Sod?

[L.M.]

Hi again!  My last post was about "dog proof" grass.  Well, now we are considering sod instead.  My lawn is an absolute mess...not so much from my doodles than from last year's summer sun and intense heat which killed nearly all of our newly established grass.  We are strongly considering fescue sod and sprinklers.  For those of you that have used sod and a sprinkler system, how has it lasted with dog traffic?  I have two doodles...one big guy and one little gal.  Both are diggers....although they only dig when there is exposed dirt....That issue should be okay once sod is down.  How do the lawns last with dog urine?  Again, I would have sprinklers as well to dilute it, but does that really help?  Our yard is small, so we have no option of sectioning off a dog area.  I know female urine is more concentrated....but do the sprinklers usually dilute it enough to prevent grass burn spots?  Basically, I'm curious if most of you who use/used sod found it to be worth the cost when you have dogs that could potentially ruin it.  Reseeding the lawn was our original plan, but keeping the dogs off of it while it establishes for months would be virtually impossible for us.  

Thanks for the help again!  =) 

[Sharee & "Hope" Peterson]

Thank you so much for the encouragement.  

I think I mentioned to someone dried cranberries for Doodle snacks keeps their urine from burning the grass!  Looking at my small yard right now I am almost dreading -Spring- but having Hope is worth it.  So I will follow this -Sod Site- closely hoping to learn & share.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I'll give you some : )

[Gail+Kathleen,(Sydney+Olivia:)]

We have the same challenge.  Our small yard which is not deep but long enough for the doodles to run back and forth as we play ball or flippies with them is almost all dirt now.  We established a beautiful lawn last spring on 3/4s of our back yard while keeping the Doodles in the other part of the yard.  We worked so hard and the new lawn looked like sod in early July but after the hot summer (and we were away for a week at a time taking care of our Mom), the beautiful lawn dried up.  Our previous house had sprinklers (and we had them on every day with the new sod) and the sprinklers did not help with the urine stains.  We asked our landscaper about sod and he said we are wasting our money with the trees in our yard and our dogs.  Replacing sod and a seeded lawn can become costly.  We are seriously considering canine grass even if we have to start with a smaller section of our yard.  We priced canine grass last year and it can cost $10 a sqaure foot.  But if you have some he-man(s) there are great deals online where you can get the grass for $2 a square foot.  It's the preparation and hauling of supplies that is difficult.  Our neighbor has canine grass and loves, loves, loves it!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

What is canine grass?

[F, Calla & Luca]

Artificial turf.

[L.M.]

This was our issue as well!  We had gorgeous grass last spring even with our very active 80 pound doodle boy.  Our lawn also dried up.....we have NO trees (not a one) and a ton of sun every afternoon so that is what killed our newly established grass last year because we also did not have sprinklers to keep it watered enough and regularly.  

Does your neighbor's "grass" look like real grass?  Or does it really look like turf?  My uncle is encouraging me to get it but I've just never seen it on a full, real lawn.    

[Gail+Kathleen,(Sydney+Olivia:)]

Our neighbor has the synthetic grass that looks real.  But in the winter, it's the only green grass around except for one other neighbor near by that has the short turf.  That short turf doesn't look like grass, it looks like a green carpet.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I've been looking into that, too. My concerns are that it's supposed to get really hot, and my yard gets full sun all day. Plus, I'm afraid JD would refuse to do his business on it...he's very fussy about where he "goes".

[Gail+Kathleen,(Sydney+Olivia:)]

It's synthetic grass.  It is used on sports fields, day care centers and now dog runs.  There are many variations of canine grass.  Some of it is very flat (like on the golf courses) and some looks real with the different colors and variations of the grass texture.  The ground needs to be prepared before the installation, all grass removed and the ground flattened.  Then they put down gravel which acts as the drainage.  The canine grass has mesh with drainage holes in the baacking.  It does not require any maintenance other than hosing it down if it doesn't rain or if there are no sprinklers.  It looks phenomenal and everyone we spoke to who have it installed say it's the best money ever spent.  They wished they had it when their children were young.  The dogs do not bring in any mud or dirt into the house.  Of course, it's still important to pick up their poo just as we do as soon as they do their business.  We are getting estimates from several vendors and have met several of them at dog expos over the last few months.

[L.M.]

I read a comment about the urine smell being extremely strong.  Have you heard anything about that from people you know that have it?

[F, Calla & Luca]

I have never had sod. But the new lawns take weeks not months from seed. The problem is, that in the end it's all grass and the doodles urine, running and tearing etc. will do the same damage eventually to either one. But you can spot seed and overseed as need be. I personally don't like fake flowers or lawns. But one problem I read about with the artificial turf is that it gets really hot in the sun. Also, I would worry about tearing cruciate ligaments and so forth. Athletes had problems like this partly from cleats and not being able to turn. Doodles have built in "cleats". It might be better to tear up some grass than to get caught up in tough artificial turf. Just my thoughts, nothing scientific.

[Gail+Kathleen,(Sydney+Olivia:)]

As for the dogs getting hurt, then it would not be a good investment.  Our neighbor has two Doodles and a Lab and did not mention any of those problems.  The turf getting hot may be an issue if the area is in full sun.  As for the looks, F. we have the same sentiments as you.  We do not like anything artificial, whether it be flowers, plants, etc.  The samples we have seen look as beautiful as real grass.  But that is the top of the line.  Our philosophy has always been, cheap is expensive, so go with the best if possible, even if we do a section at a time.  But we are at our wits end with all the mud in the yard.  And, our Doodles just love running like crazy in our yard as we play ball and flippy with them  My back is breaking from washing 8 paws in the water pan four times a day and then drying in between their toes.  I have to play splash, splash in the water for Olivia to entertain her as I wash her paws.  We can't wait until it's warmer and we can wash them out on the deck.