When you bring a pet home, whether it be a cat or a dog, you need to get used to the fact that your house isn’t really yours anymore. Your beautiful sofa will become a scratching post, your favourite shoes will become chew toys, every surface becomes somewhere to roll around, sit, and sleep, and your garden tends to see some damage too. Thankfully, just like there are ideas for pet-friendly decor, you can create a pet-friendly garden. Here are six things you can do…
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Provide Plenty Of Entertainment
More often than not, your pets will love to spend time playing in the garden, which is why you need to make it as fun and stimulating as you can. Make sure you provide plenty of toys, as well as assault and agility courses and other things for them to climb on and jump over. Clear paths, digging areas, differing surfaces, and swaying plants will also all provide plenty of stimulation.
Cover Ponds And Pools
Cats and dogs alike love to spend their time watching fish swim around a pond, but, if you’re going to have a pond in your garden, then you need to make sure that your pets can’t fall into it. You can do this by adding a wire mesh over the top of the water. Similarly, you should also ensure that you keep pools and hot tubs covered up to avoid any tragedies.
Consider Installing Artificial Grass
When most people hear the term “artificial grass”, they immediately assume that it’s going to appear fake and plastic-like. Before you dismiss this idea completely, you should ensure you look at examples of artificial grass. When you do, you’ll find that it looks just as good as the real thing. What’s more, you won’t have to deal with muddy poor prints or yellowing patched from pet pee.
Avoid Any Toxic Plants
Having artificial grass means you have a lot more time to spend taking care of the other greenery and plants in your garden. However, it’s important to know that many garden plants, including daffodils and chrysanthemums, are incredibly toxic to your pets. Because of this, you need to make sure that you only plant safe varieties, preferably ones that are quite robust.
Steer Clear Of Chemicals
When ingested, snails and slugs can do a lot of damage to your pets, so it makes sense why you might want to eliminate those from your garden. Unfortunately, the chemicals often used for this job are even more dangerous, so it’s vital that you steer clear. Instead, opt for natural prevention methods or pet-friendly pesticides. You should also avoid using antifreeze.
Make Sure You’re Secure
When you let your cats out into your garden, more often than not, you’re fine with them wandering off on their own, but this is rarely the case when dogs are concerned. Because of this, you need to make sure that your garden is as secure as possible. Check that there are no holes in your fence and that it’s sunk low enough that your dog can’t dig under it and escape.
With these tips, you should be able to create a fun and safe garden for your furry friends.
Photo Credit: Daniël Maas Shane Guymon
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