Tips For Making A Dog-Friendly Outdoor Space

Here are some tips for making a dog-friendly outdoor space. If you have plenty of room in your yard, and you also have a dog in your home, don’t let this outdoor area go to waste! There are few things more rewarding for a dog and owner, and that will help the dog burn up excess energy than a well-arranged outdoor space.

The only thing is that if you have a garden and if your dog is a digger, then that could be a problem. In this article, we will be looking at tips on how to make your yard an outdoor space fit for your dog.

Tips For Making A Dog-Friendly Outdoor Space

The first thing you should do is to create a dog-friendly space in your yard, and then do some training so the dog will learn that this space is “his”. It can be a doggy play area fit for him, with a fence around it, or even just an area outlined with some bricks if you don’t want him fenced in. If you don’t fence the area, you will have to train the dog to stay in the designated area.

Put in some extra soil so that your dog can exercise his digging skills and keep busy. Aside from soil, you may also put some leaves, sand, bark chips or mulch, but NOT cocoa mulch, which is a deadly poison. Train him by burying some of his favorite toys or treats under the soil while he is watching. Then afterwards, let him find it on his own. Later on, you can try burying other things in secret and letting him find them as well. The objective here is to let your dog know that this is his area for digging and playing. For canines that are naturally addicted to digging, you will have to make sure he doesn’t do too much.

During hot summer days or similar types of weather, it is best to build your dog a cooling pit, so as to avoid him digging for a cooling place in the soil. As dogs are more prone to dehydration than humans (they do not sweat), this is a must when things get hot. To do this, dig a shallow portion of the area and spread a thin layer of wet concrete on the bottom and sides. Put some small holes in the bottom before it dries, to serve as drainage. After it dries, fill it with sand and constantly dampen it with water in hot weather so your dog can have fun digging and laying in it.

Also, don’t forget to provide a shaded area if there aren’t any shade trees available. As described in an article on the Sunset.com website:

Like humans, dogs enjoy basking in the sun. So by all means, give them a deck or a patch of lawn for sunbathing.

But remember that dogs can overheat easily, so it’s even more important to provide them with cooling retreats.

Kiddy pools are also a good alternative for dogs. You can choose from inflatable ones or plastic models, or you can also build an in-ground mini pool. However, inflatable and plastic pools may possibly become chew toys for your dog, so watch for signs of the dog chewing on it. Anyway, keep in mind that the water depth should be adjusted for the dog’s size so that it is not in danger of drowning.

If you also have a garden, keep in mind that you should not have it anywhere near the vicinity of an unfenced dog area to prevent the garden from being damaged. Dogs like to dig, and your garden will be no exception — in fact, it will be a great temptation! There are also plants and vegetables that are hazardous, so you should know what they are and keep them out of the garden. If you do plant them anyway, put a simple fence around your garden for the dog’s safety.

Hopefully these tips for making a dog-friendly outdoor space will give you some ideas. Do you have any tips or tricks you have used that were helpful?