Keep her on a very long leash and correct her when she goes where you don't want her to?

Invisible fence/radio collar units can help if your yard is large enough. I find they work best if there is at least a low decorative fence as a visual barrier to go along with the radio barrier. Dogs must be trained to the fence. Available in most pet stores. jwww

The idea of a invisible fence sounds very intriguing, but I just got laid off of my job at the end of March. I've heard they are expensive.

I do have a few pieces of low fencing, so I will try that. I would like her to be able to run free in the yard, there are so many other places she is confined/on leash.

Would sprinkling cayenne hurt her?

I have had to stop using bone meal in the garden because it is like catnip to my dog.

I wouldn't use cayenne pepper ... can you imagine how painful that would be if she got it in her eyes?

If you don't want to spend money then you need to train her. She's still a big puppy at 2 years old.

Re-arrange things so you don't have to remove the fence to mow. Put in a gate so you can get in there when the fence is up.

I second buyorsells suggestion. I have taught my dog to stay out of the garden. It took some work but it is doable. There are times when Jacksons ball goes into the garden and then it's difficult to enforce. For the most part it has worked well! Good luck.

There is no training of Goldens as far as digging in the dirt goes--it is their birthright, or so it seems. I have two of them and know of what I speak. A fence around the garden is the best I could come up with, although now that the doggies are old it really isn't necessary as they have slowed way down.

My malamute/lab mix is pretty good about not digging, he only digs where I've been digging too. haha

We'll see how he does with herbaceous perennials in my beds. I'm hoping that by the time I get around to putting them in, he'll have gotten sick of tearing through the yard at mach6.

Thanks everyone... the jury is still out, but I need to give her a grace period, since I did use bone meal when planting some new plants-didn't realize. It does look so much nicer without the chicken wire....

I will see what happens, as I don't want to spend my whole time in the back yard yelling at her, or chasing.

I will use the squirt gun ;-) for now.

My pooch responds well to the "aaaant" noise, similar to a buzzer of a game show. If he's doing something I don't like, I make that noise and he usually stops, and after a few repetitions, gets the picture. Considering the golden retriever is in the top 10 list of intelligence ratings, it should work.

Of course this is tied in with ideas regarding how dogs should be trained, but in "How to be your dog's best friend" (an amazing book, and surprisingly quick read), the authors provide ways for you and your dog to bond more closely, and with the bond, the dog should view your praise and acceptance as the highest importance. Similarly, your dissatisfaction with her actions should be the one of the worst things that could happen. After working with our rescue dog with their training methods, I experience a whole shift in his reaction to me, he loves training sessions because he gets praise, and he pouts when he's done something that I'm unhappy with. The warning sound serves to let him know that he's about to make me unhappy, and with that, he gets scolded and ignored.

Dogs are wolves and operate as though they were in a pack.

I didn't mean you should use the leash forever, just until the dog understands that you don't want her to do certain things and go in certain areas. Praise when the dog is good and correct when the dog does what you don't want. Having her on leash makes it easier to "connect" with her and be more vigilant.

Dogs are highly trainable if we do it right and Goldens are one of the most trainable of all breeds. They live to please.

Why not try an electric fence (not the invisible type). It can be found at hardware or feed stores.
You may only need one line of wire to keep her out of the flowers.

I've had a Fishock fence around my pond for years.

My brother's dog jumps over it. :(

Must be a golden ~@^@~

Aussie

I had the same problem and ended up sub-dividing my back yard into a dog area (with access to the dog-door in the back door and the deck/barbeque area) as well as grass and trees and a non-dog-area. There's a nice looking wooden fence with a gate in between. I plant the non-dog-area and leave the dog area pretty much uncultivated (except for occasional weed-whacking). It works for me and for the dogs and looks good too. It was worth it to be able to relax about the garden and not have to keep chasing after the dogs.