[Becky Shilling]

Rarin’ to go!

C’mon! Hurry up!

Well? Throw it!

Here I go!

Ker-SPLASH!

I’m ahead of you, big boy!

C’mon! Let’s go again!

Whose turn is it?

Guess I’ll have to watch while Brago goes.

I could go some more!

Both of them are amazingly strong swimmers. Brago swims about 25 yards out and 25 back each trip. He'll usually make 15 trips each time we go. He wants to keep going of course. Bronwyn broke loose and tried to follow him the other day. My husband was yelling for her to come back and she ignored him until he stripped off and started in after her. THEN she seemed to realize how far she was and turned back. She was tired, but after 5 minutes, she was ready to hit it again.

 

[Woody Taylor]

Annie is a swim nut, too. She will hit the Mississippi River close to our home a few times a week...doesn't matter if there is some boat wake or jet skis or other dogs (it's an off-leash forested area, about thirty acres in the flood plain, kind of a dog park but not a traditional dog park at all)...she just wants to SWIM.

How common is that with Shepherds? I thought some had an aversion to water, or at least just tolerated it. But Annie is a nut in the water and is a very fast swimmer.

 

[Kristen Cabe]

Jak doesn't seem to like it much. He'll go in, but only get his feet wet most of the time. If it starts getting up to his belly, he'll turn around and run back out again. Of course, he wasn't really exposed to water much as a pup, since I got him in November, so I'm having to do it now.

 

[Becky Shilling]

All three of ours really like it. Our oldest girl Leike, got her water-love from playing with our Weim; Brago watched those two and kind of warmed up to really liking it. Bronwyn has been a mud-puppy from day one! She'll swim in her water bowl if that's all she can get!

 

[susan tuck]

All my GSD's have loved swimming. Arkane adores it. Can't keep him out. Such a fish.

 

[Woody Taylor]

All my GSD's have loved swimming. Arkane adores it. Can't keep him out. Such a fish.

How does one actually teach a working-type dog to swim? Annie was paddling her third time in...I just threw in a ball, in a stream with light current, and bam: Aquadog. She'd had no previous experience as she spent early puppyhood in a MN winter and we have no unfrozen water at that time.

How do you get a water-hesitant dog involved in it, and do you necessarily need to do so? I know you can address some of that in puppyhood, just wondering what you do with an adult dog that does not like/has not tried water.

Incidentally, Mike Schroonbrood got me onto the garden hose and high-pressure sprayer deal to do fun Ob with Annie. That is as nuts and focused as I have ever seen her. It's also very funny to watch a German Shepard go happy-crazy for 30 minutes around an Elmo plastic sprinkler (incidentally, where I got my avatar photo...) :lol:

 

[Connie Sutherland]

All my GSD's have loved swimming. Arkane adores it. Can't keep him out. Such a fish.

How does one actually teach a working-type dog to swim? ........... Incidentally, Mike Schroonbrood got me onto the garden hose and high-pressure sprayer deal to do fun Ob with Annie. That is as nuts and focused as I have ever seen her. It's also very funny to watch a German Shepard go happy-crazy for 30 minutes around an Elmo plastic sprinkler (incidentally, where I got my avatar photo...) :lol:

Oddly, nearly every Pug (almost 30 Pugs) in Leo's club loves water, but only about half of the GSDs and Mals in Pomfret's club do. I would've expected the opposite, I think.

I started using a sprinkler and hose too with Pomfret when I saw Mike's and Woody's dogs' reactions. Fun and energetic reactions here, too.

 

[susan tuck]

Since I'm in So Calif it's always warm enough to swim, so I just toss them in the ocean when they are little. If they come back, I keep em.

 

[Jerry Lyda]

Nice :lol:

 

[Connie Sutherland]

Since I'm in So Calif it's always warm enough to swim, so I just toss them in the ocean when they are little. If they come back, I keep em.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Chasing those waves in and out is always fun. Apparently it never gets boring, either........ and the water is NOT warm up here! :lol:

 

[susan tuck]

A couple of weeks ago we went to a dog beach near Pismo Beach. It was so much fun. There had to be at least 35 - 40 dogs all running loose with their owners. People & dogs all playing in the water. Of course, we did not let Arkane run loose, we kept a 30ft line on him. Played a lot of fetch with him & he got pretty good at swimming out, getting his stick & turning back before a wave washed over him. I was amazed at how everyone was so nice & kept good control over their dogs. No fights, no problems whatsoever! Of course, we left the camera in the car. Stupid human.

 

[Connie Sutherland]

A couple of weeks ago we went to a dog beach near Pismo Beach. It was so much fun. There had to be at least 35 - 40 dogs all running loose with their owners. People & dogs all playing in the water. Of course, we did not let Arkane run loose, we kept a 30ft line on him. Played a lot of fetch with him & he got pretty good at swimming out, getting his stick & turning back before a wave washed over him. I was amazed at how everyone was so nice & kept good control over their dogs. No fights, no problems whatsoever! Of course, we left the camera in the car. Stupid human.

I use a long line too.

Leo will run in and chase a breaker and then turn tail and run back out when the breaker chases him. Repeatedly. He never wins, either way.... Now I understand why a Pug's head is small...... :lol: --- not that much to store in it.

The big dogs alternate between fetch in the water and digging very deep holes in the sand.

All in all, wonderful exercise, and two great mediums for it: water and soft sand!

 

[Maren Bell Jones]

This probably belongs in the video section, but here's a look at my rare red fawn Labrador complete with the tell tale sound of flopping ears during the shake. I was a bit concerned about slipping into the water, so my camera work is kinda bad.

http://www.dropshots.com/day.php?userid=93113&cdate=20060804&ctime=202400

 

[Connie Sutherland]

That IS an unusual-looking Lab! :lol:

 

[Robert Blok]

Since I'm in So Calif it's always warm enough to swim, so I just toss them in the ocean when they are little. If they come back, I keep em.

Is that where those dogs came from, on the beach in Waikiki? :? :?

My SAR dog(bitch) loves the hose but not the ocean :?: My male (SCH1) goes for anything, has his own surfboard :lol: :lol: :wink:
Rob

 

[susan tuck]

Robert, PLEASE post a picture of your dog on his board, I know we would all get a kick out of it.

 

[Robert Blok]

You know in surfing, they always wait for the right wave......... :wink:
He only has pictures taken when it's worth taking!
Sorry
Robert

 

[Nancy Jocoy]

All 3 of mine love the water and Cyra and Grim will swim for the sheer joy of it.

Cyra will not jump off a dock but will dive for objects.

Grim will take the most direct line to anything he can bring back. He won't think twice about jumping off a dock. Actually, when a ball in involved, the brain shuts off.

Toby was cautious as a young dog but months of ball play turned him into a water dog as well.