Puppy Proofing The Garden

[Whippetsmum]

So, I've been puppy proofing the yard, started a few weeks ago and pulled out any thorny or spiny weeds, picked up anything that looked chewable or sharp, I pulled down cob webs to reduce spiders, etc. Nothing over the top, just sensible.

Then, I got a Proplan puppy booklet that lists common dangers, which incuded dangerous plants. I knew about all the high risk plants except one, Azaleas. I've always had them, and had dogs and not had a problem. I have a couple of potted Azaleas which are now in the front yard, but there are 3 in the garden that can't be moved.

Has anyone ever had a problem with Azaleas? Has anyone heard this about Azaleas from any other source? Is it the flower, leaf, wood or everything that is a problem?Do I put a wire cage around each plant and hope the leaves don't get blown through the mesh?

Thanks in advance, please tell me if I'm getting too paranoid.

:D Apparantly more paranoid.......I thought I'd pick up all the Camellia flowers just in case, even though they weren't mentioned and SPLASH, into the fish pond she went! A warm bath, and some hugs and she seems OK.

(Edited for spelling)

Edited April 25, 2010 by Whippetsmum

[justlovedogz]

So, I've been puppy proofing the yard, started a few weeks ago and pulled out any thorny or spiny weeds, picked up anything that looked chewable or sharp, I pulled down cob webs to reduce spiders, etc. Nothing over the top, just sensible.

Then, I got a Proplan puppy booklet that lists common dangers, which incuded dangerous plants. I knew about all the high risk plants except one, Azaleas. I've always had them, and had dogs and not had a problem. I have a couple of potted Azaleas which are now in the front yard, but there are 3 in the garden that can't be moved.

Has anyone ever had a problem with Azaleas? Has anyone heard this about Azaleas from any other source? Is it the flower, leaf, wood or everything that is a problem?Do I put a wire cage around each plant and hope the leaves don't get blown through the mesh?

Thanks in advance, please tell me if I'm getting too paranoid.

Apparantly more paranoid.......I thought I'd pick up all the Camellia flowers just in case, even though they weren't mentioned and SPLASH, into the fish pond she went! A warm bath, and some hugs and she seems OK.

(Edited for spelling)

I know just how you feel. I have a new puppy and I just love my garden. I have looked on the ASPCA website and have found that a lot of my plants can be poisonous to pups. Anything with sap it appears, frangipanni, hibiscus, sago palms ( that I watered so carefully this summer). Luckily Roses appear to be OK. I've just started to give away and get rid of some, I don't want to take any chances. I'm thinking of putting a fence up in front of my garden, it runs all the way along the back fence, big job.

She sounds like a character!

[Tilly]

My boy fell in the fish pond a couple of times as a puppy. Our fish pond is smelly was in the process of being removed.

The first time was late in the afternoon and I have been playing with the pup and was going to take him up the back stairs to introduce him to stairs. One moment he was following me and the next he was trying to walk on water. His tried to puppy paddle but he was head first in the water and sinking fast. I grabbed him out quickly and wrapped him in a towel ... but he was shivering big time. He was rushed inside and given a nice warm bath.

A coulple of days later we were in the yard again and my mum was looking after the pup. She went to take him up the back stairs and clipped his leash on ... I said she didn't need it that he would follow her ... she took it off and almost immediately he was head first in the fsh pond again. Again he was rescued, wrapped in a towel and given a nice warm bath.

My older boy used to rip out my azaleas and eat the root off ... he never got sick ... but is wasn't good for the plants. I have fenced off all my garden beds as I know I would never have any plants otherwise.

What sort of puppy are you getting?

I am sure your puppy will find something to chew on ... good luck

Edited April 25, 2010 by Tilly

[Whippetsmum]

Thanks Tilly and Justlovedogs,

She's a Whippet.

I raced up to Bunnings last night after I'd warmed up poor puppy, my son looked after her while I raced up the road. I have now covered the pond, which is a good thing since she tried it again. With the mesh covering, the most that happens is wet paws.

I'm not worried if the Azaleas survive or not, so long as if she chews them, she'll be OK. I've been moving more pot plants to the front yard, not that there are that many, but apart from the Azaleas, there's star Jasmine which is a bit sappy, and an Arum which I knew would have to be moved.

Whippetsmum

[sandgrubber]

In my experience dogs don't generally like eating the things that aren't good for them. Eg, daffodils make humans and dogs vomit violently. They taste awful . . . I know cause my Mum once confused them with the shallots and made a nice sauce out of them . . . we all puked for hours . . . so did the dog, who cleaned up the leftovers. If it weren't for being cooked into a cream sauce, none of us would have taken more than a tiny nibble. I've had dogs around azaleas in many paces . . . with no problems. Just don't go making any nice cream sauce out of them and you should be ok. There are a few exceptions . . . like chocolate. But those are well publicised.

[Whippetsmum]

Well, I was definately not paranoid enough.

Puppy got really sick, 2 days on a drip, one week recouperating. Vaccinations delayed, puppy training delayed, big vet bill, but she's OK. Meanwhile, the scary Azaleas and all the rest of the nasty garden are safely penned and cannot cause any harm! The savage fish pond is tightly covered with wire mesh, and the evil pot plants have all moved to the front of the house.

We won't ever really know what she got into, but hopefully it's either been moved or is neutralised.

Whippetsmum

[Michelleva]

Wow, thats really scary Whippets Mum and just goes to prove we can never be too careful. I hope your puppy is feeling better.

Before Georgia arrived, we pulled out a few plants or relocated them. The biggest job was the 4 rhododendrans (?). They were quite large, but apparantly the whole plant is poisonous to dogs. I was a little sad to see them go, but they dropped leaves everywhere, so a small bit of relief. Once she's past the puppy stage of digging and chewing I'll replace them with something safe.