Atwood LawnCare

Pets & Your Lawn
Common Sense Guide to Lawn Care & Pet Safety

Pets are like one of the family, and their health and safety are considered along with that of our own children. “Pets and Your Lawn” gives you common-sense advice and safety measures to follow when using lawn care products and services.
Caring for your lawn and following proper turf management practices are essential to a healthy lawn. You and your family can enjoy leisure activities on the thick, cushioned play surface, realize increased property values and, more important, create a better environment for your efforts.
In the pamphlet “Healthy Lawn, Healthy Environment,” the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states: “Thick grass prevents soil erosion, filters contaminants from rainwater, and absorbs many types of airborne pollutants, like dust and soot. Grass is also highly efficient at converting carbon dioxide to oxygen, a process that helps clean the air. Caring for your lawn properly can both enhance its appearance and contribute to its environmental benefits.”
The EPA booklet also includes important information about proper lawn care practices such as grass selection, mowing heights and watering needs.
Because pets enjoy rolling in the grass and are indiscriminate tasters of everything, including grass, you must think safety first. Lawn care professionals take proper precautions as part of their job, and when you make lawn care product applications, you should, too.
Lawn care products are designed and tested for use in a residential environment. Nevertheless, they must be applied according to their directions and certain precautions should be considered by pet owners to minimize exposure to their animals. For starters, determine what kind of insect or weed you are trying to control, and always use the correct control measure or product. Never over-apply or use a product that is not needed.

Safety Tips
Using common sense is the key to any safety routine. Here are a few basic safety tips.

* Do not apply pest control products when pets are in the yard and could be exposed during the application, before dust has settled or sprays have dried.
* Remove, or turn over and empty feeding bowls, water dishes and birdbaths before pesticide applications.
* Don’t empty feeding bowls in an area where the food could become contaminated and eaten by the animal.

The greatest risk of adverse effects to a pet from lawn care products comes from pets lapping from a puddle (or consuming a large amount of granules) of an improperly diluted or undiluted product, especially from a concentrated product in the original container.
If the material is applied as a liquid spray, wait until it is dry or until the following day before allowing your pet or family back onto the lawn. If the applied product is a dry granular material, watering it down is recommended but not necessary. Follow all label directions and always store pesticide products out of the reach of children and pets.

Evaluating Illness
Like people, pets can come down with common illnesses that need medical attention or professional advice. If an illness strikes subsequent to the use of lawn care products, many people assume the product was the cause. Your veterinarian is responsible for objectively evaluating exposures and attempting to determine whether the illness is due to contact with any chemical(s) used or due to another disease process. But sometimes it is difficult for the veterinarian to differentiate chemical effects from disease processes without the proper information. Make sure your veterinarian has all the information about the products used including the product label.
Remember, the level of risk posed by any chemical depends on its toxicity and the level of exposure. Lawn care professionals use the same products that homeowners use. Improper or inappropriate use of lawn or household chemicals by anyone can increase the level of exposure, which in turn may increase the level of risk posed to your pets.
Use common sense and always put safety first. If you follow proper turf management practices, you, your family and your pets can enjoy a healthy lawn and reap the many rewards it provides.

For more information on lawn care products and pets, the Professional Landcare Network (PLANET) provides an article “Steps Your Veterinarian Should Follow in Evaluating Suspected Pet Illness From Commonly Used Lawn Care Products” written by Robert H. Poppenga, Diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Toxicologists, DVM, Ph.D.
To request this article and other helpful PLCAA information, contact PLANET: info@landcarenetwork.org If you need advice or assistance with proper turf management practices, contact your local county cooperative extension service or send us a message.

This project was partially funded by the Office of Pesticide Programs, Office of Prevention, Pesticides & Toxic Substances, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, under Cooperative Agreement #CX820-822 with the National Foundation for IPM Education.

Professional Landcare Network
Web: www.landcarenetwork.org