Your dog needs a safe and secure place to potty whenever the need arises. Some of us live in small apartments while others of us are sometimes gone for work for several hours at a time. Whatever the situation may be, you need to consider a solution to give your dog a suitable potty space.
Thankfully, there are plenty of options out there to give you a ground cover or a potty dog area for your pup without having to worry so much about messy potty pads or messes in unwanted places as well.
In this guide, we will share with you the best ground cover for a dog potty area. Whether you want something that looks like grass or you would just prefer a simple mat, we’ve got you covered. There are many options and we made every effort to search through them all to bring you the very best out there.
In a rush? Here are the top 3 picks!
The 7 Best Ground Covers for Dogs to Potty
In this part of our guide, we will walk you through our top 7 picks for whether your dog needs to poop or pee. Every dog has to potty, right so why not give them a quality space when they need it? Whether you work long hours, you’re in the middle of training, or you simply don’t have a good place to take them out at the time, we’ve got options here for you.
With each of these products, we will share what makes them great, provide you a general overview, and tell you and downsides you might also need to be aware of. We even have a list of pros and cons for each one as well to give you all of the best details!
- Pros
- Can be used for indoor or outdoor needs
- Feels like real grass
- Includes a grass and pad layer and a base
- The base protects your floors
- Easy to clean as needed
- Cons
- It’s hard to find replacement grass or pads when these start to wear out
The first dog poop cover option is a really great and simple option that is designed to look like grass. This product doesn’t have a bunch of complicated parts and pieces but it still gives your dog that patch of grass. Artificial grass is one of the best materials for a dog poop area because puppies naturally want to do their business on it. It’s a good size and designed for large dogs so they can even lie on the grass if they want to. It’s washable and can be used indoors or outdoors as well.
This potty patch is portable and easy to work with. It measures about 35 inches long and 22.5 inches wide, giving even big dogs a good amount of space to work with. It has a triple layer design so the top part mimics grass and includes a washable pad layer to absorb the potty.
The bottom part is a tray base so nothing seeps through to your floor. The base can collect the urine and is also easy to clean up. The grass is soft and reliable and feels like real grass. It has great permeability and strength as well.
The pad itself is washable so you don’t have the waste of disposable pads and yet cleaning up is very easy. This is designed to be easy to work with and easy to move or porta around to wherever you need it.
- Pros
- Designed to reduce odors
- Cleanup is easy since the powder turns urine to gel
- The grass can be cleaned and rinsed with water
- Gives a real grass appeal to your dog
- Available in varying sizes
- Cons
- The grass tends to absorb and get smelly really fast
- You will need to plan to purchase the sponge powder regularly for the best results
Pet Safe always does a great job of giving us reliable dog tools and this ground area potty cover is no exception. There are different sizes on this faux grass pad so you can choose small, medium, or large based on your dog or your space and needs. These are reasonably priced for what they are as well. Additionally, this potty area is designed to help reduce odor with a covered waste bin.
This again has a grass appearance and feel so it will be relatable to the outdoors for your puppy. It’s great for training, apartment life, or even times with bad weather. This has a unique design and the pod that catches the pee just slides out. There is a powder in the sponge as well that turns the waste to gel so cleaning it is much easier.
When you’re ready to clean the potty area, you just remove the base and rinse it and clean it. The synthetic grass that is part of the combination can be washed with water quite easily as well. This is a U.S. brand that has been representing the pet industry for many years now.
We love the boxy design of this. It’s a bit raised off the ground as opposed to the first option we shared but it’s great quality and it catches the waste in a tray and turns it into a gel, which is a unique aspect that really might benefit the cleaning process quite a bit. Overall, Pet Safe has created one of the best surfaces for a dog toilet area.
- Pros
- Simple washable pee pad mat
- 4 layers for the best absorbency
- Designed with an anti-slip bottom layer
- Simple and yet highly-effective
- Easy to wash and care for with quick-dry design
- Cons
- The anti-slip piece tends to stick to itself so it may take a few minutes to peel apart after washing and/or drying.
If you’re not worried about having a grass look-alike and just want to have a pad available for training or as a potty area, this is a great option. It’s a 72 by 72-inch mat so it provides a good amount of space. It is washable so you don’t have to waste disposable pads all of the time either.
Additionally, this dog potty area cover has a non-slip side on the floor so it won’t slip or slide. It has heavy absorbency so the urine won’t pass through to your floor either. They do offer this ground cover mat in other sizes and even other colors but they can be hard to find in stock.
This pee mat is highly rated across the board and it is an Amazon’s Choice listing. The mat is designed with 4 layers specifically to protect your floors and to absorb and reduce smells as well. The top is reflexed fleece, which diverts liquid and stays dry. It’s honestly one of the best ground covers for a dog potty area and it is affordably priced.
The second layer material uses a polyester bottom layer to absorb and lock in the fluids that are eliminated into the mat. The third layer is TPU waterproof coating so the mat remains durable, sturdy, and doesn’t leak. Finally, the very bottom layer is PVC epoxy resin, which keeps the mat stable and provides an anti-slip grip against your floor. If you don’t care about having artificial grass, this is one of the best materials for a dog potty area.
- Pros
- Perfect for outdoor needs, particularly where grass is limited
- Interlocking pieces that you put together
- High-quality grass turf materials
- Easy to piece together and use
- Lush and soft to the touch
- Cons
- Not a true potty pad so you will need to know how to use it for it to work to your advantage. It’s great for outdoor potty needs
This next bathroom area option is a bit unique by design. It’s designed to be a grass turf but rather than choose a standard mat or even size, this grass turf actually interlocks almost like a puzzle to create a mat of your size of choosing.
