How to Keep Your Dog from Digging in the Garden

You can protect your landscape from your dog’s curiosity by following these suggestions to discourage digging behavior in a productive way.

Cover the Freshly Tilled Soil

After spending numerous hours tilling, mulching, and seeding your garden, the last thing you want is to find your hard work torn to shreds. To make digging less appealing, cover the ground around the plants in your garden with bark chips, gravel, or pavers to change the texture of the ground, making it more uncomfortable to dig through.

Create a Doggy Play Area

To ensure your plants are safe and the garden is secure, try setting up a special digging spot to redirect your dog’s behavior to a more appropriate place in the yard. Dig a large, shallow hole in the yard and fill it up with sand. Make the digging zone attractive by burying your dog’s favorite toys and chews for them to discover.

Fence off the Garden

Dogs love digging in freshly tilled soil. Use garden fencing to close off an area your dog digs up the most. Even a minor barricade can prove enough to keep your pups away. A simple solution might feature a wire mesh fence fastened to steel posts, with the mesh buried up to a foot beneath the ground.

Sprinkle Spices

Sprinkle powdered mustard or red pepper flakes around the flowerbeds to discourage dogs from coming back for more. While this won’t affect the growth of your plants, it will negatively impact your pet’s interest in digging up that spot.

Spray Unpleasant Odors

Spray plants with pungent white vinegar or apple bitter to prevent pups from munching on your vegetable garden. Alternatively, plant marigolds throughout your garden to keep dogs as well as other unwanted visitors, including Mexican bean beetles, aphids, and squash bugs out of your yard.

With spring upon us, now is the perfect time to test these quick tips to eliminate your dog’s digging behavior so your whole family can enjoy the yard together.