Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

In my front garden there are some plants that get a lashing from
inconitent dogs.
what is the likely long term damage to them, good or bad ??
maybe cats as well..

Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

In article ,
HaaRoy wrote:
In my front garden there are some plants that get a lashing from
inconitent dogs.
what is the likely long term damage to them, good or bad ??
maybe cats as well..

It can burn the young leaves of some plants, otherwise it is just a
nitrogenous fertiliser! If the damage isn't immediate and obvious,
there probably isn't any.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren,
University of Cambridge Computing Service,
New Museums Site, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QH, England.
Email:
Tel.: +44 1223 334761 Fax: +44 1223 334679

Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

HaaRoy wrote:
In my front garden there are some plants that get a lashing from
inconitent dogs.
what is the likely long term damage to them, good or bad ??
maybe cats as well..

Can't speak for cats.
Dog's I know. Male dogs, as in many other species, use spraying as a
territory marker. Any shrubs or herbaceous plants (not thickly barked
trees), even well established hardy ones, that are subjected to
regular spraying will deteriorate and show urine burn damage. I have
yet to see any benefit to the occasionally sprayed plant. So overall
the effect can not be seen as beneficial.
Bitches tend to squat and so their damage will be limited to lawns and
the like. And I can vouch for bitches 'in heat' having stronger urine
than those not in season.
Using wire mesh protection for treasured plants is of little help, the
dogs will simply spray through the mesh.
Low fencing or walling is required to protect the plants.
There are sprays that can be used to persuade dogs to 'go' else-where
but they need regular re-use to maintain their effect.
Or ........ provide an alternative marking post, something solid, that
will appear to the dogs as a permanent territory demarcation symbol.
What you need is a lampost.

--
ned

Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

A few years ago I planted a cherry tree in my yard. My dog promptly decided
it made a good place to go. Within 5 or 6 months he had killed it. I
suggest you make a wire cage and put it around the tree. ZMake sure it is
big enough to keep the dogs from reaching within 10 - 14 inches of the tree.

Good luck. Dwayne

"ned" wrote in message
...
HaaRoy wrote:
In my front garden there are some plants that get a lashing from
inconitent dogs.
what is the likely long term damage to them, good or bad ??
maybe cats as well..

Can't speak for cats.
Dog's I know. Male dogs, as in many other species, use spraying as a
territory marker. Any shrubs or herbaceous plants (not thickly barked
trees), even well established hardy ones, that are subjected to
regular spraying will deteriorate and show urine burn damage. I have
yet to see any benefit to the occasionally sprayed plant. So overall
the effect can not be seen as beneficial.
Bitches tend to squat and so their damage will be limited to lawns and
the like. And I can vouch for bitches 'in heat' having stronger urine
than those not in season.
Using wire mesh protection for treasured plants is of little help, the
dogs will simply spray through the mesh.
Low fencing or walling is required to protect the plants.
There are sprays that can be used to persuade dogs to 'go' else-where
but they need regular re-use to maintain their effect.
Or ........ provide an alternative marking post, something solid, that
will appear to the dogs as a permanent territory demarcation symbol.
What you need is a lampost.

--
ned

Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

On Thu, 2 Jan 2003 20:43:48 -0000, "ned" wrote:

HaaRoy wrote:

In my front garden there are some plants that get a lashing from
inconitent dogs.
what is the likely long term damage to them, good or bad ??
maybe cats as well..

Can't speak for cats.

I can.

Many cats spray urine as a scent-marker, both male and female.
Unlike dogs, which either squat or lift a leg, a cat when scent
marking will spray a stream of urine directly backwards, the hind
quarters lifted on tip-toe and vibrating madly. Some cats can put
out an amazing volume of pee this way, but others go through the
motions without emitting anything more than a few drops.

(Cats squat when urinating to get rid of wastes.)

Cat urine seems to be quite acidic and harmful to plants it gets
on. I have a golden yew by the entrance to my house, and it is a
favorite target for my cats' scent-marking activities. All around
it, about 12 inches off the ground, the foliage is burnt or dead.

I believe that cat urine is much worse than dog urine in this
regard.

--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

ned wrote:

. And I can vouch for bitches 'in heat' having stronger urine
than those not in season.

This is very true. Even one 'go' from a bitch in season can burn the grass
badly. Incidentally, it's not just bitches - one mare I had regularly
burned the paddock, leaving straw coloured patches everywhere!

As far as dogs go, we have 4 and they have to urinate on our land as they
never go anywhere else (well, apart from the vets!). I've never seen
anything burnt by the dogs urine.

Jaqy

Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

I inherited two bitches when my father died last February. There isn't a
scrap of grass left at the back of my house, since the rains it's just a mud
pie. Making strenuous efforts to get rid of the evil bitches before grass
planting time

Anyone need a grass killer??

Jon


"HaaRoy" wrote in message
...
In my front garden there are some plants that get a lashing from
inconitent dogs.
what is the likely long term damage to them, good or bad ??
maybe cats as well..

Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

Speaking of rain, I think that makes a big difference to the effect of the
urine. My bitch doesn't harm the grass at all during the winter, in fact we
have noticed that it is much more lush than it used to be (because I don't
feed the grass at all). During the summer there are brown circles of dead
grass on the lawn. I wonder, if you know exactly where the dogs are weeing,
you could water that area well and reap the benefits of the free fertilizer.

Elaine
"Oxymel of Squill" wrote in message
...
I inherited two bitches when my father died last February. There isn't a
scrap of grass left at the back of my house, since the rains it's just a
mud
pie. Making strenuous efforts to get rid of the evil bitches before grass
planting time

Anyone need a grass killer??

Jon


"HaaRoy" wrote in message
...
In my front garden there are some plants that get a lashing from
inconitent dogs.
what is the likely long term damage to them, good or bad ??
maybe cats as well..

Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

On Sat, 4 Jan 2003 18:45:15 -0000, "Elaine MacGregor"
wrote:

Speaking of rain, I think that makes a big difference to the effect of the
urine. My bitch doesn't harm the grass at all during the winter, in fact we
have noticed that it is much more lush than it used to be (because I don't
feed the grass at all). During the summer there are brown circles of dead
grass on the lawn. I wonder, if you know exactly where the dogs are weeing,
you could water that area well and reap the benefits of the free fertilizer.


I'm told that adding a spoonful of tomato juice to your dog's dinner
somehow changes the chemical make-up of the urine and prevents it
burning plants.
I intend to trial this technique soon - assuming I run out of vodka
and Worcester sauce before tomato juice!

Regards, and cheers!



--
Stephen Howard - Woodwind repairs & period restorations
www.shwoodwind.co.uk
Emails to: showard{whoisat}shwoodwind{dot}co{dot}uk

Effect of dog urine on my plants
 

Does anyone know whether the tomato juice (or anything else) works for
cat urine as well? My neighbour's tabby needs educating ...

Stephen Howard wrote in message . ..
On Sat, 4 Jan 2003 18:45:15 -0000, "Elaine MacGregor"
wrote:

Speaking of rain, I think that makes a big difference to the effect of the
urine. My bitch doesn't harm the grass at all during the winter, in fact we
have noticed that it is much more lush than it used to be (because I don't
feed the grass at all). During the summer there are brown circles of dead
grass on the lawn. I wonder, if you know exactly where the dogs are weeing,
you could water that area well and reap the benefits of the free fertilizer.


I'm told that adding a spoonful of tomato juice to your dog's dinner
somehow changes the chemical make-up of the urine and prevents it
burning plants.
I intend to trial this technique soon - assuming I run out of vodka
and Worcester sauce before tomato juice!

Regards, and cheers!