Do you have a dog? Are you sick of opening your back door to the very un-delightful smell of ammonia? Are you sick of your grass turning yellow and dying?
If you answered yes to any of those then this post is for you – today we’re talking dog toilets.
I have two beautiful but extremely smelly boy dogs and over the years I tried a few different types of doggie area surfaces. Soon I will be changing my current area into something more suitable because as you can see from the below picture it desperately needs a remodel. While researching what I might do next, I thought I’d put out my own experiences into the world for anyone looking to do the same.
WHAT IS A DOG TOILET AREA?
A dog toilet area is simply a part of your garden that is designated for your dog to do his business. It can be as simple as a patch of grass with a bit of a fence or some sort of a border around to let your dog know where the boundary is or it can be as extravagant as a platformed palace with different surfaces and a doggy house.
DO YOU NEED A DOG TOILET AREA?
The short answer is – no. You don’t need a dog toilet area if you don’t plan on using your garden yourself. If you don’t design and train your dog to use a specific area then effectively your whole garden becomes the potty. This will result in a strong pee smell that will spread surprisingly far at the smallest bit of wind and dead patches of grass. Again, this is fine if you aren’t much of a garden person and aren’t planning on spending too much time out there.
If you do want to spend time in the garden then there are a couple of things you can do:
- Walk your dog around the block a few times a day and train him to only go during this walkie time
- Create a designated area for him to use in the garden
I work full time and so don’t have time to go for more than one walkie a day during Mon – Fri. This is why I’ve always tried to have a designated area.
WHAT IS THE BEST SURFACE FOR A DOG TO POOP ON?
The best surface area for your dog will depend on a few factors such as how much maintenance you are willing to do, how often you can clean it, your budget and also it would be nice to pick something your dog enjoys going on too.
If you don’t mind picking up poop frequently and watering down pee, then grass is probably the best option and one that your dog will enjoy the most. However, if you’re looking for something that doesn’t need much maintenance then you may opt for pea sized gravel.
Let’s go through some of the most popular and easily available options and look at the pros and cons of each so that you can pick the best option for you.
1. Grass
Grass is the traditional surface of all gardens and naturally what your dog gets used to going on. One of my dogs loves grass so much that when we go on our morning walkie he will hold his poop until we get to the first patch of grass he can go on.
Our old house had grass which was what he used primarily. As a result, the grass did turn yellow in places and would die. This was because I was way too lazy to pick up poop as soon as he laid it (especially in the rain) and so a few piles of poop would stay on the grass killing it off even quicker than pee did.
Pros
- Natural surface that your dog probably already loves to go on
- Easy to create as you probably already have a grass area that you could spare for this purpose
- Easy to re-seed if the grass dies back
Cons
- Requires frequent dog poop picking and watering down pee
- Can be costly if re-seeding frequently
- If grass dies back, dogs can end up with muddy feet after using the area
Recommendation: grass is excellent for a budget-friendly surface that dogs will love to use. However, to keep the area from dying you must pick up poop as soon as the dogs go and you must water down any pee patches frequently to try and wash the pee off the surface of the grass before it yellows and kills it. It is therefore quite high maintenance.
2. Gravel
Gravel is a very popular surface for a doggie area. Usually, people use pea gravel as it drains very well and is a bit more comfortable on dogs’ feet. We currently have a gravel area, although it is chunkier than pea gravel. It does work very well in terms of draining but there are also a few downsides to it.
Pros
- The area is easy to keep clean and you don’t have to do it as frequently as with grass
- It’s relatively cheap to create
- It requires minimal regular maintenance
Cons
- Your dog is not likely to have used gravel before so they may be a little reluctant at first
- You will occasionally have to add new pea gravel to the area as some of it will be picked up with the dog poop
- After a while, weeds may grow through it and you will need to remove those
- Also after a period, it may get a little moss and algae growth from the rain and will need a good clean
Recommendation: gravel, especially pea gravel, is great as a low maintenance option. However, expect to need to top up and thoroughly clean the gravel once a year or so. You will also need to train the dogs to use the gravel as they are likely to be a bit unsure about it at first.
3. Pavers/ slabs
This is also what we currently have at the house. We have large slabs that lead out of the back door onto a slabbed area to which the gravel area for the dogs is joined onto. As a consequence, my dogs use both, the gravel and the slabs to do their business.
