Natural Dog Repellents - Homemade Dog Repellent (Repeller) Recipes That Work

by Debbie Moore, Dogs and Puppies Central
Copyright© 2009 - All rights reserved.
Used with permission

All About Homemade Dog Repellents

Whether you want to keep your dog out of the garden and flower beds - or even off the furniture, there are many commercially prepared dog repellents available to buy that generally come in spray form in a can. There are also electronic dog repellents and ultrasonic dog repellent devices that can be very effective at keeping dogs out of where they should not enter. The type of dog repellent you choose depends on your dog, your preference, your budget, and whether you are looking for an outdoor - or indoor dog repellent.

Natural Citrus Dog Repellent (Repeller)

The most gentle and natural dog repellent you can use is citrus fruit. While we humans embrace the intoxicating scent of fresh lemons and oranges, dogs find this smell to be quite distasteful and will generally avoid areas where citrus scents are prominent.

If in the garden or flower beds, just cut up some oranges and lemons and scatter around the perimeter of your garden area to keep dogs from digging, chewing and sunbathing. If indoors, try mixing pure lemon juice in water, and spritzing the entry to areas where you do not want your dog to go. Never, ever spray your dog with this - lemon juice is very irritating to your dog's nose and mucous membranes!

This gentle and natural homemade dog repellent generally works for most dogs - with some dogs, you may need to pull out the heavier natural dog repellent artillery. Read on...

Cayenne Pepper Dog Repellent (Repeller)

Very often used in commercial dog repellents, cayenne pepper is one of the more effective and commonly used natural dog repellents. Dogs find that the Capsaicum in cayenne pepper very irritating to skin, eyes, nose, throat and paws, and will instinctively avoid areas where this scent is predominant. In the garden, just sprinkle good old cayenne pepper powder from the spice rack around the perimeter of the areas from which you want doggies to stay at bay. It works great. In the household, you can sprinkle chili powder in with your potpourri, or even place some dried chilis in a small bowl, and leave in the areas you wish to keep dogs away from. There are probably many other creative ways to incorporate natural cayenne pepper dog deterrent into rooms in your home - you don't need much, as dogs have a tremendous sense of smell and will notice even the most minute pepper patch.

Vinegar as a Natural Dog Repellent (Repeller)

Dogs dislike Vinegar. It has a potent smell which is overwhelming to the dog's sensitive and very strong olfactory senses. In the garden, here's a great way to add a vinegar scent to repell dogs: Pour vinegar onto a stack of biodegradable (brown) coffee filters until soaked through, and spread out on a cookie tray to dry in the sun. Once dry, using scissors, cut up into small slivers resembling grass (about the size of a match stick). Once dry, simply sprinkly your "vinegar grass" around the perimeter of your flower beds, garden or even lawn - if you want to keep neighborhood dogs away.
You should not pour vinegar on the ground - it will kill plants.

Another great use for vinegar is to eliminate pet odor when your dog has had an accident on the carpet, furniture or floor. Vinegar acts as both a powerful odor remover - and dog repellent to help prevent future accidents. Make sure to first blot or clean up any and all traces of dog pee or poop. Clean thoroughly with a solution of hot water, vinegar and a few drops of dish soap. Blot again to dry as much as possible. Once dry, spray area with a solution of vinegar and water.

Rubbing Alcohol Dog Repellent (Repeller)

Rubbing (Isopropyl Alcohol) alcohol is not an odor that dogs are particularly fond of, and will usually avoid like the plague. Just use rubbing alcohol in place of vinegar for the recipe for coffee filter grass above and scatter throughout outdoor areas that you want dogs to avoid. In the house, you can incorporate rubbing alcohol into your cleaning regimen - it's a great disinfectant and antibacterial agent, in addition to being very inexpensive. You can mix rubbing alcohol with purified water in a spray bottle and use as a room freshener, but remember: NEVER SPRAY THIS ON OR AT YOUR DOG!!

Ammonia Dog Repellent (Repeller)

Dogs hate the smell of ammonia (and who doesn't?). Personally, I would leave this option to the "if all else fails" category, and reserve it for outdoor dog repellent use. Simply substitute ammonia for vinegar in our "coffee filter grass" recipe as above, and sprinkle liberally around your flower beds and garden - or around the perimeter of your lawn to act as an invisible boundary to dogs from the neighborhood. (Can also be used to keep dogs inside an invisible boundary, but be sure to test this hypothesis first!
Warning: DO NOT pour ammonia directly onto the ground as it will harm your plants and lawn.

These natural homemade dog repellent recipes are sure to work for your situation. If you are a dog lover like me, try incorporating positive reinforcement and kindness into your dog repellent methods.

If you're afraid of dogs and feel that you need to "protect" yourself from dogs that are at large, please, build a secure fence! It is highly cruel, inhumane and irresponsible to spray dogs with any type of substance (other than plain water). One of the best "dog repellent" devices is your telephone; a call to the dog's owners, or the local spca can be very effective.

Pet Net was last updated on September 08, 2009.
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