What you need to know is this is not your traditional potty mat. Instead, it is real grass turf that you can interlock together to place in your yard or on a patio. It most likely will not give you the absorption inside like typically potty pads and mats do. If you use this inside, be prepared to place another layer underneath it for that purpose.
With this particular option, you receive 6 tiles per purchase that measures 1 x 1 foot each. This will give you a total of 6 square feet when you get it put together. It is not washable since it is grass turf so this is another element to be aware of as well.
The grass turf is of excellent quality and they use 100% new materials to make the turf. It’s also considered to be environmentally-friendly as well. It’s easy to install and put together and can be the perfect solution when your grass area is limited. We don’t recommend this one for training purposes but just for outdoor needs. It’s a great ground cover if your dog wants to pee or poop outside.
- Pros
- Perfect for outdoor spaces with limited grass
- Comes with 40 square feet of turf
- Super soft and lush to the touch
- Includes drainage so nothing gets stagnant
- Can be rinsed and cleaned up some as needed
- Cons
- Not a true potty mat so it is best for outdoor use or in combination with a potty mat underneath.
This dog potty area is another turf option that isn’t really designed for indoor use but it is designed to give your pets a place to roam and potty as well. This is a rug carpet so it works really well for a place with limited grass or you can also place it on a balcony or something as well. It can be for indoor or outdoor use but your indoor use will be a bit more limited than traditional potty mats. However, it’s one of the best surfaces for a backyard dog bathroom area.
This turf is made with quality durable polypropylene fibers. It even has drainage holes so nothing gets stagnant on it. It looks and feels like real grass when it is laid out. You just have to roll out the turf when you want to use it. You can officially install into a space and seal it as well.
This comes as a 40 square foot roll but it can be cut down to size and used as whatever size you prefer or you can use a little bit at a time. You can rinse it to clean it but keep in mind it is not designed to absorb and hold like traditional potty mats.
If you use this indoors for potty use, you may want to place a potty mat underneath it. We recommend this more for use on patios, balconies, or places that perhaps your grass access is quite limited but you still need a solution. It’s best as an outdoor dog toilet area solution.
- Pros
- Budget-friendly solution
- Can be washed and reused up to 300 times
- Non-slip base
- Large size with a simple design
- High-soaking materials that don’t hold smells or stains
- Cons
- Many users say this pad is not truly non-slip
- It is thin material but most users have not had any leakage issues
Next up, we have another simply potty mat. This was designed to be used for whelping, training, traveling, housebreaking, or whatever your needs might be. It can easily be combined with a playpen or a crate as well and it’s a nice extra-large size so it has plenty of room, particularly if you have more than one dog using it.
This mat is designed to be used specifically as a potty mat. It measures 72 x 72 inches so it’s a large size. It can travel as needed or be used wherever it is needed as well. This is another very highly-rated option for potty mats. It’s high-soaking and absorbs dog pee quickly.
This is a light grey color so stains and discolorations are less likely to be noticeable. It is designed to be able to handle odors and not smell and also shouldn’t leak if cared for properly either. The base is non-slip as well, which is always a nice addition.
This one is durable and eco-friendly. It is washable in your machine and can be used and washed up to 300 times. It’s also pretty affordable for what it is.
- Pros
- Simple and easy to use
- Multiple colors available
- Designed to conceal potty pads
- Cons
- Requires either an appropriate reusable potty mat or disposable pads
This last option is another really great option. It’s designed to be used with disposable potty pads or perhaps even a washable one if you can find the right fit. It holds the potty pads so you don’t have to just lay them on your floor so it’s slightly more attractive overall.
This is a simple plastic tray with open holes and the potty pad goes in between the top layer and the base. You can choose from 4 different colors, including pink or blue. It even comes with 3 pads to get you started. This is small and best for small to medium dogs. It measures 25 x 20 inches.
How to Choose a Ground Cover for Your Dog’s Potty Area
Now that you’ve seen the options, let’s take just a moment to cover some of the things that you should watch for or consider before you buy.
Your Space
First of all, consider the space you will be using this for and just exactly what your needs are. Do you just need a little something to give your dog some grass on a balcony? Will this be for purely outdoor use to give you some grass? Will this be purely for indoor use?
This specific topic will determine what type of ground cover you should be looking for.
Size
You also need to consider the size. Some of these can be quite large and are made for multiple dogs or a large space. Others are designed to be small and might not be large enough for large dogs.
Know your space and the size you can accommodate but also know what size you are going to need to work for your dog in particular. If you have an extra-large dog, using a small solution just might not work.
Easy to Clean
If your intentions are to have something that is washable and reusable, you definitely want something that will be easy to clean. Remember that the purpose of this purchase is most likely to give your dog a place to potty. While the outdoor solutions may not need to be cleaned up, your indoor solutions will definitely need to be washable or disposable.
Take a look at the details and make sure you will be able to wash, clean, dispose, or whatever you may need to do in order to keep this good and make it worth your while to purchase and have.
Conclusion for Best Ground Cover for Dog Potty Area
We hope that you find this guide to choosing a ground cover for a dog potty area to be a valuable resource. We made every effort to bring you the very best but also to provide you with a variety of solutions so that you can hopefully find something here that will work for your needs.
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Garrett loves animals and is a huge advocate for all Doodle dog breeds. He owns his own Goldendoodle named Kona. In addition, he volunteers at the Humane Society of Silicon Valley, where he fosters dogs and helps animals. Garrett enjoys writing about Doodles and believes that dogs can teach humans more about how to live than humans can teach a dog.
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