Home Remedy for Dog Pee Spots in the Yard

Dog urine burns on grass come from nitrogen in the urine. Since dogs are carnivores, they eat a high-protein diet. Protein breaks down to form nitrogen that excretes through urine. Fertilizers for grass also typically contain nitrogen; the additional nitrogen in dog urine causes the grass to burn. Aside from teaching your dog to urinate in another area, some home remedies and preventative measures may help make your lawn green again.

  1. Water

    • Adding water to your dog's dry food helps dilute the concentration of nitrogen in urine. You can also entice your dog to drink more by adding unsalted broth to its drinking water. Watering the lawn daily may also help in diluting the urine. If your dog has an aversion to water, installing motion-sensing sprinklers may help keep your dog off the lawn.

    Diet

    • High-quality dog foods contain proteins that digest more easily, leading to fewer waste products and a lower concentration of nitrogen in urine. Some oral pet products contain amino acids and herbs that help neutralize nitrogen before it excretes through urine. Over-the-counter remedies come in a wide range of ingredients and formulations; you may need to try several before finding the one that works for your dog and the type of grass you have on your property.

    Grass

    • Teaching your dog to relieve itself in only one designated area is often the easiest solution. Otherwise, you can replace your lawn with a tougher breed of grass. Bermuda and bluegrass are sensitive to dog urine, whereas fescue and ryegrass withstand higher levels of nitrogen without burning. When replacing your lawn is not an option, healing those burn spots becomes a priority.

    Prevention

    • Temporarily lowering the amount of fertilizer you feed your lawn may help those burnt spots heal. In some cases, soaking the area immediately after the dog urinates helps to dilute the nitrogen. In other cases, soaking spreads the burn area and leaves a large green ring around the area. Apply lawn treatment products to help counteract the effects of urine.

    Spot Remedies

    • Sprinkle brown sugar on burn spots and water lightly; this attracts worms that aerate the soil, leading to better drainage. If burnt spots in your lawn are dead, one option is to cut out that area and replace it with sod. Another option is to pull up the dead grass and reseed. Protect newly seeded areas with wooden stakes and netting. A remedy that takes a bit longer to work is mixing equal parts of garden lime, peat moss and quick-grow grass seed. Sprinkle the mixture on burn spots or immediately after the dog urinates and water lightly. New grass will grow, obscuring the spots.