I am not sure you can do anything about a wall that will stop dogs from peeing on it......nor why that would be a requirement in the first place. Dog pee does not do damage to any masonry or really to any outdoor wooden surfaces either.

I can understand the wish to not have dogs peeing on the plants they could access from the sidewalk but there is really not all that much you can do to protect them - pepper sprays or mothballs (NOT recommended for any use in the garden!) are not a deterrent to peeing, unfortunately. Perhaps an low ornamental iron fence along the sidewalk, with the plants located an appropriate distance behind?

Are there not leash laws in your area? Are dogs allowed to roam freely?

IME dogs seem drawn to walls and fences to pee on! I've always tried to keep mine from peeing on any thing in someone's front yard, but the tree lawn area is where I let them go. One neighbor had a little sign in that area that said to keep dogs off... I thought it was rather rude.

I don't think putting out water bowls will deter anyone. I wouldn't let my dogs drink out of a bowl unless I knew who the person was that put them there.

Sorry I don't have a good idea for you.

Are you planting edible berries next to the sidewalk, or flowers that you wish to cut for indoor use? Then I would definitely want to reduce the risk of urine on those plants. My big lab loved to pee on our raspberry bushes; we ended up taking them out, since we weren't keen on eating those berries!

Maybe give the dogs one big rock near the sidewalk and keep your plants much farther back.

Build your raised beds. Then put another barrier between the beds and the sidewalk. I did this at my old house. I had those wooden raised bed kits, and then once they were built, SO surrounded the wood with a wall of those garden stone things,then he put a low border of iron garden fence about a foot away from the stones, so I had room to step over and putter away. It was really pretty and effective.As someone with 5 dogs of my own,I needed to keep them and their pee out of my herb garden,and it worked. I wish I had taken a picture before we moved to show you.

I think dogs like to pee on a vertical surface so maybe put a small pillar or something taller at each end of the strip so they ignore the stuff in the middle? I notice that dogs pee on my light pillar at one end and a pole at the other end and they leave the middle alone.

Gardengal, even if the pee didn't stain the wall, it sure would smell to high heaven, so I can totally see why Current Resident would want to disuade it from happening. I'm wondering if putting a couple of larger rocks out there as suggested would help. I still might consider a humorous sign. Surely there are some available some where that wouldn't be an eyesore. We have a rather large front yard with a walking path by the road and I hate when dogs pee on our trees and grass. I think it's rude for dog owners to just let their dog "go" where ever without any consideration to the property owner (or cleaning "it" up) so I'm actully considering putting a sign out myself.

Thx all! Yes its mostly the smell is the problem and the fact that I like to sit on the wall to work on my garden (due bad back) This is a very urban environment, lots of dogs go by (on leash) and people just them go wherever, whenever.. The entire opposite side of the street is an old warehouse and vacant lot - no houses, just sidewalk, chain link fence and lots of big trees - so I dont feel like I would be creating any hardship or depriving anyone of anything if they were dissuaded from using my yard.

I will definitely try the low fence at least on the side without raised bed - Ive heard from others that even most big dogs will mostly avoid going over even a 12- 18 inch fence. On the raised bed side, I only have about 8 ft from my house to the sidewalk - right now the wall of the raised bed is at the sidewalk but I think I could set it back a little without harming the shrubs/roses

Re: signs, I just havent thought of a way of doing it that I would like - do NOT like those ones of the dog squatting with the "no" symbol over it - Im not so concerned about the feelings of the dog owners so much as I myself just dont want to see it - I want to look at my garden and find only peace and serenity there!

One other thought - I have the makings of a little fairy town I've been wanting to put under the shrubs - I wonder if that would appeal to people's better nature? Maybe theyd think twice about letting Doggie Dearest pee on a cute little town ?

"One other thought - I have the makings of a little fairy town I've been wanting to put under the shrubs - I wonder if that would appeal to people's better nature? Maybe theyd think twice about letting Doggie Dearest pee on a cute little town ?"

Yeah, maybe...though in an urban setting I kind of doubt it. People are to involved with their smart phones to pay attention to where the dog is doing it's business. It's such a small space and obviously something you enjoy tinkering with, I don't understand people sometimes.

I do have a parking sign on the terrace I was thinking of making that into the sacrificial dog pee location .... but is a metal pole going to attract and satisfy a dog? Its vertical but only 2 1/2 wide. Dont dogs generally go after things more substantial - tree trunks, fire hydrants etc. Dont generally see them go after poles. I could put something around it about 3 ft high to make it seem wider perhaps. Positive messages (please do this) I think are generally more effective than negative (dont do that).

Thx again its helpful to get some reality checks rather than waste time on things that wont work.

My dog has no trouble using a narrow metal pole (like a Stop sign). This would work. It only takes one dog to use it and all dogs will follow his lead!

Why not put a stop sign! Ha ha. Maybe the dog owners will get the hint.

On a more serious note, I agree with Murraysmom, dogs aren't picky and will mark on anything.

What is your climate? We have a cactus garden in our front yard with stone/pebbles for ground cover. Never have any poop in there or even see any dogs attempt to climb the curb and even sniff our property! I think the owners keep their dogs away from the scary and potentially dangerous cactus! We have many varieties and some could certainly cause some damage.