Make a Safe Haven for the Pets in Your Garden

Protect your pets from the elements and protect your plants from your pets by thinking through what each one needs

Claire Splan
Published in
5 min readMay 19, 2020

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It’s not hard to make your garden a safe and fun place for dogs and cats, but it does take a little planning and maybe some training. Think through your pet’s needs and behavior, then use positive reinforcement to keep your pet on his best behavior in your garden.

Give them shelter

The first step is to ensure that your pet has a shaded place for protection from the sun. Whether it’s a doghouse, a covered deck or porch, or a shady tree, it’s essential that your pet has a place to retreat to when the sun becomes too intense. The shade will move as the sun moves throughout the day, so you should have more than one spot for your pet to rest in, especially through the hottest hours of the day.

Access to water

No pet should be kept outdoors without ready access to fresh drinking water. Make sure it’s clean, cool, and can’t be knocked over. If you’re filling the water bowl from the garden hose, make sure your hose is lead-free and labeled “drinking water safe.”

Define the no-go zones

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Claire Splan
Tenderly

Author/Editor. Writes about gardening, writing, etc. Medium Publications: Garden to Table and Writing in Place.