Dogs in the garden

Gardens can go to the dogs when they get overrun with nasty invading weeds, or they can really go to the dogs with the introduction of a new, rambunctious puppy.

From aristocratic airedales to noble retrievers to kindly wolfhounds, I have seen many gardens enhanced by the presence of dogs, but some of them trashed too.

One garden we booked to shoot for my TV show Gardener's Journal had an impeccable collection of alpine plants, but the night before the shoot a new puppy got loose and removed all the tags identifying the plants. The owner, who kept meticulous records, was not amused.

Dogs, according to the experts, need boundaries and rules just like kids, in order to be welcome in the garden.

"Dogs, puppies especially, need to be supervised, like little kids," says Marti McCann, of McCann Professional Dog Trainers in Flamborough. "If you watch most dogs in a yard, they establish a natural path. They often patrol the perimeter of the yard, if you're starting a new garden, putting the plants out of the dog's travel path would be a good idea."

Denise Bond is the office manager at McCanns, she has two border collies, a Shetland sheepdog and a Jack Russell sharing space with her garden in Guelph. "I try not to have too many delicate plants, plants that can easily be snapped. I like plants that are resilient like artemisia and wildflowers." That doesn't mean her dogs run wild in the garden.

"I make sure they have their "outside toys", so they don't chew on plants. I give them their own place to dig, away from the garden, at the perimeter of the property. My border collie loves to be in the garden with me, and will fetch tools."

At McCann's the trainers believe all dogs can be "groomed" to be well behaved in the garden. Though there are some types like northern breeds such as huskies, that "seek out cool spots" and may like to dig according to Marti McCann.

In her Freelton garden, Karen Schut is holding court about two things she knows very well, dogs and gardening. She is a gardener at the Royal Botanical Gardens and has shown award-winning Shih Tzus for four years.

Holding her adorable new puppy Gloria, she praises the breed because, "They're not diggers, they don't chew past teething, they're easy to train and they only need a small amount of grass to call their own."

Perennials surround Schut's country garden, but puppy Gloria knows how far to roam. "She sits beside me when I garden, she knows she can play on the grass, because she has been socialized to her own space. If she heads to the garden I say no," says Schust.

Giving a dog its own space in the garden makes life less stressful for the dog and owner according to trainer McCann. "An area with pea gravel about a foot deep is a good surface for a dog, they get to recognize the different footing as their own place. They can be trained to urinate there if it's a confined space, and it will save the lawn from burn marks."

McCann believes in supervising dogs when they are outside, even putting them in dog crates for their own safety to keep them away from potentially poisonous plants, or out of the hands of dognappers.

Similar ideas can be found in the book Dog Friendly Gardens: Garden Friendly Dogs by Cheryl S. Smith, published by Dogwise Publishing. The book includes lists of breeds that are more "compatible" with the garden, and lists of plants to be avoided.

Visitors to Bryce and Jennifer Weylies Celtic Dream Garden in Stoney Creek have always been enchanted by their big Irish wolfhound, Rohan.

The breed is wonderful for the garden according to Bryce, describing them as " gentle when stroked, fierce when provoked." But it is also a heartbreak breed because they don't live a long life. Rohan died in mid July of heart disease at the age of five.

"He was a wonderful dog, our third wolfhound. We named a very tough hosta after him, because he dug it up twice as a puppy and it survived. It's hard when visitors come to the garden now, because they all want to see Rohan."

At Olde Towne Gardens in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Bruce Cumpson grows and sells gorgeous hostas, but many customers come just to see his dog Teesha. "Ever since she was on your program (Gardener's Journal) people say, "we're here to see Teesha" says Cumpson. Teesha poses patiently near the hostas, and only occasionally buries a piece of rawhide in the garden, having been trained at a young age to play on the grass and not in the garden.

"We start training dogs as young as seven weeks," says Marti McCann. "Training can control the dogs behavior in the garden, just like in the house."

It seems to keep the peace at Denise Bond's garden, even with four dogs, the worst infraction seems to be the odd stolen tomato. "The sheltie might nip the tops off the garlic too, but I can forgive that."

A bit of garlic breath, a buried bone, small potatoes when it comes to the joy dogs can bring to the garden.