Dr. A.W. Allard, a Colorado veterinarian, examined numerous variations in dog urine and the effects on several common lawn grasses 1 . The pH of the urine did not have any variable effect nor did common additives designed to alter the urine pH. Of the four grasses tested, Festuca sp. In fact, the urine routinely produced a fertilizer effect on these grasses at diluted concentrations. Unfortunately, no repellents are universally effective although a variety of home remedies have been tried. Hot and bitter products are most likely to have taste or odor aversive properties to dogs.
Most repellents function better as taste repellents than to touch or odor repellents.
Some odor repellents may actually encourage a dog to overmark the strange smell. Some of the better known commercial repellents have these limitations as well. A newly developed motion activated sprinkler, primarily designed to keep cats and rabbits out of gardens, may have benefits for some yards. In many cases, the problem dog is a housemate to the homeowner. While somewhat time consuming, walking the dog to a park or field away from the house is a simple remedy to this.