Pros
- Easy to pick up poop off
- Dogs are likely to be more comfortable with slabs as it is similar to surfaces they have experienced outside of the house
Cons
- Can be pricey to create the area
- Keeping it clean is a true commitment. If you don’t wash the area with a disinfectant frequently, it will smell horrific. It also only stays clean until the next time dogs pee on it
- Some slabs can be slippery when wet which may be dangerous for dogs
Recommendation: stay well clear! Slabs and pavers look fantastic but they are an extremely high maintenance surface for a dog toilet area. Additionally, no matter how hard you scrub, you will never get quite all of the smell of dog wee out of them.
4. Sand
Sand is an interesting option and I have never used sand as a doggie area before so can only comment on what I think the pros and cons may be.
Pros
- It’s going to be nice and soft for dogs to walk on
- Sand is not that expensive so creating the area is not going to cost the roof
- Picking up dog poop will be easy
Cons
- I think it may stick to dogs’ feet when it’s wet and get spread all over your house
- It may get washed away in the rain, depending on how you’ve set up your area
- Some dogs may prefer to play with it instead of using it as a toilet
- It’s going to show up any debris that falls into the sand patch (such as leaves and twigs) and there isn’t an easy way to clean all that stuff out
- It’s going to smell pretty bad and unlike gravel, you can’t easily wash sand
Recommendation: although dogs would probably prefer sand to pea gravel, I feel that pea gravel is the better option if you’re after something low maintenance. I think the wet sand sticking to dogs’ feet situation will get extremely annoying very quickly so perhaps sand is best used in areas where there is less rainfall. This rules the UK out.
5. Chipped bark
I have seen this as a recommended surface on some sites and although I haven’t tried it myself, I don’t think that this is a good option at all. Check out the pros and cons below for why.
Pros
- It will be quite cheap to create the area
Cons
- Chipped bark can get stuck in the dogs’ paws causing discomfort
- It will absorb and hold all the pee which will cause the area to be extremely smelly
- It will eventually rot down into a muddy mess and will thus need to be regularly topped up
- There isn’t a way to clean it apart from throwing a bucket of disinfectant on which won’t do anything for the smell build up
- Some trees/ shrubs are poisonous to dogs so you need to know exactly where the chippings came from
Recommendation: stay clear. It may be cheap to put together and look nice and natural to start with but your dogs will quickly turn it into a stinky mess. In addition, don’t risk your dogs’ feet getting splinters in or them eating a piece and getting poisoned. It just doesn’t seem safe.
6. Artificial grass
Artificial grass has grown in popularity massively over the last few years and not just for dog areas. I am biased with this one as I hate the idea of laying plastic in my garden – I can’t see how it’s good for the soil microbiome at all. I will, however, try to take a neutral stance and try and find some positives too. I have seen artificial grass used for this purpose before. We stayed in a holiday cottage once where they did just that. To be honest, it was quite functional and my dogs enjoyed using it.
Pros
- It will be nice and soft for your dogs’ feet
- It will have the look of lush green grass without the downsides of high maintenance to stop it from getting ruined
- With proper drainage underneath, it should be easy to clean
Cons
- It’s not environmentally friendly in the slightest
- Artificial grass that looks real can be expensive
- Installation may be tough as you will need to dig quite deep and add some gravel underneath the turf to make sure that it drains properly
Recommendation: as I said, I am biased with this one. I would never use artificial grass purely for environmental reasons. I do think it can look fabulous if installed properly and well looked after. I think if you have a big budget and don’t mind the environmental issues that come with artificial grass, it may be a good option for you, however, I would still encourage you to look at an alternative option.
This is it, we covered all the most popular options for a doggie toilet surface.
I’m well underway with my back garden remodelling and I think when I get to changing the doggie area, I am going to have real grass but I will lay it on top of a gravel subsurface to help with drainage. I will also have it near to the house where I will have a poop bin ready and a hose attached to the wall for quick rinsing of wee. I think perhaps I will also have a little shelter over the top as both of my dogs hate going toilet in the rain.
Let me know your thoughts on the various dog toilet surfaces – have you had any of those? I’d love to hear about your experiences with them!
