Dog-friendly alternatives to lawn

Hi,

My partner and I have decided to take in a dog who is being rehomed, and he suffers with really bad itching when he comes into contact with freshly cut grass. My lawn also doesn't look very good during the winter time, because about half of it is in the shade and with the high foot traffic it turns quite muddy.

As such I decided to look at alternative options but thought to ask here about people's experiences as well.

• Artificial grass: I would never go for it personally. The idea of making something that looks like a live ecosystem out of plastic doesn't sit well with me. Plus there are other issues with it.
• Alternative plants: While the idea sounds perfect in theory, I'm not convinced that these will work very well in large areas, with high foot traffic, including during the winter... Though I would be very happy to be proven wrong.
• Bark chippings: These would be a very dog friendly solution. I'm not a big fan of the look however, unless we are talking about mulching a border. They would need replenishing as they break down. I tend to get chiggers in my garden and I fear that bark chippings would create an ideal habitat for them.
• Gravel/pebbles/cobbles: While obviously it's better for nature to use plants, at least these are not plastic, so they are already a better option than artificial grass. In order for them to be friendly for dog paws, they need to not have very sharp edges and be of a reasonable size e.g. this or this During the summer, if there isn't enough shade, they will get quite hot.

Right now this is where my head is at, though I do tend to change my mind a lot:

• Not be absolute about getting rid of all of the lawn-(if there is a sizeable area for the dog's toilet needs, I can stop him from going on the grass when it's freshly cut)
• Half of the lawn, the one which is in the shade (closest to the house) could be replaced with an area with pebbles.
  
• The area with the pebbles could have pockets of planting within it to make it more interesting.

Here is a photo of the garden (looking like a bit of a mess) and a (horrible) diagram of sorts Do you think it could work or am I being silly?

Thank you.

 

I think your pebbles idea in the second photo would work @CostasK. They would be easier for you and your dog to walk on than cobbles and solve your muddy lawn problem, provided the area does drain adequately. Keeping some grass would be better for your dog and any visiting birds feeding on worms. Definitely avoid artificial turf, it gets hot in summer, is not good for wildlife and needs maintaining as weeds can grow in it, plus it’s plastic . You’ll need to provide some sort of edging to contain the pebbles and lay a weed membrane underneath. Pebbles tend to stay in place better than gravel, even if you use gravel grids. With your intended planting areas it could look very good and be more practical as well as dog friendly.

 

Thank you! Yes, the only reason I included artificial grass in the list is that it is an option in general, but I would never go for it myself. I didn't want to sound too absolute because some people like it, but personally I despise it.

I am aware of the need for edging and weed suppressing membrane. I actually already have a small area/stripe setup like that (except with fine gravel and stepping stones) on the left of the patio, so I am familiar with the general process (albeit on a smaller scale).

Thank you also for the thoughts around pebbles vs cobbles. The options I am looking at are indeed mostly pebbles - I prefer the look of them as well. I did consider pea gravel as well, but if that's too small, it might be getting stuck in their paws I think (I say "they" because we already have another dog, who actually loves grass).

 

I agree, pebbles rather than cobbles. Much easier to walk on. and avoid bark chippings. We laid out a small area of bark chippings for one of our cats to use as a loo. They work well for that but bits get walked all over the place.

 

Thank you Good point about the bark chippings! I had already rejected the idea, I just included it in the list because I did consider it and it is a dog friendly option. But I suspect that having bark chippings in the borders is part of why I get bitten by chiggers every August (they probably love nesting there), so I definitely wouldn't want a much larger area covered with that stuff! Plus, to replace a lawn area, I don't think it would look amazing...

 

As a dog and cat owner, and someone who deliberately did not put a lawn area in the garden when I moved here may I suggest you lay a couple of additional rings of slabs around the arbor where the table and chairs are, and think of laying slate chippings instead of bark, pebbles or gravel etc. They come in a range of colours and are comfortable for everyone to walk on.
I discovered my cat hates walking on bark, it must hurt her feet between the pads when she walks on it. She always walks across the raised beds or along the retaining walls. It will need weeding every year as it makes a wonderful growing medium for weeds. My dog doesn't like walking on bark either.
It would be a good idea to section off a toilet area for the dog, it could be disguised by a low picket fence with a border of plants, a bit of a feature if you like in one corner. With time and patience a dog can be trained to use its own toilet area as long as it is cleaned regularly. If you have a female dog and she pees on grass it will create scorch patches, slate is easily hosed down if you need to clean it. My male dog has one or two places he likes to pee on as well as random plants he christens regularly and always poos on the slate chippings which is easy to collect and dispose of. You would need to lay weed membrane down before putting chippings down and eventually the chippings will need to be weeded as rain washes dust down through them. I used to weed mine by hand but now spray with pet friendly weed killer.

