Artificial turf with a dog

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I love having artificial turf here at the Tropical Paradise. It looks great, never needs water, never needs to be mowed, and the list goes on and on of why I like it, and why it was a great investment over ten years ago.

But a lot of people ask me a delicate question - which is how is it for a dog to, uh, go? It's great. And I'll tell you why.

Artificial turf isn't indoor-outdoor carpeting. It's designed to allow rainwater, and anything else on it, to flow through. There are holes. And that means that when your dog goes on it, it flows into the gravel base below it. It's good to rinse it every once in a while, but that's all you have to do. I have a hose over by the side of the house for that. The doggy-doo-doo, as you can see, sits right up on it, and all you gotta do is scoop it up and give it a quick rinse. So yes, it's dog-friendly - my dog does her business on it, and it's easy for me to clean up. I keep a pooper-scooper by the side of the house, with a trash can lined with a yard bag, which has a nice tight top.

Back when I tried to grow grass here, it would have been a problem to have a dog in such a small space. Doggy doo-doo tends to get hidden in grass, and it's way too easy to accidentally step on. I've seen yards which are just about unusable just because of that. Seems a shame, but it's easy to solve.

If you're thinking of getting artificial turf, I strongly recommend it. And no, I'm not advertising anything here, but I recommend that you have it installed professionally. It's a sizable investment, but I've seen do-it-yourself stuff, and it looks awful, and doesn't work right. My artificial turf looks so good that people have walked on it, and have actually had to reach down and touch it to believe that it was just plastic. Best investment I've ever made.

I love sharing my garden with my dog. And my responsibility to care for the garden includes weeding, trimming and using the pooper-scooper. It's a labor of love.

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