11 Tips to Create a Dog-Friendly Yard, Straight From the Pros

Your dog is a member of the family. And just like any family member, your dog deserves a space of its own to run around, relax in the shade, or dig a hole. If you own a home with a backyard, renovating the space is the perfect solution to provide a space your dog won’t want to leave.

To help you get started, we reached out to dog experts from across North America, from Baltimore, MD to Penticton, BC to give us their best tips on how to create a dog-friendly backyard. From installing a porthole bubble in your fence to building a portable ramp to your porch, read on to see 11 backyard renovation tips you may not have thought of. 

1) Try pet-safe plants 

Pet-friendly landscaping goes beyond places to play and potty. Dogs’ brains thrive on smelling new things. So plant pet-safe plants like rosemary, thyme, and basil that you can also use in the kitchen. – Boston Terriers of Boston

Be responsible for the plants in your backyard. Some plants and fauna may be potentially harmful to animals, so ensure that your backyard is dog-safe before allowing your furkid to roam around. Remember to always keep an eye on what your dog interacts with when they are outside. – Pawjourr

2) Keep your landscaping dog friendly 

Certain plants and flowers, like daffodils and hydrangeas, can be toxic to dogs and should not be planted in a place where they may be accidentally ingested. Keep your minds at ease and your yard dog-friendly by saying no to plants that are harmful to your furry friends. – Dogs of Charm City

3) Ensure there is a fence, water, and shade for your dog

A fenced-in dog-friendly yard creates a safe space and gives your dog room to run, sniff, and explore. Just as important is making sure your dog has fresh water (a small fountain is a blast to drink from and even play in) and lots of shade to relax under after all that physical and mental enrichment. – The Inner Dog

4) Install a porthole bubble for your dog

While we love turf in an outside space, a grassy lawn is fun for your pets too – especially one with equal parts sun and shade. The one item that stands out in a yard that is one of our favorite features is a porthole bubble. We installed one in the fence in our yard at home at a dog’s-eye level so she could peek out at the neighborhood and see what’s going on. – Good Dog, Inc.

5) Create an enrichment area in your dog-friendly yard

Make room in your dog-friendly yard for an enrichment area for your dog to do some scatter feeding, digging, and ‘find it’ games. Every dog needs a job and designing an adventure area for your furry friend means they don’t have to create their own jobs. Tallgrass plus bark and wood chippings are ideal. – Wolfgangs Way Dog Training 

6) Build a secure fence to reduce barking

Fencing should not allow dogs to see through if you want to reduce barking. Securing under fences by using a couple of layers of pavers or by concreting under them should protect your yard from neighbors’ pets and should keep yours in. – Pets Training and Boarding

7) Install a dog door in the exterior wall of your backyard

Start by cutting a hole in the wall going through all layers and frame out the hole after installing the dog door so it looks nice from the inside. Then build or purchase a dog house large enough to cover the dog door with the back wall of the dog house, cut a hole in the back wall of the dog house, and slide the dog house against the dog door. No one can see the dog door from the outside. – Family Dog Club

8) Create a digging pit in your dog-friendly yard

Big holes and unseemly dirt piles are usually not what a homeowner thinks about as  “yard perfection.”The best way to handle this and create a dog-friendly yard is by creating a digging pit. Having an area of your yard set aside as a special place for your dog to dig, and encouraging them to dig there by hiding delicious treats, is the gold star treatment to avoid a yard excavation mess. – Kristi Benson

9) Create a dog-friendly ramp to the back porch

One of the best things I’ve done for my dogs is to create a dog-friendly ramp leading up to the back porch. Not only is it helpful for senior dogs, but dogs of all ages may have injuries that would make stairs difficult or impossible. It is important that the ramp is not too steep and that the ramp is wide enough to accommodate wheels for your dog if he ever needs them. – Beth Patterson, Daily Dog Tag

10) Add a water feature to your backyard

We know dogs love grass, but water is often a close second. Consider adding a water feature to your dog-friendly backyard. Big or small, it will add, soothing sounds, and variety to your yard that your dog will enjoy for years to come. – Adeo Pets

11) Build a DIY potty spot for your dog

If you want your pup to potty in a particular area of your yard, you can create a DIY potty spot, like a gravel pit. To get them in the habit of pottying in that area, make sure to take them out to that spot on leash at first, and consistently reward them for going to the bathroom in that spot. – Urban Pawsibilities

Originally published on Redfin.com

The Humpty Dance - All about humping

It’s embarrassing, one minute your dog is playing the next they’re humping their friends. But why do our dogs hump? Is it because of dominance? Is it because of stress? Well we’re here to tell you all the reasons why your dog humps.

Oh My God Becky Look at her butt….

