[Otter]

I can't think of any cons. I've said it here before, it's the best money we've spent on our house. No more muddy feet. The dogs can go out and roll around without getting dirty. It's great.
It was installed in 2014 and still looks new. No issues. No wearing, nothing. I haven't noticed it being hot in the summer but it is mostly shaded.

The only thing I have noticed is you need to clean it once in a while. In the summer, when they pee we generally pour a little water on it (water collected in a rain barrel). Poop spots too.
Usually in the Spring I will give it a cleaning with Simple Green although that might be overkill. There is an enzyme product we one or twice a year spray on it. We've had 3 or 4 goldens at a time since it was installed and I've never noticed a smell.

Pricey but worth it.

See here:

A brand new MUD FREE backyard for the dogs

Several months ago I inquired here about artificial turf. Several of you responded with your experiences of having it installed. My wife and I (mostly my wife) did a lot of research into it. We planned on doing it ourselves. Ha, no way could we have done it. Not even with out tiny little...

www.goldenretrieverforum.com

 

[Otter]

I would talk to someone who has played baseball on artificial turf for their opinion on how it compares/contrasts with grass.

The stuff we bought, K9Grass from ForeeverLawn, is a lot different than any artificial turf that I have been on. I used to photograph high school football, track meets, and so on for the local high school and I've been on the fields of several high school and college fields. It's different stuff. But for sure get more opinions. There are other members here too that have artificial grass installed, maybe they will add to the discussion.

Our K9Grass Synthetic Turf | ForeverLawn Northern Ohio

Enjoy the benefits of K9Grass Synthetic Turf in Cleveland, OH, and nearby Northern Ohio areas for a cleaner yard. Get in touch with ForeverLawn Northern Ohio.

www.foreverlawnnohio.com

 

[Otter]

Grass is a pain to maintain - but there's things like you are able to have it treated for ticks and fleas + grubs. I have no idea how you would handle treatment needs if the play area for dog is rubber grass....

20+ years of having Goldens we were never ever able to grow grass in our little backyard. Yard chemicals, fertilizers, weed killers, grub chemicals and so on are out. So we gave up and went with the K9Grass. Now for flea and tick we spray Wondercide on the 'grass' (not in the flower beds where we want the good insects) every couple of weeks during warmer weather to control that. So far so good.