Zoysia grass

[merlin]

Hi everyone, I know this topic has been covered before, but I need a refresher. Not sure if I'm spelling it correctly, but I would like peoples' opinions on how tough this type of grass really is (I don't care if it turns brown once the temps go below freezing). Our small fenced-in yard's sod grass has been completely ripped up by two very active 40 lb. mutts that chase each other for fun from one end to another, the yard is now a mud pit. We considered "fake" grass, but balked at the steps needed to put it down properly, especially the underlayment of stone, something I was trying to avoid in case future owners of our house would want to revert back to real grass. If anyone has any suggestions for me, any would be vastly appreciated.

[KimmSr]

Zoysia is a warm season grass that simply does not, no matter what the ads say, grow well north of zone 7. Your University of Illinois USDA Cooperative Extension office will tell you that, Purdue University, Ohio State, Michigan State, Iowa State, Wisconsin State, and many others will also tell you that.
No matter what grass you tried two dogs racing around a relatively small area will keep it from growing.

[IntrepidMeredith]

I have a friend with 3 golden retrievers. She fenced in her side yard for them, and it, too, turned into a mud pit. She finally just got a truckload of bark chips and spread that around in there for them. The dogs don't seem to mind, and it's definitely cut down on the mud. Would this work for you as well?

[merlin]

The wood chip option is definitely one I've considered - we already have them in the shadier parts of the yard that just can't grow grass (larger-type chips we get from the village that goes around town and chips everyone's fallen branches, etc. They're free, so the price is right!) Maintenance is limited to replacement as they break down, and raking them back into place as the racing mutts displace them. At least that would be better than stone, which would be expensive, and almost impossible to remove in the future, not to mention probably more uncomfortable on the dogs' feet. That may be our only option if we can't see our way to putting down fake grass due to the expense and labor.

Any other suggestions are so welcome!!!