For some people, the fondest memories of their childhood include playing with their dog in the yard, taking him or her for a walk and cuddling up with them at night to scare away bad dreams. For parents on the other hand, Although they love their pet just as much, they also have to think about cleaning up after a new puppy and protecting their lawn against those pesky brown spots.
You don’t have to give up your sense of style to protect your home from pets.
If you have a light colored carpet, consider adding a rug. An indoor-outdoor rug in dark colors with a tight pattern can hide all kinds of doggy or kitty mistakes. Pets often want to climb up on us while we are relaxing on the couch, however, they often leave behind bits of dirt and hair or even muddy paw prints.
A simple solution is to add a durable throw over your furniture where your little buddy likes to sit, this will protect your furniture from all kinds of animal messes. The best part is that you can just toss it in the wash whenever it gets dirty.
This one may seem extreme although ingenious at the same time. You might consider matching your carpet, furniture and paint colors, to the color of your pet. I know this sounds crazy but you would be surprised how helpful this is when cleaning up after your pet.
You can control the brown-spot invasion on your lawn.
If you have ever owned a dog before you may already be prepared. However, for first-time dog owners may be surprised to find little brown patches all over your lawn where your pup likes to do his business. These little brown spots are caused by nitrogen in the dog’s urine. Female dogs are more likely to cause burns because they squat in one place instead of lifting their leg and spraying all over as male dogs do.
Also, lawns that are fertilized with nitrogen fertilizer are more likely to have burned because it is already getting all the nitrogen it needs. Also, lawns that have been stressed by recently being sodded or drought or disease are more susceptible to burning. Often times successful treatment of the brown spot invasion is a multi-step process recommended by Dr’s Foster and Smith:
- After your pup does his business douse the lawn thoroughly with water.
- Feed your dog high quality dog food so he doesn’t get too much protein which can cause excess nitrogen in urine.
- Encourage your dog to drink more water to dilute their urine.
- Train your dog to urinate in a secluded part of the yard to make the brown spots less obvious.
- Replant your yard with a more durable grass, if necessary.
- There are supplements that can reduce the amount of nitrogen in your dog’s urine that can help with brown spots.
- Don’t over fertilize your lawn.
- Lastly if a neighbor dog is causing the burning, consider putting up a fence around your yard.
Don’t step in the poo. Pick it up instead.
One of the least appetizing tasks for pet owners is taking care of their doggy (or kitty) doody. But there are some tools that can make this job more tolerable from automated poop clean up to special claw-like scoopers there is no reason to get up close and personal with the poop. You can also use a shovel and bucket or a dustpan to get the job done.
There are so many ways to keep you and your furry roommate in sync. You don’t have to give up your style or germaphobia to keep your house in balance.
