Chicken picking at feet

[Jules.]

Ok, I've had my hens for nearly 5 years & managed to preserve the grass by careful free ranging times

 

But, we've had Lily since the end of January & there are brown patches in the lawn where she wees, & one almighty patch which is her favourite place to go

 

What can I do, if anything, to make the grass grow there again? It's not even worth mowing where she's been as the grass has almost died

[lillybettybabs]

I feel your pain, We have four dogs and during the summer lots of brown patches.

The burns are cause by to much nitrogen (lots in dogs wee) some of the products on the market do

work but are expensive. The Dog Rocks work but i would not advise these for a puppy of even young dogs

as our two year old springer ate one and had to have a emergency op to remove it.

I was advised to water the wee down straight away which does work if you catch it. My dad swears by

adding tomato sauce to their meals which he says works ( i haven't tried this). You can get pee posts that

attract the dog to pee in one area that could work by sacrificing a patch of grass out of sight and training her to

use it. Whoever comes up with a good cure will make millions.

Good luck!

[SallyD]

We have a seven month old female labrador and I also feel your pain! Our lawn has got brown patches on it and one large completely bald area which is causing me much distress! Has anyone tried the Greenum tablets with any success? I'm thinking of getting some but not sure if our dog is old enough to have them yet, will have a look next time I'm at PAH.

 

Sally

[Jules.]

There is hope after all!

Thank you, I didn't know that products existed to help keep my grass green.

 

A big for Omleteers & their helpfulness

[Lavenders_Blue]

When you find the answer - please let me know! I also have brown dead patches all over my (small) lawn and am considering artificial grass!

[lillybettybabs]

When you find the answer - please let me know! I also have brown dead patches all over my (small) lawn and am considering artificial grass!

Me too but i don't think the hens would be happy.

[Lavenders_Blue]

My hens don't go on the grass, or they would be eaten by the dog! So no worries there for me (Cruel chicken mummy I am).

[Chucky Mama]

Green Um tablets work well but should not be used in dogs under 6 months. Dog Rocks are OK but your dog needs not to drink from puddles and ponds etc and they do need replacing regularly. Dog Rocks do not give an age recommendation but I would again not recommend using them in dogs under 6 months.

[bigmommasally]

A splodge of tomato ketchup in the dogs dinner neutralises the acidity. My mum was told this tip by her dogs vet and it works for her.

[Gloss-Hen]

We used to use dog rocks for our 15 year old collie they took a few weeks to work and by that time she was pts so we didnt really see any difference and our puppy at the time stole one and put it in her bed thank god she didnt swallow it Sorry I probably haven't been much of a help but I hope you find something to cure it

[Bramble]

Tomato juice on their food works WONDERS!!!

Honestly, I didn't believe it either, but I put about a tablespoon of tomato juice on Willow's food (all the time to begin with, but much less often now) and the brown patches just don't happen anymore! Very cheap remedy!

[lillybettybabs]

Yeah my dad swears by it, I'll have to give it a try but i hate the smell of the stuff ( she says after dishing

out green tripe).

[Lavenders_Blue]

There is nothing on earth that smells worse than tripe I am sure you will be able to cope just fine with the tomato juice!

 

Is it tomato juice in a carton, or ketchup, or tomato paste? Or doesn't it matter as long as it contains tomato? Could I just give Tango a tomato - she really likes them!

[lillybettybabs]

My dad uses cheap ketchup but i worry about the salt content , i wonder if fresh would work.

I could run a experiment with my four i guess; two on fresh toms, two on none.

[The Dogmother]

I was wondering that Karen - Ketchup contains lots of salt and sugar so I'd be loath to use it. I may buy a carton of tomato juice and give that a whirl. TBH they hardly ever do wees in the garden and tend to wait until we go out.

[Bramble]

I always use actualltomato juice in a carton (the "Value" stuff works just as well as posh ones), it's cheap and shouldn't have anything too horrendous in it, salt and otherwise

[Ain't Nobody Here]

I've been making Riley wee in the driveway for ages but I might try the tomato juice tip - I feel a bit cruel keeping him off the grass .

[Lavenders_Blue]

I was a bit hesitant about ketchup for the same reason with the salt content. I'll see if I can get hold of some el cheapo tomato juice and see how we get on.