Best Dog Deterrent

Whether it is your own best friend, or a pesky neighborhood dog, there may be areas of your property that you want to keep free of dog poop or to protect from Fido burying his bones. There are several tried and true ways to deter dogs from entering your yard.

Odors are one effective way to deter most dogs. Homeowners can make sprays from common household ingredients. Several scents that usually do the trick include ammonia, vinegar, and citrus. These strong-smelling products can be diluted with water and applied to the plants or ground area that needs protection. These sprays are effective for small areas, but impractical for large yards. Additionally, the sprays must be reapplied after it rains, or after setting a sprinkler. When they are applying sprays like this to garden plants, gardeners should be aware that ammonia and vinegar can damage or kill plants when applied in the ground, so only apply these products onto the leaves and branches to preserve the plants.

A similar commercial product called Bitter Apple can do the same thing as the homemade sprays mentioned above. It is a popular product more because of its taste than odor and it open used with puppy training to keep them from mouthing and chewing on furniture and other items. Bitter Apple is safe, but the taste can be absorbed by plants. This can be a good thing if the plants are ornamental, because it will continue to deter not only dogs from chewing, but other animals like deer and rabbits. However, because of this effect, it is not practical for food plants like vegetables and fruit trees.

Ultrasonic devices are another effective way to deter dogs, in addition to quieting annoying barking dogs. A small ultrasonic device and work for up to twenty feet, and when activated, will be quite effective in driving a dog away. The sound emitted is not audible to humans, and is very unpleasant, yet harmless, to dogs. If you have a neighbor dog (or own your own) with a barking problem, one of these devices will come in handy, just depress a button to activate an immediate negative reinforcement to any dog behavior, whether it is a dog intruding on your property, digging in your garden, or pooping in the wrong spot. The disadvantage to this type of device is that it only works when you are present. Nonetheless, most dogs are quickly trained with such a methods, and any dog punished with this annoying sound when entering your property will soon learn to avoid your property, even when you are not at home.

Underground fences provide an excellent way to train your own dog(s) away from any areas of your yard they shouldn’t be in, but because they require a collar attachment to work, they will not be effective for keeping loose dogs away.

Depending on your situation, any combination of the above methods will be the best dog deterrent for protecting your yard.