There’s nothing worse that stepping in… well, you know what, that a dog has left behind. Actually I’m wrong. There is one thing worse. Stepping in it on your own front lawn. Especially if you don’t even own a dog.

That’s not all. Those ugly brown patches on your grass might just be a tell-tale sign that a pooch has stopped there for a pit-stop. 

So how to you stop the neighbourhood stray coming and using your front yard as their personal toilet stop?

Here’s some old-fashioned remedies that are sure to get them moving on to another patch of grass.

Ammonia

This one is quite simple. Mix one cup of ammonia in four litres of water and spray around the garden beds. Dogs hate the smell of this stuff so they’ll find somewhere else to do their business. It’s only cheap but it’s also potent stuff, so don’t mix it up in a closed-in environment. You can also try other strong smelling stuff such as Eucalyptus, citrus oil or vinegar. Just be careful where you spray. You want to get rid of dogs, not kill all your plants and your lawn while you are at it.

Onions

All you need for this one is a strong smelling brown onion (are there any other kind). Mash it up with a teaspoon of Tabasco or other hot sauce and mix with four cups of warm water. Let it sit for at least two hours to brew up the odour a bit more, then put it in a watering can and water through your lawn. Again the strong smell will deter, but your lawn wont be affected.

Pepper

For this method you’ll need four tablespoons of cayenne pepper. Mix it into four cups of warm water and add half a teaspoon of dishwashing detergent. Shake well and spray about wherever dogs tend to do their business. 

Have you ever had a problem with dogs going to the toilet in your yard. What solution did you come up with to stop them?