Pet turf in the Denver Metro, planned for where your HOA puts the run.

The run touches the house and stays within 250 square feet.

The HRCA Residential Improvement Guidelines (updated June 2025) say a dog run must abut the house, sit in the rear or side yard and have an appropriate ground cover, such as rock or mulch. It’s limited to 250 square feet on most properties, and to one run per property. Chain link may be approved if it’s concealed from view and doesn’t rise above the perimeter fence. ARC approval may be required, and you keep the run up, with timely cleanup of dog waste and elimination of odors.

Turf isn’t on that ground-cover list, though the list ends in “etc.” Synthetic turf must also stay at least 2 feet from every property line, so in a run along a side lot line the turf stops 2 feet short of it. Before you order, ask the ARC whether it will accept turf as the run’s ground cover. The Highlands Ranch page covers the rest of the HRCA turf spec.

The run sits behind the fence, screened by plants.

Sterling Ranch’s Controlled Pet Areas sheet needs Design Review Committee approval for every dog run and kennel. The run goes in the side or rear yard, abutting the home and behind yard fencing. It can’t go in a side yard next to a corner sidewalk, street, common area or open space. Fast-growing plants must substantially screen it, with evergreens and grasses for all four seasons, and it must stay clean and sanitary.

A dog run may not exceed 200 square feet or 25% of the rear yard, whichever is less. Chain link and electric dog fences are not allowed. The sheet says nothing about ground cover or turf, and it says it isn’t the full set of rules, so ask the DRC which surface it will approve. The Sterling Ranch page covers chase drains and builder grades.

Attach the run to the house, and mind the first 5 feet.

Ken-Caryl Ranch needs Architectural Committee approval for a dog run. It’s a privacy fence or open rail fence, attached to your perimeter fence or the house. Your submittal shows the fence style from your neighborhood’s fencing rules, a site plan with the run’s location and dimensions, and a photo of the spot.

Attach it to the house and part of the run lands in the first 5 feet, where the Ranch’s Firewise rules apply. No flammable materials, such as mulch, may go within the first 5 feet of a home’s foundation; rock, gravel and hardscape are encouraged instead. The rule doesn’t say whether artificial turf counts, so ask the Architectural Committee before you plan turf in that strip. Our article on whether turf can catch fire covers the first 5 feet, and the Ken Caryl page covers the Ranch’s turf spec.

Send the run’s water away from the foundation.

Most homes in Colorado are in areas of potentially expansive clay, the Colorado Geological Survey says. Its homeowner guide to swelling soil says water must not pond near foundations, sprinklers shouldn’t spray within 5 feet of one and downspouts should discharge at least 5 feet out. Pet turf lets urine and rinse water through to the base, and a run against the house puts that liquid in the same strip every day.

The guide doesn’t mention dogs or turf, so where the turf starts is a layout choice. It says an edging of gravel over fabric, at least 5 feet out from the house, can keep water from soaking into the soil next to the foundation. A dog in a run that touches the wall can still use that rock, though, and in a run 10 feet deep a 5-foot strip takes half the space. So the ground under the whole run matters most: it should carry water away from the house, without sending it toward a neighbor’s.

Your HOA may want that on paper anyway. HRCA asks for a drainage plan with any synthetic turf. Ken-Caryl’s drainage rules want water to drain away from the foundation, without flowing under or ponding against the foundation, walks or drives of your lot or the lots next to it, and may require an engineered drainage plan. On the free visit we measure and check the ground by the wall. Our article on turf next to the house covers the gravel strip and downspouts.

Rinse with a shut-off nozzle, and skip the power washer.

From October 1, 2026, until its board acts again, Denver Water’s Resolution #002a-2026 covers everyone who receives its water, inside and outside Denver. It bans watering grass and bars power washing by individuals except for immediate health or safety reasons. Trees and shrubs can still be watered with a hand-held hose that has an automatic shut-off nozzle. Your bill may carry another name: Ken-Caryl Ranch Water buys its water from Denver Water and tells customers the lawn watering season must end on October 1, 2026.

The resolution doesn’t mention artificial turf or pet areas. Pick up solids first, rinse the spots your dog uses with a shut-off nozzle, and ask your water provider whether rinsing a dog run is allowed at your address. Our pet turf cleaning guide covers the routine.

In Thornton, the city’s 2026 turf rules for its water-wise rebate require cleaning, sanitizing and brushing, with cleaning done with biodegradable products, and regular maintenance to eliminate odors. Ask Thornton Water whether that applies to a run built without the rebate.