What Counters the Effects of Dog Urine on Grass?

You may notice that where your dogs tend to urinate, the grass turns yellow and appears dead or chemically burned. You don't have to seclude your dog to one area of the yard to maintain a green yard.

Dog urine contains concentrated nitrogen, which disrupts the balance of the soil. You'll notice "burned" spots more often if you have a female dog, but the urine of both male and female dogs have concentrated amounts of nitrogen. Female dogs urinate in place, so the urine soaks the ground in a puddle, whereas most male dogs spray over an area and on standing fixtures like trees and fences, so their urine does not soak into the ground as much.

Prevent grass from yellowing by pouring water over the area immediately after your dog urinates. Water dilutes the nitrogen, which helps keep the grass alive and green. To fix grass that's already burned, you can dig up the grass and top level of soil and lay new sod or seed. Or sprinkle and water pelletized gypsup, 1/2 to 1 cup per square foot of grass. The gypsum's calcium sulfate will neutralize sodium salts from urine at the roots, helping your lawn recover.