 

Thank you, some great ideas there! I actually love slate chippings - I have already replaced the lawn that used to be to the front of the house with blue slate chippings. I also think it would work very well with the patio colour-wise. I just assumed that they might be too sharp for dog paws but it sounds like it hasn't been an issue for you, which makes me wonder whether to try it out...

 

Slate chippings would look fine there @CostasK, if your dog has had a trial run on the front garden and approved! You may need a leaf blower to get rid of any leaves, twigs and detritus, like you would with pebbles, cobbles or bark. I find bark is fine in borders if you lay it thick enough but I wouldn't use it as a replacement for a lawn. I still like to see green though so you could perhaps increase the size of your intended beds to compensate for the lack of grass.

I'm just a bit concerned about drainage in that area. Would any hard landscaping like slate also become wet, attract algae and become slippery?

 

Our friend's retriever would prefer a muddy puddle to a nice lawn any day of the week.

 

The front of our house is all gravel, as it’s our driveway. Both our dogs walk and run on it with no problem, also visiting dogs don’t have any problems racing around on it either. They also use it for toileting purposes!
Our resident hedgehog also walks on it with no problem. It is 20 mm gravel so not too small, it also doesn’t get slippery or covered in algae.
We had it done professionally and were advised not to have a membrane, everything was scraped away and then scalpings (I think that’s what they’re called!) laid and tamped down with a machine with gravel poured on top. It’s been down for 4 years and we rarely get any weeds whereas my gravel garden, where I used membrane, constantly gets weeds!
In our back garden we have a gravel path around the house then edging between the gravel and grass. The edging is Everedge and is very easy to use. I’ve attached a couple of photos.

 

I replaced our lawn (glorified path really) with slate chippings and our dog is happy to zoom up and down it. You can get different types of chippings and we went for a medium sized one because it had rounded edges, the small was to sharp and the large didn't cover much. I would look at what you are buying first.

My brother has a gravel drive and my dog is very slow and methodical when she walks over it and so are the neighbourhood cats. We regularly walk in the mountains were the ground is far worse and she is fine but really doesn't like the drive.

I share your hatred of AstroTurf and think it should be banned but we were given a small square of it because my dog likes nothing better than rolling on the pitch and putt t off mats. I regrettably layed it in our garden and she shew her disgust for it by only pooing on it. It didn't take long before it was gone.

 

Firstly I commend you getting another dog..marvelous creatures... I'd go for your suggestion of a small piece of lawn and then gravel the rest...you can in plant it with clumps of Thyme ,camomile or what ever you choose that can be trampled on...the one thing I would personally avoid is weed suppressant fabric...controversal maybe but when the dogs start zooming the gravel will scatter all over the place...without it the gravel will get compacted and may need a top 'coat' once in a while to spruce it up anthe dogs I'd go for pea gravel it won't upset the dogs at all..

 

Thanks everyone! I will do some research regarding the membrane. I think drainage should be OK but I can take the opportunity to improve the layer under the gravel /slate chippings /pebbles as well.

Oh I wish I could have thyme etc but sadly that area is mostly shaded. There are some lovely shade loving plants though. I can imagine some sedges (carex) working well, alongside other plants.

 

I've got a small gravel area and it has a membrane, using a hard base under gravel makes sense but just putting it on soil doesn't, eventually the mud will work through.
I'd also go for a sharp gravel as opposed to pea shingle which being round never settles or packs down.
My dog just runs over it, I have fairly large stuff.

 

Thanks @pete

The stuff I used for my front garden, that I really like, is 40mm blue slate chippings (e.g. 40mm Blue Slate Chippings | Buy Direct | Stone & Surfaces Direct)

My biggest priority is to make sure that it will work for the dogs. I think the large-ish size will help with that, as there's no chance of it getting stuck in dog paws. @Plantminded is absolutely right, I should try them on the front garden and see how they react to it. If they don't have an issue with it, I would love to use the same.