Humping is a natural behavior in all dogs of all ages. Whether spayed/neutered or not any dog can have the propensity to hump. While people usually think of it as “dominance” that’s just not the truth. Believe it or not your dog is not out to show you “who’s boss” or trying to dominate you. Despite what people may say humping has nothing to do with dominance. The term “dominance” when speaking about dogs refers to access to a resource such as bones, toys, food, or any other thing that can be viewed as a resource.

i mean, her butt, it’s just so big

Dogs hump for a variety of reasons and over-stimulation is one of the most common ones. When a dog gets over-stimulated some may do zoomies, some may bark and others will hump. It just means that they have reached a level of excitement and this is how they handle those types of situations. If your dog is humping in a social situation like our meetup it may just mean that they need a break. It’s okay to exit the meetup to give your dog a second to cool down.

I like big butts and I cannot lie

Some dogs hump because they’re anxious. Anxiety in dogs can often create displacement behaviors. Which means when they get anxious they feel the need to hump something. It’s a way for dogs to relieve that anxious feeling. If you have an anxious dog who humps it’s okay to let them have this time for themself. If you are really uncomfortable with your dog humping then try to find another outlet for stress relief like enrichment. If you’re not sure what enrichment is you can check out our posts on all things enrichment here and here.

Baby got back

Sometimes humping is just a form of play. Dogs play in many different ways. Stalking, chasing, biteyface, wrestling and humping are all forms of playing in dogs. When dogs play they often mimic behaviors that they would do in real life situations. Stalking and chasing are hunting behaviors, biteyface and wrestling are fighting behaviors while humping is a sexual behavior. It is thought that dog play is just practice for when they’re in the real world.

has your girlfriend got the butt?

Sometimes it just feels so darn good. While it definitely isn’t “dominance” sometimes there isn’t always a reason for humping other than it feels good. If you have a dog that humps then there is no reason not to let your pup have a little time alone. So long as it doesn’t create a problem. However, if they’re humping humans then you might want to redirect them to a toy or a chew.

Non-Food Related Canine Enrichment

We’ve previously tackled food related enrichment in our blog post “What is Canine Enrichment” and we’ve also given you some ideas on how to keep your pups active during quarantine with your blog post “Top eight ways to keep your dog busy during quarantine”. But how can we create enrichment without using food?

What is non-food related enrichment?

As we’ve previously discussed enrichment is any sort of activity that is designed to create mental stimulation and enhances your dog’s mental state. Enrichment makes your dog use their brain to problem solve and pick up new skills. It could mean taking your dog out to a field on a long line to let them sniff or it could be it can also be letting your dogs shred cardboard boxes.

Why is non-food related enrichment so important?

It’s so important because letting your dog express natural behaviors can not only help them build confidence it can also help them relax. Local dog trainer Jenny Efimova of Dogminded wrote an excellent article on the power of non-food related decompression walks.

Ball Pit Amazon.com

Okay, so what can I do to create enrichment for my dog?

There are TONS of different things you can do for your dog. You can take them out for a decompression walk where they’re on a really long line or off leash and have freedom to move around and sniff as much as they want. You can make them a sand pit with a kiddie pool for dogs who like to dig. The sand pit is a really great way to encourage dogs natural foraging and digging abilities.

Okay, but my dog doesn’t like to dig or sniff.

First, I find it hard to believe you have a dog who doesn’t like to sniff. Dogs literally have 200 million olfactory cells and sniffing is the most natural thing dogs know how to do. My own dog absolutely LOVES to sniff. We call it reading peemail. I jokingly tell people she’s like your grandma who is just learning how to use email and hits reply all instead of just reply because she also leaves her own peemail behind all the time. You can also get flavored bubbles and blow bubbles for your dogs.

Okay, but this seems like too much effort, what can i do that’s easy?

If none of the above are of interest to your dog you could try a flirt pole. These are great for when you can’t get outside to do a lot of exercise. BTB member Gimli loves his flirt pole so much his parents have to keep it hidden. You don’t even have to make your own you can buy one on Amazon. You can even take your dog on a long car rides which are perfect for dogs who love the car. Or maybe your pup would like a ball pit instead? These are all really great ways to create enrichment for your pups.

Some words of wisdom

If your pup gives up and doesn’t want to continue because it’s too hard for them, you should bring it back to an easier point where they are having fun. You don’t want to make it difficult for them. Enrichment should be fun and exciting for your pups, not hard and challenging. Also if you have a dog trainer who is not actively talking about enrichment ideas with you and your pups, it may be time to find a new one. Enrichment is a huge part of training these days and a trainer who isn’t talking about it probably isn’t up to date with their training credentials. We’d also like to mention that laser pointers are NOT considered enrichment. They’re actually really bad for dogs and can cause behavioral issues.

Some places for inspiration:

As you can see here Johnny and Bodhi’s mom is always doing fun enrichment for them.

