Well, today’s the day we’re taking Luna for her first ever trip to the beach. In typical style, I’m completely overthinking the whole thing and expecting some sort of soggy doggy disaster. Wondered if anyone had any tips on how to introduce a teenage pup to the sea without freaking them out, losing them or getting dragged into the sea with their excitement. Alternatively I could just chill out and go with the flow of course, but if there is anything helpful I should know then I’d welcome thoughts. She’s not a fan of having her body rubbed down by a towel or her paws touched either, so any tips on how to clean and dry her off would also be good. NB - her recall isn’t great after we’ve had her on leash for a few months when she was coming into and out of season. Not sure I’m comfortable enough to let her off lead.
Hi @LoopyLuna I would not leave the lead on the dog--asking for trouble if the lead gets caught on something in the water. And as you don't have a good recall, I'd be reluctant to engage in the proposed venture. Sorry. I don't wish to be a killjoy. But until you gave a rock solid recall, then I wouldn't attempt it--what will you do if your dog jumps up on someone and knocks them over?
My Spaniel had great recall but for some reason she just started to swim out quite far, luckily a swimmer bought her back. She was closely supervised after that. After 10 years of holidays in Cornwall she only did this once.
If she is not already used to water and swimming, I would not start at the beach. Baby steps, starting with wading then swimming in lakes or slow rivers.
I take mine to the beach a lot and always have done (even before recall was perfect) He loves swimming in the river by my house but has never shown any interest in the sea. The beaches here (north wales) are basically dog parks or empty so we go just to meet other dogs and run around. I guess Michael's Aussie beaches are pretty different! Mine also hates being dried off with a towel but unexpectedly loves his drying coat.
We've been taking Yom to the beach for a while as we live so close. I keep him on a long line still, although he's sometimes trailing that now. He runs away from the waves and has only very recently started putting his paws in the water. Keep it low pressure! How did it go?
Hi @RuthElizabeth It went really well thanks - she was an absolute superstar. We were at Holkham in Norfolk, so there was miles of beach for her to explore and hardly anyone around. Most other dogs seemed to be really well under control, but we kept her on a 10m long line because she would have chased after birds flying low or joined in with other dogs playing. As it was, she didn’t want to venture far from us anyway and did some lovely heel work and check ins with us - she was a bit apprehensive about the water at first and very confused that she couldn’t catch the waves but I waded in with her (in wellies: far too cold for bare feet) and she got a bit more confident. Thankfully we’ve also been practicing “settle” and “LAT” with her for the past 2 weeks, because my other half asked her to settle into a down stay on the beach despite lots of distractions, and he got down on one knee and proposed. Luna watched the whole thing without jumping up and getting excited. A month ago she’d have probably eaten the ring or run off at the crucial moment
Congratulations Well done on the training too. Sounds as if it went swimmingly. Here is a suggestion. An internet acquaintance had her Golden Retriever carry the rings down the aisle. The rings were attached to the collar.
Thanks Michael. I would have every faith in her carrying the rings down the aisle. The only problem is I think she'd go and say hello to every single one of the guests first so we might be stood there a while
