Hope is 6 months old and found out she loves retrieving sticks that are thrown into the water. Will I always have to throw a stick to get her to swim or will she eventually do it on her own without a lure? Is it wrong to lure her in with the sticks?
Hello Beth, my young lab loves retrieving from water , her favourite thing! She didn’t do this until 7.5 months, we didn’t push anything, just waited until she was ready. She will go and stand in water on her own but very rarely swims without something to retrieve. Personally I’m happy with that as some rivers here can be very fast flowing so I’d rather her not go off swimming in water on her own volition. That’s just my preference
Pls don’t teach your dog to chase sticks. Get a dummy if possible. Of course an object to lure makes it easier to get a dog into water. They will swim on their own but not really at length so use an dummy object. Also will help with your bonding
We are partial to tennis balls because you can throw them a lot further with a Chucker. If you go swimming your dog will probably go with you. Be careful not to get kicked . If you haven't already figured it out, dog paddle by a dog is fast.
