Okay people finaly decided that weeds...win especialy when working hand in hand with his foul weather, and I keep expecting to see Noah and his ark navigating the back garden okay maybe not that bad, but you get my drift ;)

So what mulch is dog friendly. Thanks Karen

I much prefer inorganic mulch if dogs are around - stuff like shale, shingle, gravel etc. Not much good if your dog likes to mouth or swallow stones though is it? but laid on a weed suppressing membrane it does the trick.

I'm wary of organic mulch for the fact that I don't know its source or treatment. For example - the council free compost is full of who knows what from everyones garden. some hasn't rotted completely and there may be poisonous plants/shrubs included in it.
Commercial Bagged mulch has often been treated to preserve it, and is the preservative poisonous to pets?

Don't forget to never use [url= http://www.1fleacontrol.co.uk/acatalog/Chocolate-and-Your-Dogs-Health--What-you-should-Know.htmlcocoa mulch[/url]- can be deadly to dogs