January 5, 2021 Sharon No Comments

Training your dog to go potty on the lawn is great but over time, the annoying dead grass patches start to develop, and these unsightly urine-burned patches may be a cause of concern for homeowners. Today, we’ll provide a few tips for this annoying problem. Here’s to saying goodbye to dead patches and hello to fresh grass.

What causes urine spots on grass?

Well, to understand, we need to revert back to some high school chemistry. A dog’s urine, whether female or male, is made up of salts and nitrogen-containing compounds, i.e., ammonia. These components are often the cause of the problem. You see, nitrogen in moderation has been proven beneficial as lawn fertilizer, in fact, commercial fertilizers are made up of nitrogen-containing compounds. However, when a dog urinates on the lawn, it expels a stream of nitrogen concentrated urine in a small area. This concentrated distribution often contains too much nitrogen and salts for the grass to handle which ultimately results in grass burns. Highly acidic or alkaline urine can also cause dead patches on your lawn. The acidity and alkalinity can alter the homeostatic pH of the soil. When the homeostatic pH of the soil is disrupted, dead patches will result.

Do female dog urine cause more damage to lawns?

The word on the street is that female dogs are notorious for destroying lawns with their urine. However, if you look into the urine components of both male and female dogs, you will see absolutely no difference between the two. Therefore, it is not the urine makeup of a female dog that destroys the lawn. It has something to do with how the female dog urinates. Male dogs often lift up their hind legs to mark their urine higher above the ground (on a tree or a post.) The lifting of the hind legs causes the urine to distribute in many different directions. However, a female dog will stay still and squat to urinate. This squatting behavior distributes urine to a small concentrated area.

What can I do to protect my lawn?

• Water your lawn following urination (Watering your lawn after your dog urinates can dilute the urine concentration. This will limit the damages caused by the urine.)

• Hydrate your dog (Providing more water for your dog can help dilute its urine. With the urine diluted, it is less likely to damage your lawn.)

• Check the pH of your dog’s urine (You can purchase pH test strips to test the pH level of your dog’s urine. A healthy pH level should be around 6-6.5.)

• Replace the dedicated potty area with artificial turf.

• If your lawn is damaged, don’t try to save it. Instead, replace the patch with new grass.

There’s a lot of commercial products that aim to alter the pH of your dog’s urine to prevent grass burns. However, it is worth knowing that some products can have an adverse effect on your dog’s health. So as a precaution, do your research before resorting to the supplements.