscaping mulch, so the more concentrated stuff is not deposited on the grass. But while he's lounging about in the backyard while we are doing other things, we don't catch the occasional whiz.

how much water to how much baking soda?

Here is an informative site re dog's urine, from a pet medical insurance company Save Your Grass from the Dogs It sounds like the best option is watering the spot where the dog urinates and keeping him/her to one spot

Wish I knew! Please forward any replies you may receive to me. Good luck and thanks.

Take him next door!!!!!!! (;-)

Oh wow.

It does seem appropiate that neighbors use the cau de sacs for dogs to do their business.