• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Animal Behavior College

Animal Behavior College

Where Animal Lovers Pursue Animal Careers

Feefo logo
Live chat
Live chat
800-795-3294
  • Alumni Login
    • Dog Obedience Program Alumni
    • Cat Training Program Alumni
    • Grooming Instruction Program Alumni
    • Veterinary Assistant Program Alumni
    • Veterinary Assistant Program (Canada)
    • Aquarium Maintenance Program Alumni
    • Zookeeper Assistant Program Alumni
    • Service Dog Trainer Alumni
  • Student Login
    • Cat Training Program
    • Dog Obedience Program
    • Grooming Instruction Program
    • Veterinary Assistant Program
    • Veterinary Assistant Program (Canada)
    • Aquarium Maintenance Program
    • Zookeeper Assistant Program
    • Service Dog Trainer
MENUMENU
  • Programs
    • Dog Obedience Instructor
      • Tuition
      • Curriculum
      • Alumni Benefits
      • Career
      • Certification
      • Success Stories
      • Students Saving Lives
      • Find A Dog Trainer
    • Veterinary Assistant
      • Tuition
      • Curriculum
      • Alumni Benefits
      • Careers
      • Success Stories
    • Grooming Instruction Program
      • Tuition
      • Curriculum
      • Alumni Benefits
      • Careers
      • Success Stories
      • Find A Pet Groomer
    • On Campus Dog Trainer Program
      • Traditional Classroom Environment in Los Angeles California
      • Enroll Using Your Military Benefits
    • Continuing Education
      • Short Term Programs
    • Cat Management and Training
      • Tuition
      • Curriculum
      • Alumni Benefits
      • Careers
      • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Find A Cat Trainer
    • Aquarium Maintenance (online)
      • Tuition
      • Curriculum
      • Alumni Benefits
      • Career
      • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Salary Information
      • What Is an Aquarist?
    • Zookeeper Assistant Program
      • Tuition
      • Curriculum
      • Alumni Benefits
      • Career
      • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Service Dog Trainer Program
      • Tuition
      • Curriculum
      • Career
      • Alumni Benefits
      • Education & Experience Requirements
  • Military Benefits
  • GI Bill® Benefits
  • Locations
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Animal Career Resources
  • About ABC
        • About Animal Behavior College
        • Our Expert Faculty
        • Press, News & Info
        • Press Releases
        • BPPE Disclosures
        • Animal Behavior College FAQ
        • Contact Us
        • Why ABC?
        • Students Saving Lives
        • Licensure, Ratings & Approvals
        • Sponsors & Associates
        • Gift Certificates
  • Blog
  • Affiliates
  • Alumni Login
    • Dog Obedience Program Alumni
    • Cat Training Program Alumni
    • Grooming Instruction Program Alumni
    • Veterinary Assistant Program Alumni
    • Veterinary Assistant Program (Canada)
    • Aquarium Maintenance Program Alumni
    • Zookeeper Assistant Program Alumni
    • Service Dog Trainer Alumni
  • Student Login
    • Cat Training Program
    • Dog Obedience Program
    • Grooming Instruction Program
    • Veterinary Assistant Program
    • Veterinary Assistant Program (Canada)
    • Aquarium Maintenance Program
    • Zookeeper Assistant Program
    • Service Dog Trainer Program
Home » Lifestyle » Resources » Your Guide to Dog-Friendly Landscaping

Your Guide to Dog-Friendly Landscaping

kellyvandellen/Adobe Stock

Creating Dog-Friendly Landscapes: Preparation

Sharing your backyard with dogs doesn’t mean living with grass and dirt forever. You can join in on the spring planting frenzy by creating gorgeous dog-friendly landscapes. In this series, we’ll teach you how to prepare the landscape area with dogs in mind, choose dog-friendly plants and keep your plants safe from dog paws.

Designing the Landscape

Depending on your needs, take plenty of time to design your ideal backyard. Take into account the amount of sun exposure it will receive, which will determine which plants work best in certain areas. Most dog-friendly backyards have large grassy areas with plants, shrubs and trees located along fence lines. Carefully placing plants in low traffic areas is key to keeping plants safe from dogs.

Even better, raised gardens or flowerbeds provides needed height to ensure young puppies and dogs can’t reach your plants. Take a moment to draw out your ideal design on paper, and then outline planted areas with spray paint or sand in your yard. This will provide you a great visual before digging up the area.

Doggie Digging Pit

Dog-friendly landscapes should provide ample fun for your dog too. If your dog enjoys digging, choose an area to create a digging pit for your dog. Provide a small wading pool of sand with buried treats; this will keep most dogs busy for a while.

To ensure this area is attractive, place a short attractive fence or plants to hide the wading pool, or simply dig a hole large enough for the wading pool to sit flush with the soil. Place your dog’s digging pit in a shaded area to keep sand cool during warm months. To prevent cats from using your dog’s digging pit as a toilet, consider adding a plastic cover over it.

