We're taking our lab mixes to the beach for the first time. Zeus is 8, rambunctious, friendly, 74 pounds, fearless. Penny is 3-1/2, skittish but sweet, friendly to those she knows, 40 pounds. We've had each since they were very young rescue puppies. We want to turn them loose (if allowed) and I'm being a Nervous Nellie worrywart. At home, they are on a wireless perimeter fence front and back yard and well-trained to it. When we are home they come and go inside/outside as they please. At night, they are locked up inside. Before we got the wireless fence, Zeus (before Penny) was a fence-climber. Once, and once only, he went out of our cul-de-sac neighborhood, about 3 miles, while we were at work. Fortunately, someone called us and kept him until we picked him up. Otherwise he always came home or even stayed around in the yard if he got out. (This is why we got a companion for him and the wireless fence.) Please tell me your experiences of first-time-at-the-beach with your labs and settle my worries. Thanks!
Hi and welcome. You don't mention taking your dogs out for walks and how good their recall is to you. For them to be off lead in a public place, if allowed at the beach, you will need a strong recall. Apart from that just towels to dry them and plenty of fresh water for drinking
Welcome from me and my dogs .I think , if it were me , I would have them both on long training lines , especially as this is their first trip to the beach , better safe than sorry and even more especially as Zeus is a bit of an absconder .
I have similar questions to Rosemary - are you proposing to let adult dogs off lead on a beach when they are not normally off lead off your property? If so, this isn't very sensible. I think training recall in a less exciting place than a beach would probably be best. Unless the beach you have in mind is huge, miles away from any roads, and no-one else is there? Then that might be ok. I'd still say it's an exciting place to start though. My dog was off lead on the beach from a tiny puppy - but that was when he still had a 'safety response' to stay close to me, and I started training his recall then, on the beach, from 10 weeks old.
They have good recall at times but truthfully, rarely employed. We don't take them many places except doggie day care to play. We did take them to the mountains last fall. We got a cabin with a completely closed in deck - with railing -and Zeus went right over the railing but I had no trouble eventually getting him, although I went to him rather than him to me. I believe he thinks it's fun to tease me, but he was obviously always aware of where I was - this is pretty much how he used to behave when he went over the fence in his youth, too. He had not done that in about 3 years or so. Also his legs are not what they used to be, which makes me worry a LITTLE bit less. It's been suggested that since we are all pretty close to them - inside the house, sleeping at our feet, and so forth - and he is used to being "confined" with us, if you will, that he will stay within reach. Even in the mountains, he was almost always in my sight and for whatever reason, let me reach him and put his leash on after maybe 15 minutes. However, I do trust your opinions. How long is a "training line"? We have retractable leashes. Y'all seem to be in GB. I am in Georgia, USA, and the beach is on an island off our coast.
Hi there, Most people here are in the UK, where the forum is registered, but we have lots of members from the US, Canada, a very healthy representation of Australians, Germany, Italy, Dubai.... Well, is the beach on the island safe? If so, keep them on lead at first and see how they are? If calm, perhaps try some off lead, if beyond excited, maybe not..... I wouldn't put a training line on a dog on a beach if you haven't used one before. You really could do with learning to use one properly in a quiet space, a training field etc. We've had broken fingers etc from people using long lines incorrectly. And they are not suitable for stopping a dog running off at speed - even if the dog is on a harness, you give them a terrible shock stepping on a line. They are useful as a training tool, but not to stop a dog dashing off in a very exciting environment.
Is the retractable a Flat Lead or a Cord? I would be very careful with a Lab on a retractable cord anywhere. I have gotten a bad rope burn from someone else's Lab on a cord. Also people have lost fingers with them. Don't be surprised if they drink a bunch of the Ocean and then throw up. Our Labs only did that once, but they did it on their first beach trip.
I rescued 8 year old black lab Finn 2weeks ago. I took him to the beach last week. I had tested his recall down a quiet lane and it wasn't too bad, so on the beach I took a deep breath and let him go off lead. He was fine, mostly came back when called. The only problem I had was that there are a lot of jelly fish washed up on the shoreline and he thinks they are a snack. Have been told they are not dangerous but would rather he didn't, just in case!
