Making your garden dog-proof entails making it a secure area for your dog as well as taking measures to safeguard your plants from the whims of your cunning canine buddy. The key is designing a garden that works with rather than against your dog’s demands. Learn how to safely enclose your yard to reduce the likelihood that your dog may cause trouble there. You can create a healthy, risk-free, and temptation-free dog-friendly garden with some careful design and planting. We will be focusing primarily in this article on surrounding fencing and easy-to-remove hazards.
How To Dog-Proof Your Garden
Securing the Garden
Make sure you have enough walls or fencing. If you want to let your dog run free in your garden, it needs to be completely enclosed with solid, uninterrupted walls or fencing. Both the height and the density of the barrier should be high enough to prevent your dog from jumping over or through it.
– Most dogs may usually reach a height of six feet. Go for seven or eight feet if your dog is a skilled climber or a great vertical jumper.
– Chain link, concrete, brick, masonry, wood, vinyl, and iron are examples of secure building materials. Choose the perimeter fence style that best suits your preferences and financial situation.
– If your dog is particularly cunning, they could be able to scale chain link fences or other fences that include openings or gaps that could serve as footholds. Split-rail fences won’t keep your dog in since there are too many spaces between the posts.
– In a similar vein, you must guarantee that your dog cannot dig a hole in the fence. To create a dig-proof layer, bury chicken wire if necessary slightly below the surface.
– Make sure that the lumber has not been treated with CCA if you decide on a wooden fence. Dogs are poisonous to this chemical.
Limit Your Dog’s Visibility. Install solid-paneled privacy fencing if your dog has a tendency to bark at or chase after other dogs or animals. This will restrict them from looking outside of your garden and help control undesirable behavior and excessive excitement. If your dog is prone to outside temptations, avoid using picket or chain-link fencing that allows them to see the entire yard.
Check for any holes or gaps in the perimeter.
Make sure there are no other crafty ways for your dog to escape once your controlled barrier is in place. Check the openings beneath any doors or gates and the bottoms of all your fencing and walls to make sure that your pet cannot squeeze through.
– You might need to build an underground barrier in addition to your fence if your dog is a dedicated escape artist or a prodigious digger. To keep your dog from tunneling out, think about placing rebar, wire fencing, or concrete beneath your fencing.
– If your dog repeatedly digs a hole in the same location, you can stop them by covering the hole with pavers or bricks, filling it with gravel, or simply filling it with some of their own waste.
Get latch-able gates. Any door leading out of your garden should have a solid lock that your dog cannot open. The latch should either be placed high enough to be out of their reach or difficult to operate so that only human fingers can do it. When your dog is outside in the garden, always remember to keep the gates securely closed.
Remove Hazards
Avoid growing plants that are toxic to dogs.
You could erect a fence to surround the dangerous plants. Dogs should avoid several typical garden flowers including daffodils and azaleas. Even foods that are OK for people to eat, like parsley and fennel, can be harmful to dogs. If left alone, dogs can very readily sniff, chew, and consume plants that are harmful to their health, therefore it’s critical to reduce the likelihood that they will be poisoned by removing high-risk plant species from their territory.
– Castor bean, caladium, dumb cane, rosary pea, larkspur, foxglove, autumn crocus, sago palm, black locust, yew, and oleander are the deadly plants that cause the most dog poisonings each year.
– The ASPCA maintains a comprehensive alphabetical list of both poisonous and dog-safe plants.
– Look into the status of any plants you already have in your garden or are considering adding. It’s preferable to keep poisonous species away from your pet or to eliminate them.
Avoid growing thorny plants.
Even non-toxic plants that have terrible thorns or spines can be harmful to dogs. Keep spiky plants like cacti, yucca, or blackberries out of your dog’s reach to prevent abrasions and eye damage.
Keep tools and chemicals securely locked up.
A garden shed with a latch or lock is the best place to keep all tools and chemicals, such as fertilizer and antifreeze, to protect your dog.
– Always keep your dog out of the garden if you’ve just applied fertilizer or insecticides to your plants, lawn, or other landscaping. When possible, choose organic or non-toxic alternatives.
Give your dog a location to retreat from the weather, such as the heat and rain, if you plan to leave them in the garden unattended. Install a doghouse or make sure your dog has access to a shaded location with an overhang, such as an arbor or gazebo. Keep a water dish outside and replenish it with fresh water each time you allow your dog out into the garden to prevent dehydration.
