Dog Waste and Your Lawn: How It Affects Grass Health

Every pet owner with a lawn will at some point wonder, does dog poop kill grass?

The short answer is yes, dog poop can most definitely kill your grass. You might be wondering why this is because you may have heard poop is used as fertilizer. Well, gentle readers, as they say, you are in for a treat today because I am something of an expert in fertilizers made from biological waste and have a fun and dare I say educational, fact filled answer for you.

What’s in dog poop that would kill my lawn?

Several compounds and elements present in dog waste are harmful to your lawn immediately including high concentrations of readily available nitrogen and phosphorus. Acids, and resident bacterium necessary for digestion are also found in dog waste. All this can add up to bad news for the health of the grass and for those enjoying it. Aside from just your lawn, you might want to think of who spends time interacting with the lawn, such as small children and furry friends alike.

But Is it OK to use dog poop as fertilizer?

There are several reasons I would not recommend using dog poop as fertilizer BUT and this is a big but it could be extensively and properly processed first to make a safer product, however there is no agreeded upon process to safely turn dog waste into fertilizer. However, one thing is for sure- You should never use raw unprocessed dog waste as fertilizer. First off dog excrement in it’s raw form is a biological hazard because it can contain many of the same pathogens that are often present in human waste, including but not limited to viruses, bacteria and parasites. This makes it unsafe to leave on your lawn for potential exposure short term and seriously unsafe to use on any kind of food crop. Additionally, there is the macronutrient content. Dog waste is a “hot” manure, meaning it’s high in nitrogen (and phosphorus to a lesser extent) in a form that is readily available to the root systems of plants it is applied to, primarily in the form of urea. The trouble with very hot manures is that they have the potential to burn plants especially in very hot weather (like Fort Worth Texas, most of the year). This is why you might have heard not to apply a urea based fertilizer in weather above 80 degrees. In fact a 2022 study published by the British Ecological Society found that dog feces and urine contain so many concentrated nutrients that they actually disrupt the ecosystems in nearby natural areas. To make it even more impactful this study was in part a meta analysis of data about dogs diets and recorded data of dog owners near natural areas in conjunction with measured levels of extra phosphorus and nitrogen compounds per hectare of soil. The assertation of many quoting the study was that this in fact made the dog waste not a good fertilizer, however I beg to offer a differing opinion, that it may actually demonstrate the raw potential of macronutrients being under utilized and that this is all due to lack of proper processing, and timely cleanup perhaps? Maybe the areas in these studies could benefit from some twice a week dog poop pickup service from Rhino Scoop.

What if I just leave the dog poop on my lawn?

Well, sure you could do that but more than likely it will dry out as this happens the water content of the waste (up to 75% by weight) will leach into the ground taking with it, you guessed it the aforementioned nitrogen compounds. These will most likely burn your grass rather quickly, especially on hot days. A far better solution is to have us come by and remove the dog waste with a smile and you won’t have to ever think about or experience the brown spots in your otherwise immaculate lawn. a happy dog, a happy lawn and a happy watershed.

Other Waste Products as Fertilizers

You may have heard about other waste products including human waste being used as fertilizer. This is true, and these wastes are extensively processed in order to achieve a “safe” and effective fertilizer. There is a trend to move away form these kinds of fertilizers due to their potential to be contaminated with undesirable compounds, including heavy metals, and PFAS compounds. In fact the EPA recently recommended suspending the use of fertilizers made from sewage due to increased cancer risks from PFAS chemicals present in them. Due to the similarity of dog and human waste it would be safe to assume that these chemicals are also present in the dog waste as well.

Bottom line is that dog poop shouldn’t really be used as a fertilizer and it can kill your lawn.

Given the current evidence and lack of processes and research into turning dog waste into fertilizer, it would be best to not try to use fertilize your lawn and given the answer that dog poop can indeed kill grass, we’d recommend getting that Dog poop picked up off your lawn as soon as possible, fortunately your next cleanup is just a few clicks away sign up with Rhino Scoop and have a dog poop free lawn in no time.