We have a bit of a dirt problem with our three mastiffs. We have a small fenced backyard for them to play, and there's a huge tree in the middle. Between the tree and the dogs' activities, it's very difficult to keep a lawn going back there.

So, it's mostly dirt, and a lot of that dirt ends up in our kitchen and it's driving me nutty. My wife came across this website for a product called K9 Artifical turf, which seems like it might be a good solution.

Anyone here ever heard of it, or have any experience using it? Either yourself, or the kennel you use, perhaps?

Here's the link.

So now it's a few months later, and I thought I'd update people. We did end up getting the artificial turf for our backyard, but not the K9 product.

We absolutely LOVE it. It looks great, the dogs love it, there's no more mud being tracked into the house either. It's easy to clean, just rake up the poo and the urine just goes right through it into the ground.

It's been the perfect solution for us. Here are a couple of pictures of the results:

Only the much larger dog parks (2+ acres) around me have grass mingled with the mud.

I live in the Boston area, so yes, it will look a bit out of place in the winter. But, the installer said that the only thing that really ages the grass is sunshine (UV). Since we have the big tree, it will probably last a long time.

Also, yes it's expensive to install. We ended up with $7/sq ft. We have a small yard though. But, there's no way that grass would have survived for long back there, between the three mastiffs and the huge tree. Also, as mentioned above, there's no mowing, fertilizing, watering, etc.

Friends of ours who have regular grass and dogs, say that they are out in the yard at least a few times a year, repairing spots, re-seeding or re-sodding areas that have died. In the end, I think the cost will be about the same for this artifical stuff.

I certainly understand that. And it does look really nice, mwkbear. Even better at $7.

I just put in brick pavers under my deck to make a patio there and that was less than $2. a s.f.
Heck, you can tile your yard with travertine for less than $7.

Anyway I have a small yard and I've been spending about $150 a year on maintenance for it not including water but I am a lawn geek and I'm constantly working on it. Lets say my cost to water the lawn was a whopping $100 a month. (about twice what my actual water/sewer bills are). That's $1200 a year, plus $150 in maintenance = $1350 a year.

It would take nearly 26 years for the faux turf to pay for itself. And that's probably about double what it's estimated life span is.

So either I am missing something or that is actually a really, really, really bad deal. I mean no disrespect of course. Just sayin'.

On the other hand if you're paying another $100 a month for a mow/blow/go crew to come out a 2-3 times a month then you could very well pay off the faux lawn within it's lifespan.... So long as you're spending $1200 a year on irrigation.
:-)
Have I mentioned yet that I mean no disrespect!?
Because I don't.

The total cost for our lawn was $5000. Two landscapers we had visit, gave us a price of $2000 for regrading and sodding the area. Friends of ours have said that they are out CONSTANTLY repairing, resodding, fertilizing, and watering.

Plus, water around here is not cheap. To keep the lawn properly watered for a summer would cost me $200 in water. Not to mention being out there every weekend mowing, raking, etc.

The grass has a waranty of 10 years. Was the price the only consideration I had? Of course not. When you add in the other benefits, it made sense for me. In the end, both landscapers said that a sod lawn would probably not do well in those conditions and we should cut down the tree, which we refused to do.

Oh and by the way, there's no reason why you'd have to cover your entire yard with it, either. Many people who have dogs just have fenced dog runs in one part of the yard and only use it there.

Since you are a self-confessed "lawn geek", I doubt you'd be happy with this. But, others in different circumstances might very well be.

quirky, I wouldn't call a 5K sq ft yard a small yard. Mine is over 10K and I spend at least $250/yr on fertilizer alone. In addition there's Roundup, Crossbow (lots of non-native blackberry), fuel for the lawn mower and weed eater.........plus electricity for the sprinkler system. Water is well.........otherwise I couldn't afford to water it!

Just wondering how your K9 Turf is working out. I am considering using this myself. Your pictures look wonderful. Are you still very happy with your decision? What Company did you choose?

Thanks,
Rachel

I'm in the same boat as you. My four dogs have destroyed the yard and the mud is out of control. lol I am hoping we hear something from MWKBEAR soon. Their yard looks wonderful! :)

I use straw as well during the spring and fall mud seasons - 2-3 bales per month. It can become slippery as it gets trampled, but no more than the mud itself.

Thanks