The Facebook group Canine Enrichment is an excellent source of inspiration. This is where I learned of Bindisbucketlist this woman takes enrichment to a whole different level. She is so creative and it truly amazes me. You don’t have to be as creative as her that’s totally okay. It’s just great to get some ideas when you’re running low. I also get really great ideas from our friends from down under Johnny and Bodhi. Their mom is always doing some fun enrichment. As a matter of fact if it weren’t for Johnny and Bodhi I wouldn’t have known about the Likimats that my dog loves so much.

Show us how you do enrichment:

On Instagram or on Facebook. Also check out our YouTube Channel for more DIY ideas. We’ve created an Enrichment playlist with a bunch of different videos for inspiration.

What is Canine Enrichment

You may have heard this term before but maybe you aren’t sure what exactly it is. We even talked about it in the beginning of quarantine with our blog post “Top eight ways to keep your dog busy during quarantine”. But what exactly is enrichment? For this post we’re going to explore ways to use food for enrichment.

What is enrichment?

Enrichment is any sort of activity that is designed to create mental stimulation and enhances your dog’s mental state. Enrichment makes your dog use their brain to problem solve and pick up new skills. It could be different ways of feeding your dogs, and it could also be taking your dog out for a sniff walk. With enrichment you want you give your dog an opportunity to engage in activities that come natural to them like sniffing, scavenging, shredding, licking and chewing. There are many different types of enrichment.

Why is enrichment so important?

Enrichment is important because it helps keep your dog’s brain active by creating new and exciting ways for them to do new things. Enrichment gives your dog the chance to engage all their natural senses like sniffing, or scavenging.

West Paw Toppl Photo Amazon.com

Okay, so what can I do to create enrichment for my dog?

There are TONS of different toys out there that can be used for food enrichment. We gave you some awesome ideas here but there are even more you can use. Some of our favorites include the Westpaw Toppl, the Holee Roller ball, a snuffle mat, the Nina Ottosson toys for Outward Hound, the SodaPup toys, and the PetSafe Chilly Penguin.

Okay, but I don’t want to give my dog lots of treats.

That’s okay you don’t have to use treats for everything. You can use your dog’s daily food for almost anything. You can also add in some dog safe fruits and veggies for something extra. There’s all sorts of ways to mix things up with your dog’s food instead of just feeding them out of a boring bowl. You need to look beyond the bowl and be creative with how you feed.

Okay, but I don’t want to spend a ton of money on new toys!

Honestly you don’t even have to spend a cent with enrichment. You can use lots of household items for these activities.

• What are you doing with those toilet paper rolls? Nothing? Hide food in those and then hide them around the house. I’ve even seen people make advent calendars with toilet paper rolls.

• Have some spare towels? Throw some food in there and roll it up.

• Empty Amazon boxes? Throw some paper in there with food and let them forage for their food.

• Have some empty plastic bottles going in the recycling? String a rope through them and hang it in a doorway for your pup to try and get their food out.

• Have a muffin tin hanging around? You can use that too for enrichment.

Some words of wisdom

If your pup gives up and doesn’t want to continue because it’s too hard for them, you should bring it back to an easier point where they are having fun. You don’t want to make it difficult for them. Enrichment should be fun and exciting for your pups, not hard and challenging. Like when I feed my dog in her Toppl, if she can’t get to the stuff at the bottom and gives up I happily loosen it for her so that she can easily access it. Also if you have a dog trainer who is not actively talking about enrichment ideas with you and your pups, it may be time to find a new one. Enrichment is a huge part of training these days and a trainer who isn’t talking about it probably isn’t up to date with their training credentials. In an effort to make things last longer we’re a big fan of freezing things. It makes the enrichment activity last longer without upping the difficulty. It’s not necessary to use a freezer I just happen to like this option for my own dog.

Some places for inspiration:

As you can see here Johnny and Bodhi’s mom is always doing fun enrichment for them. What pup wouldn’t love a shark fin?

The Facebook group Canine Enrichment is an excellent source of inspiration. This is where I learned of Bindisbucketlist this woman takes enrichment to a whole different level. She is so creative and it truly amazes me. You don’t have to be as creative as her that’s totally okay. It’s just great to get some ideas when you’re running low. I also get really great ideas from our friends from down under Johnny and Bodhi. Their mom is always doing some fun enrichment. As a matter of fact if it weren’t for Johnny and Bodhi I wouldn’t have known about the Likimats that my dog loves so much. Not only does their mom do some really awesome enrichment but their account in general his absolutely hilarious.

Show us how you do enrichment:

On Instagram or on Facebook. Also check out our YouTube Channel for more DIY ideas. We’ve created an Enrichment playlist with a bunch of different videos for inspiration.