RELATED: Building an At-Home Dog Agility Course

Preparing the Area

Preparing the area is the physically difficult part of landscaping as it requires plenty of heavy lifting and labor. Once planted locations are selected, it’s time to prepare the area before planting.

Raised Beds

If you plan to grow plants or produce in raised beds, this is the time to build beds and place them in desired areas. Most raised beds are made of cedar, which prevents rot and chemical exposure. To prevent weeds, place several layers of old newspaper or cardboard on the ground before adding soil into raised beds. There are many benefits of raised flowering beds, including the prevention of certain insects from crawling into them and dogs from trampling over or digging up tender plants.

Soil, Compose, or Sand

Many dog owners choose to plant directly into the ground. Depending on your soil, you may need to add compose or sand. Bring in a sample of soil to your local plant nursery and consult the experts there for best results. When available, consider purchasing organic products.

Mulch

For dog-friendly landscapes, there are several choices when choosing mulch. Stay away from cocoa bean mulch because it contains the toxin theobromine, which is found in chocolate and is poisonous to dogs when ingested. Mulch, which has red or brown dye, can permanently discolor a dog’s fur and paw pads.

Gravel or small rocks are attractive, however, dogs have been known to chew and ingest rocks, causing obstructions. Organic cedar mulch is an excellent choice. It’s free of chemicals and it will repel insects; plus, it smells nice. Before applying mulch, add several layers of cardboard and newspaper to prevent weeds from consuming your planted area.

Once all the hard work is complete, it’s time to choose and add plants!

Primary Sidebar

Tags

educationhumane societystay dog training commandteach dog staytrain a dog to stayteach your dog to roll overtraining a dog to roll overtraveling with petsbenefits of rawhiderawhide bonesaspcadog jumpingtrain your dog to cometrain dog to jumphow to teach your dog to speaktraining dog to speakeasy dog trickshow to train a dog to play deadteach a dog to play deadtraining dog to play deadlick faceshake pawdog flash mobhow to teach a dog to stayteach dog to come when calledrequirementsanimal hospital jobsbest dog trainerchoose a dog trainerdog trainer ratesfind a dog trainerhow to find a dog trainerkeeperkennel attendantsvet assistant programvet assistant schoolveterinary care jobshow to get a job at a veterinary hospitalhow to teach a dog to comework in veterinary hospitalhow much do vet assistants makedog training toyskong dog toyhow to train your dog to sitteach your dog to sittrain dog to sittrain your dog to sitcome when calledhow do you train a dog to come when called every timedoggy dance
  • Main
    • Locations
    • Affiliates
    • Find A Dog Trainer
    • Find A Pet Groomer
    • Find a Cat Trainer
    • Post a Job
    • Evolution of ABC
  • Dog Trainer Program
    • Program
    • Tuition
    • Curriculum
    • Student Login
  • Veterinary Assistant Program
    • Program
    • Tuition
    • Curriculum
    • Student Login
  • Dog Groomer Program
    • Program
    • Tuition
    • Curriculum
    • Student Login
  • Cat Trainer Program
    • Program
    • Tuition
    • Curriculum
    • Student Login
  • Aquarium Maintenance Program
    • Program
    • Tuition
    • Curriculum
    • Student Login
  • Zookeeper Assistant Program
    • Program
    • Tuition
    • Curriculum
    • Student Login
  • Service Dog Trainer Program
    • Program
    • Tuition
    • Curriculum
    • Education & Experience Requirements

Footer

Apex Career School - A subsidiary of Animal Behavior College


Interested in a career outside of the animal industry?
Visit our subsidiary school!

bbb logo

Rating A+ The BBB only accredits the business management of a school, not the quality of the curriculum, or training programs.

STATE LICENSURE AND APPROVAL
Animal Behavior College is a private vocational school approved by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (www.bppe.ca.gov) under the California Private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009 and Title 5. California Code of Regulations Division 7.5. Private Postsecondary Education. The Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education approval means that this institution and its operation comply with the standards established under the law for occupational instruction by private postsecondary educational institutions. Institutional approval is subject to continual review and the institution must reapply for approval every five years.
DISCLAIMER
Please be advised that Animal Behavior College ("ABC") is the exclusive entity authorized to provide certifications and/or degrees from Animal Behavior College. Moreover, such certifications and/or degrees are only conferred by ABC following a student's completion of an ABC-administered program. No other entity or individual has authority to confer certifications and/or degrees on ABC's behalf. Any other entity or individual who attempts to do so is acting without express or implied authority from ABC.
GI BILL® TRADEMARK ATTRIBUTION
GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government Web site at https://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill.
Click here to view Animal Behavior College’s Annual Reports
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest
  • TikTok
Animal Behavior College, 27509 Avenue Hopkins, First Floor, Valencia CA 91355-3910 Contact Us
© 2000 - 2023 Animal Behavior College. Questions? email@animalbehaviorcollege.com
loading

Please wait while you are redirected to the right page...

Please share your location to continue.

Check our help guide for more info.

share your location