Digging!

    • Bronze

    Digging!

    How can I make my dog stop digging in the backyard?  We rent and share the yard with our landlords who also have dogs.  We know that their dog digs but she is a small dog who can't do much damage.  My border collie/lab mix, however, can really go for it.  We don't leave her alone outside much and most of the time she is fine but every once in a while (like today) I'll go outside to find her nose covered in dirt and a good sized hole in the grass.  Our landlord has already asked us to keep her from digging once and I'm paranoid they're going to ban her from the yard all together if we can't keep her from digging.  Help!  Any suggestions are welcome!
    • Gold Top Dog
    I don't think you will be able to stop the digging. It is a natural part of who they are. It serves as several functions, one of which is to cool off.
    Is there any way your LL would allow your dog one area where she can dig till her heart is content. It really isn't fair of them to ask your dog not to dig when theirs does.
    • Bronze
    yeah, I think you're right.  Oh well.  Today my landlord asked that we not let Dakota outside unless we are with her.  I figured it would come to this.  When we rented they explained that the yard is their kids' and they only allow us to use it when it is convenient.  Anyway...I'm frustrated with the situation but I suppose that's what you deal with until you have your own house.  
    • Gold Top Dog
    Well, that sucks.  Only to be able to use the yard when it's convenient for someone else.  Sheesh. Max was quite the digger when we adopted him almost 2 years ago, but he doesn't do it nearly as much now. All of my backyard plants are in big pots and last year I decided to replace the soil in them.  DH just dumped the old soil into the holes and we tossed some grass seed out there.  It really didn't look bad at all when we were done.
    • Bronze
    I have a lab that loves to dig.  I have stopped this tho by putting his poop into the hole and putting the dirt back over the hole.  About 1-2 wks of this and he doesnt dig anymore except in his hole that we allow.